OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Hon. Thea. A. Wheat 

County Attorney 

Liberty County 

Liberty, Texan 

Dear Sir: 

February 20, 1939 

ation rees thereon. 

the population of 

;OOO peopk? with Liberty, 

on of appriximately 

thin said oounty whorain your 

talned by the tax as8eaaham? population of approrlmntely 5,580 

and l pprariaatsly 7,SOO in lta trade 

“l&sad upon them faota, you refer ~8 to Art1010 

%U56, Rarised 01~11 Statute*, 1925, ac. amended, and lend 

a rery strong argument in mapport of the oomtruotlon wbioh 

.yOu bar* plaod upon 8aid Statute. We oertalnly l ppreoiate 

the faot that you hare giran oomlderable thought to this 

question, although we are oonatralnd to diraeree with the 
Eon. Thos. k. Qest, February 20, 1939, Pare fZ 

conclusions renched In your letter. You tic:re' that maintalqlnF such a hrcnoh office does Ilot ~OIX v:lthla the 

prorislona of Artlole 7256, as amended, but thet the intent. 

of the Legislature from oonstruine; said hrtlole olearly 

furnishes the basis for the branoh offloe in queetlon. 

:':e are unable to adopt suoh a cocstruotlon in 

our oonolu~lon as to the Intent of the Legislature ln enaotlng thls statute. The oondltion in ealci artlole whloh permits tbc eatabllshment of e branoh offloe thereunder reads: 

" . ..-. provldlng, however, that in all 

oountlea oontalnlng a olty or town, other 

than the oounty seat, nhlch has in excess 

of 7.000 ~ahabltanta aooordlnp to the last 

Federal oenaua, said assessor and colleotor 

of taxes, with the oonsent and approval of 

the Commlsnioners* Court, may appoint a deputy 

assessor and colleotor of taxes In auoh town 

or oltp, who shall have the richt to collect 

taxes from all persons who desire to pa? 

their tares to him, and to Issue a valid reoeipt therefor...." 

The term "aooordla to the last Federal census" 

'parly prohibits the extcn 

-f-__- 

ng by oonatrumfr 

orda "city" or "town" in this artlole as meanInK *trade 

territory". febater'a new International Dlotlonary defines 

"towu" as: 

"'Any n-bar or oolleotlon of houses oonatltutlng a dlatlnot plaoe with a name.* 

The Federal oenaua does not lnolude inhabitants 

of a trade territory oonneoted with any olty or tov,a and we 

are unable to dlaoard this llmltatlon merely for the sake 

or a oonetruotion which has for Its sole basis not a conflict or obstruction in admlnisterln& the law but the obtloua oonvenlenoe of those upon whom the administration of 

tho law Is dIreotsd. 

It will be noted that Artlole 7255. RerIaed 

Civil Statutes, 1925, provides that tha tax oollaotor oL 
913 deput-1: c!~ll ~t.tond tn.: rr71ui:l r:t lc::3'c t,w> ..ays in 

ueol1 votl?*- or Justloe 2reclnot for ~.!;a ;ur;tosc 0: oollectlm~ such taxes a3 may be n~iti, aft t:r .7lvi1:,~: notloe 

of t,'t- tirw a::'~. rrldica ~8 requj.red t!':lrci;l. 

'yo haYe arLanvored tc, v:el.cr:,,:n*i II, se1 ri ?,ranoh 

of'lce would nclt ~nc: cluthorlzad by a llhcral oonstruotlon 

or tYs article and we are unnblc? to do LW. In orriving 

at our o>In!on cf t!lcl queetlmS, XP t~hink tk:: tke .;cts 

of 1929, 41st Ler;lnlot.ure, Secomi Called :'uss:cm, "hapter 66, page 17E, and amendments of certeln sections 

tbreor, control. Ye ccl1 :cur crttentlr:: tc. :ec. 11 of 

irtlcle 6575a, being the saze es Sec. 11 of ttic above 

cot wh!oh reads as fellows: 

'As cosponsetlon ror .ls services under 

the provisions of thla and other laws relatlne to the reelstretlon of vehicles and ohauffeura and the transfer of vehlclos, saoh County 

Tax Coaleotor shall reoelve a mir0m re0 or 

fifty cents for aaoh of the first one thousand 

reoelpts Issued by him eaoh year pursuant to 

aald laws; be shall reoclve a unForm foe of 

forty oenta ror eaoh of the next nine thousand 

reoc!pts ao issued, a uniform fee of thirty 

oeata ror each or the next fifteen thousand 

reoeipts so Issued and a uniform fee of twanty 

oenta ror eaoh of the balance of aald moelpts 

so Issued during the yaar. Said compensation 

shall be deduoted weekly by eaoh County Tax 

Colleotor imm the grota oolleotlcns made 

pursuant to this Aot (Arts. 6675a-1 to Cfi75a-14; 

I?. C. Art. 807s) and other laws relating to the 

re~latratloa of vehlolea and ohauffeura and the 

transfer of behlolea. Out of the oom~enaatloa 60 

allowed County Tax Collaotora, It la hereby oxpraaaly provided end required that they shall 

pny the entire expense of lcaul~ all lloeaae 

reoeipta and number plates and chauffeurs badges 

laaued pursuant bhreto, laoludlng the ooat of 

labor parforned ia issuing aald reoalpta, aumber plates and badges and the ooat of postage 

used la mailing same to ap;,lIoante. (Aots 1929, 

41at Leg., 2nd C. S., p. 172, oh. 88. Para. 11." 
Bon. Thou. A. R'hent, February 20, 1939, I'age 4 

In referring to Chapter 88 of the nbore Act, 

we find that Sec. 10a of maid eot contained the follorin6 provision whloh was omitted when said Sea. 10a pi 

the 1929 Sot was amended bytthe 418t Ix&slatura, Aate 

of 1930, Fifth Called Se88ion, Chapter 33, page 167: 

R . . ..It la hereby expressly provided 

that no County Tax Colleotor shall malntaln 

more than one offlae at which rehlole8 may 

be registered nnder the provisions of this 

Aot, but 8uoh Tax Colleotor may mSlntaln one 

or more bruroh orfloes in any city, town of 

village within his oounty barln~ a population 

of ten thousand, or more, provided, however, 

that no person ah~ll be euthorlzed or permltted to oolleot any lloenae reas under 

the prorlalona of this Aot, exoept the Tax 

Colleotor or a duly authorized and ppplnted 

deputy." 

It la highly algnlrloant in renderin& this 

opinion to note thst the same Leglalature. by the Aota 

or 1950,~th Called Seaalox~. afreotlre Uroh 18, 1920, 

had the ldentloal queatlom of allowlna the aatabllabmont 

or auah branoh orrlooa berore it, and oonoluded that 

only auoh branoh offlees as would be authorized within 

the prorlalona of Artlole '1226 oould be legally maintcllnd. Suoh UI omlaalon oloarly lndloetea an intent 

by the ti2lalature to l xoluda the Subjeot therStofore 

parmltte6. 

We l ro unable to find any opinion having issued rroa this Department heretorore, plaolne l dimrant lnterprotetlon or oonatruotlon on almllar mrdlng 

as dlaouaaod har*ln. 

It la, therefore, the oplnlon or this Department 

that thm malntalning oi aueh branoh oifloo for tha pnrpoaea 

mentioned In your lettor la not l nthorlted. 

Vary truly yours