. . 

NEY GENERAL 

Hon. Bowlen Bond opinion NO. 0-3936 

Crimilial District Re: Licensing of a passenger motor vehiAttorney cle as such with a; “farm license” regardFairfieldi Texas less of the use to be made of the passenger vehicle, under the provisions of 

kticle 6675a-6a and the licensing of 

drivers and operators of such vehicle under the drivers’ license law, being ktiDear Sir: cle 6687b. 

We have your letter of November 10, 1941, requesting 

the opinion of this department on the above matters. Your letter 

reads as follows: 

“Many farmers in this County and adj,oilllng 

counties are registering their commercial motor 

vehicles; and in some instances passenger motor 

vehicles, under Article 6675a-6a, Vernon’s Annotated Statutes 

43, Chapter 116, 

which comes from Senate Bill. No. 

Laws of the 4’7th E 

age 144, General and Special 

egislature. 

“It is the common practice for persons owning 

passenger motor vehicles .aud registered as such, 

to occasionally use trailers, attached to such vehicles for the transportation of various commodities belonging to them 

with such passenger mo i 

and, especially Sor farmers 

or vehicles and registered 

as such, to attach. trailers to such vehicles and 

transport hogs and’ cattle to the Dallas and Fort 

Worth market. In the instant cases, the hogs and 

cattle are rai,sed on the farm ‘by the person transporting the same. 

tfWlll you kindly give me an opinion on the 

following questions relative to the licensing and 

operation of motor vehicles, and the licensing of 

the drivers and operators of such vehicles under 

I+ DrIversI License Law? 

a(l) ‘Does Art. 6675a-6a, Vernon’s Annotated 

Civil Statutes, authorize the licensing of a passenger motor vehicle as such:with a ‘Farm License!, regardless of the us’e Tao be made of the passenger 

vehicle? 
Hon. Bowlen Bond, page 2 (O-3936) 

“(2) Is the operator of a passenger motor 

vehicle registered and use prtmarlly as such, 

when such passenger motor vehicle is being used to 

pull a’trailer in which property is being transported, required to have a license as a ‘Commercial 

Cperatort? 

“Under my construction of the statutes and the 

definition of ‘Passenger Car’ and lCommerclal Motor Vehicle r , under Senate Bill No. 43, as carried 

in Art. 667%1, Vernon’s Civil Statutes, and the 

various definitions and provisions of Article 6687b, 

Vernon’s Annotated Statutes, as enacted by House 

I3111 No. 20, Acts 47th Legislature, both of the 

above questions should be answered in the negative. 

“However, the opinion of theAttorney General 

has more weight with the local authorities who are 

demanding an opinion on these questions.e 

Upon the facts contained in your letter you propound 

to us two questions which questions we will discuss in the order 

presented. 

Question No. 1: Does Article 6675a-6a, Vernonls Annotated Civil Statutes, authorize the llcensing of ~a passenger motor vehicle as such with a 

“Farm Licenselt, regardless of the use to be made of 

the passenger vehicle? 

Article 6675a-6a of Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, 

reads in part as followsr 

“When a commercial motor vehicle sought tb be 

registered and used by the owner thereor Q&J in t&g 

orodwts. timber in its mural state. 

to market. or J;_o 

~ruminb or the treor 0r -era from wolace 0f rew I 

,m or raa, the registration license ree, 

for the weight classifications herein mentioned, shall 

‘be fifty (50%) per cent of the registration fee prescribed for weight classifications in Section 6 of the 

kct hereby amended, as amended in this Act; . . . provided, however, that all commercial motor vehicles, 

truck tractors’, ,road tractors, trailers and seml- 
Hon. Bowlen Bond; page 3 (0-3936) 

t,railers as defined In Section 1 of Chapter 23 

of the General Laws of the Fifth Called.Se,ssion 

of the 41st Legislature, not coming within the 

provisions of this hctshall be required to pay 

all registration and license f,ees prescribed by 

the other provisions of, Chapter 88, General Laws 

of the 41s.t Legislature, Second Called Session 

as amended by this Act.,” 

Hrticle.6675a-1 (1) of Vernon’s &nnotated Civil Statutes of 1925 reads as follows: 

lt’Commerclal Mo.tor Vehicles’ means any motor 

vehicle (other than a mot~orcycle or .passenger car) 

designed or used primarily for. the, transportation 

of property, including any passenger car which has 

been reconstructed so as to be used, and which is 

being used, primarily for ,deli.very purposes, with 

the except i on of passenger cars used in the delivery 

of the United States mailsi” 

bticle 6675a-1 (j) of Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes of 1925, reads as follows: 

N’Passenger Car’ means any motor vehicle other 

than a motor cycle or a~ bus, as defined in this Act, 

designed or used primarily for the transportation of 

persons.” 

