i 

Honorable Vera V. Fogg 

County dtt6rney 

Herdsman County 

'@enah, Texas 

Deer Madam: 

Yourletter of SeRtrnnber 

this department, reeds es follows: 

"At the request of 

Opinion No. O-5552 

Rer. Effective date of the increese~fn the school tax rate 

es euthbrized under Rouse Bill 

800, 49th Legislature. 

25, 1945, requesting an opinion from 

the local tax assessoroolleotor, I am suhnltting the following questions 

for your ruling: 

"When may the raise in sohool tax bsomne effeotive, after it has been authorized by vote as 

set out in House Bill No. 800, passed by the 49th 

Legislature? 

"As you of cburse'know, all tax rolls are now 

prepared ind colb otion of taxes on them will begin 

Ootober 1. It ooours to me that it muld not bs 

possible to ass868 and collect an additional tax for 

the ourrent year, but I should like your opinion upon 

this. 

"If it is lnombsxt upon the tax assessor and 

oolleotor to asssss an idd~itional tax for school purposes inmediately after the vote authorizing the raise 

in rate, naturally it will take time~to prepare the 

supplemental rolls.' Ih the meantime, melly taxpayers 

will'have paid their taxes fdr the current taxable 

year, and the usual tax receipt shows payment in full. 

"Under these oiroumstanoes, could the tax collector oolleot the additional tax for the ourrent 

year based upon the raise authorized by the above 

act df the Legislature? Would the taxpayer have any 

reootirse, should'he deoide an additional tax for the 

ourrent year was unfeir, in that he had theretofore 
. . 

Hon. Vera V. Fogg, page 2 (O-6852) 

paid whet he thought was all his tax bill for the 

current year? 

"Ia the event this additional tax oan bs 

essessed and oolleoted for the current taxable year, 

who will furnish the forms sad reoeipts,usually 

seat to the tax molleotor by the State? 

'Ya den readily see the exteat of the boafusion whioh would result~fromtrying to assess sad collect en additional tax, even though the bill bsosme 

effective June 4, and elections have been held in 

some sohool distriots euthoriziag the raise in rate 

forthe ourrent year. However, I can find very little 

law to substantiate this idea, so we shall bs greteful for your easwer to these questions et your eerliest 0onvenieaoe.s 

House Bill SO0 is oodified in Vernon's Annotsted Civil Statutes 

es Artiole 2784e. We here quote the portion of House Bill 800 pertinent to 

this inquiry es follews: 

"The oommlssioners'oourt for the common school 

distriots in its county, and the dist5dot school 

trustees for the independent sohool districts inoorporated for school purposes only;shell have power 

to levy sad cause to be oollsoted, the annual taxes 

sad to issue the~boads herein authorised, subjeot to 

the following provisions: 

"1. In oommon sohool districts, for the further mniatenaaoe of publio free sohools sad.the erection 

sad~equIpPeat of school buildings therein, a special 

tax; and ia independent distriots for the meinteaanoe 

of'sohodls therein, aa ad valorem tax not to exoeed 

#I..60 on.the #lo0 valuation of tnxeble property of the 

distrlet. 

“2. In eommoa sohool aad.ladepsndeat districts, 

for the purohase, oonsfruotion, repair or equipneat 

of'pu%lio free sohool buildings within the limits of 

suoh dlstrlets and the purohase of the neoessary sites 

therefor, a tax not to exbeed 60# on the #LOO valuation, suoh tax to be for the payment of the eurrent 

interest on sad provide a slaking fund suffioieat to 

pay the principal of bonds whioh said distriots ere 

empowered to issue for suoh purposes. 

“3. The susouat of maiateneaoe tax, together with 

the'smount of bondinx of rw district, shell never exoeed $l.SO on the ho0 valuation of taxable property8 

sad lf the rate of bondtix, together with the rate of 
. 

Hon. Vera V. Fogg, Page 3 (O-6852) 

maiateaeaoe tnx voted ia the ~distriat shnll l t eng 

time exceed $1.50 on the.#lOO rnluntioa, such bond 

tax shall opalrte to reduoe the maintsa&oe tax to 

thi differenoe bstweea the rate of the bond&x end 

al.50. 

-4. Do’tu shall he levied, oolleoted, ebrogated; diminished or iaorenEed, nad no bonds &all be 

insued hereunder until such notion has been nuthorired 

b y l majority of the votes onst nt na elestioa held ia 

the distriot for such purpoesc~, nt which none but property taxpaying qualified voters of suoh district sbll 

be entitled to vote.” 