It can readily be seen that the distinction between 

“passenger cars” and “commercial motor vehiclesI’ under the definitions above quoted rests upon the primary use to which such 

veh.icle is put. Commercial vehicles b,ei.ng those “designed or 

used primarily for transportation ,of pr,operty” and passenger 

oars being those “designed or used, primarily for transportation 

of. persons”. Applying these definitions to the fact situation 

presented in paragraph 2 of your letter wherein you say, “it 

is the common pra,ct,ice for persons owning passenger motor vehicles and registered as such, to occasi,onally: ruse trailers attached ,to such vehioles fork the t~ransportatioa of various commodities belonging to them, and especially for farmers with such 

passenger motor vehicles and registered-as such, to attach trailers to such vehicles and transport hog,s and cattle to the Dallas 

and Fort Worth market,” it ,is clear that the primary use, of the 

vehicles in question would bring them under the definition above 

quoted of “passenger cars.” 

We do not :believe that under the facts presented in 

your letter the vehicles tin :question n,ould be entitled to be litensed with a farm license for two reasons. 
Hon. Bowlen Bond, page 4 (O-3936) 

(a) It will be noted that Article 6675a-6a, above 

quoted, provides for the registrationof only “comWrcia1 motor 

vehicles” coming withinthe ~provisions of such statute and does 

not prov*,.de for such’registration ~6’ .passenger’cars. - Therefore 

the vehioles ‘in”question coming within the above .definition of 

passenger cars would not be entitled to registration under Article 6675a-6a. 

(b) It will be ‘noted that Article 6675a-6a provides 

“when a commercial ‘mot~or vehicle sought to be‘registered’and’~ 

used by the owner thereof. only in the transportation .of his ‘own 

poultry, dairy, livestock, livestock products; timber in its 

natural state, and farm products to market; or to~other points 

for sale. or processing, or the ~transportation by the ow~ner thereof of laborers from their place’ of residence,, and materials, 

tools, equipment ‘and’supplies, without charge, ‘from the place 

ofpurchase or storage; to his own ‘farm or ranch, exclusively 

for his own use or use on such farm or .ranch. . . .I( We are 

of the opinion <hat the word ‘Ionly”’ as used in Article 6675a62 above means that the vehicles sought to be registered under 

the provisions of such Wticle shall be used only for the purposes therein expresely~provided and for no other to entitle it 

to registration under the reduced rate provided in such statute. 

It is the opinion of this department and you are therefore advised that Article 6675a-6a does not authorize the licensing of a passenger motor vehicle as such with a U1farm license,” 

regardless of the use to be made of the passenger vehicle. 

The second question presented in your letter is as follows: 

Question No. 21 Is the operator of a passenger 

motor vehicle registered and used primarily as such, 

when such passenger motor vehicle is being used to 

pull a trailer in which property is being transported 

required to have a lioenee as a cCommercial Operator 4 

We have heretofore held in Opinion No. O-3560, copy of 

whloh is enaloeed herewith, that the definition of %ommercial 

operatortt in Houao Bill No. 20 being Article 6687b-l-(n), contains no speoifio exemption of a farmer who is hauling his own 

produce to market. And that therefore such farmer would be ineluded withln the legislative definition of a l~oommercial operator” set out in said House Bill No. 20, Article I, Section 1, 

paragraph (n). 

In passing on the question ,preeented by you we are confronted with a somewhat dirfsrent fact situation than that presented in Opinion No. 0-3560 in that under the present factual 
Hon. Bowlen Bond, page 5 (o-3936) 

situation the farmer in question does not haul the property in 

the vehicle it self, but attaches a trailer thereto in which 

certain farm products are hauled to market. 

The. definition’ of “commercial op~erator” contained in 

House Bill 20, kticle I, Section 1, paragraph (n); being Article 6687b-l-(n) .of Vernon’s Civil Statutes of 1925, is as follows: 

l’(n) ‘Commercial Operator. I Every person who 

is the driver of a motor vehicle designed or used 

for the transportation of property, including all 

vehicles used for delivery purposes, while said 

vehicles are beine: u d for c mmercial or delivery 

puroose&.l’ (lJndersc%ng our:) 

You will note that this definition provides, Chile 

said vehicles are being used for commercial or delivery purposes.” 

We believe that the test to be applied under the above quoted 

portion of the definition is the use to which the vehicle is being put and in the case in question the vehicle is being used for 

commercial purposes in pulling the trailer for the purpose of 

hauling property. We are of the opinion, therefore, and you are 

so advised that your second question should be answered in the 

affirmative . 

Trusting that this fully answers the questions presented by you, we are 

Yours very truly 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

By /s/ Douglas E. Bergman 

Douglas E. Bergman, Assistant 

APPROVED DEC 19, 1941 

/s/ Grover Sellers 

FIRST ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL 

APPROVED: &INIWCI”l”lTTEE 

BY: I 

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