The fomer lnw (Artiole 2794, Revised Statutes) was in sublrtaatielly ths *we laagua e’sxoept that the tax’oeiling ia Sections 1 and 

? respeotively,wns &at 1 1.00 instend of #l.SO. 

It mill be noted that the lnw gives the power of levying the 

tnx to the commissionerr’ oourt or the rchool trustees respeotively and 

thet’the vote of the people referred to in Bootion 4 merely nuthorises the 

levy, but Is not *he levy itrelfo 

The &mmibsioa of’A psals”hbld.ia Yorktona Iadependbnt Sohool 

District v. Mflerlmch, 12 6-W. P 26) 130, opinion by Judge Speer, that P 

vote of the psople l uthoriaiag the tnx 10vy ia question we not effsotive 

to impose n tax until the sohopl board nofually ordsrsd,fhe lsvy of the tax. 

. ,.. Sea al80 Geffert v. Yorktowakrdependeat 6ohool Distriot, 290 

8.11. 1053, by the Cusm&ssioa of Appeals, wherafaJudge Spser held that where 

no valid lsvy order wa# made by the sohool bonrd, the fax could not bs enforoed. 

It would be the duty of the assensor-oollsofor therefore to 

neseas property ia 0-a nohool distriofr via iooordsaoe with the order of 

the scamissioaers’ sourt lmiag the tnx: nad in nay independent sohool 

distrista, for mhioh he ir requirsd to reader service, he should adhere to 

the’rnte’ rbt for-thin the levy by’the’board of,trurtsea of the distriot. 

Siaoe’tb nssrisor-bolleotor of your wunty ha6 l lreedy prepared his tax 

rolla; Ve sssume thnt +e oommlssionerr~ sourt sad the boards of any indepeadsat nshool dintrios iavolvad b+ made thrii aanucrlwies for this 

venr and so. oertifled to the’nenrssor-oolleotor. If this be true, no 

idditioaal tu may bs lsvlrd. 

‘.. ~n’oliver v.’ Cermier, 39 Tax. 396, the rohool borrd lsvied n 

tax of one-half of one peroeat. Thir bonrd waa removed from offioe md P 

new bonrd during the *NW yenr lwled the legalmuimm~~ of one psroent. 

The Suprase Court, speskiag through Judge Welker, said: 
Hon. Vera V. Fogg, Page 4 (O-6652) 

M think the first levy was legal, but that 

the second,bDerd of directors had no such power es 

would enable than to set rside the former levy, 

under which the tax ought to have bsea,oollected. 

The Legisleture vested.ia the sohool directors e 

discretionary power to levy suoh tex as in their 

judgment the public necessities required. This dis- 

.orstion lhea once exercised in fixing the amount 

of tax to be levied for epy one:yeer nas ~exhausted, 

end the second boerd,of'direotors could not rwise 

end ~seteside the discretioawy ection,ofthe former 

board." 

.~ 

Accordingly, since the governmental 'agencies in,question ere 

without power to levy en edditioasl tax this year, it is not necessary to 

enswer your remaining questions. 

As previously stated, we are esswning for the purposes of this 

opinion that valid lwies have been mede by all govermnentel agencies invol-, 

ved prior to preparation of the tax rolls. Eb cell your etteation to the 

feat, howwer, that if e levy has not been made for this yenr, the question 

of P double lwy would not be involved. The commissioners' court for the 

common school distriots, or the schoolboerd in en independent school district, could in such cese make an original'ibvy for the iaareesed rate euthorired by statute end a vote of the people. 

In the cnse of Cedeae v. State, 165 5.X 367, error refused, 

Judge Fly stated: 

"All property owned on,the first dsy of January is 

subject to nay tex euthorised by law! whether suohtexes 

hevs'heen authorized theretofore or may be authorized 

duringthe year, end oen be lwied by the body given the 

power +a levy et any time during the year. laws nsmiag 

the time for t&s levy of taxes are merely direotory, end 

legal taxes cea bs levied whenever the neoessity arises. 

'To the ssme effect, see Pyote Independent School~Distriot v. 

Dyer; 34 5.111. (26) 576 (Ccusmission‘of Appeals), end Blewett v; Ri&ardson 

Independent School District, 240 6.K 529 (Commission of Appeals). 

Very truly yours 

ATTOFNRYGEBERALOFTEEAS 

JAScdb:egw By /s/J! Arthur Saadlin ~. 

m.OCT 28, 1945 J~.A&h&Sendlia 

/s/GRCVER SELLERS AFPROVED Assistant 

ATTORNEY GR?EF&L OF TExhS Opinion Committee 

By B VI B 

Chairman