R-470 

OFFICE OF 

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

May 24, 1947~ 

Hon. George H. Sheppard 

Comptroller of Public Accounts 

Austin, Texas Opinion No. V-215 

Dear Sir: 

&Wl'IX,'BIEXAS 

Re: The proper method to 

be followed to collect 

delinquent taxes from 

an Oklahoma truck line 

doing business inTexas, 

under the intangible 

tax law.of this State. 

You request opinion of this Department by 

letter of May 12, 1947, as to procedure to~be follWed 

in enforcing payment-of delinquent intangible taxes 

against a truck line. (Arts. 7105-7116 V.C.S.) -. 

This question may be answered by the simple 

statement that if it beaomes necessary to file suit for 

the collection of this tax, such,a stit should be f%led 

adprosecuted by the County Attorney, or such other at-, 

tormyas might be legally designated by the Commissioners* Court of the Coun'ty, as in the case of any other 

delinquent ad valorem taxes upon tangible property. 

A brief reference to the statutes governing 

the assessing and collection of intangible taxes, makes 

this quite apparent. 

Article 7105, V.C.S., provides in part as 

follows: 

"The intangible taxable values of 

said motor bus companies and said common 

carriers shall be apportioned to the county in or through.which they operate in 

proportion to the clistanoe in miles of the 

highways traversed. by said carriers in each 

respective county." 
Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 2 (V-215) 

-.-- Article 7113, V. C. s., provides: 

"Thereafter, and not later than the 

W;;,d&yy,f June of each year, said board 

. a final valuation and apportionment'oi the intangible assets. . . 

and shall, as soon after such 20th day of 

June as practicable, certify to the tax 

assessor of each county the amount found 

to be apportionable. . . The Tax assessor of such county, up-n receiving such 

certificate . . . sha f 1 place, set down 

and list . . . upon the tax rolls of the 

county.. . . any and all such intangible 

assets, at the value so . . . certified 

The foregoing statutory provisions clearly 

commit the collection of intangible taxes to the tax 

collectors of the respective counties as apportioned by 

the Intangible Tax Board. If it should become necessary 

to file suit for delinquent intangible taxes it would be 

in the same manner as applicable to other delinquent 

taxes on tangible property. 

In order to insure an orderly and effective 

method of collecting this tax, it became necessary to 

fix a situs of taxation. The apportionment method obviously was the most feasible, and this was the method 

adopted. 

The-.oase of State vs. Texas Paoific Railway 

Company et al, 62 S. Yi. (2d) 81, very clearly demonstrates 

the feasibility of fixing the taxable situs upon the apportionment basis as provided in the Act, and from this 

case we quote: 

'"It is the settled law that, as a 

whole, the intangible assets of a railroad 
Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 5 (V-215) 

oompahy have no situ8 in any or the oouhties through which the railroad rims. 

Missouri, K. & T. Ry. v. Shannon 100 Tex. 

379 100 S. W. 12X3. 10 L. R. A. tN.S.) 

681; Lively v. Ry.: 102 Tex. 345, 120 S.W. 

852. But this does not mean that the Legislature has no authority to provide for 

the partition of the intangible assets of 

a railroad company, for taxation purposes, 

and to fix the situs of the respective portions in the respebtive counties sharing in 

the partition. On the contrary; the Legislature has authority to do this, and has, 

in effect, done that very thing. In what 

is sometimes known a.8 the'intangible tax 

law, being chapter 4, tit. 122, of the Revised Statutes (articles 7098-7116), the 

Legislature has provided a state tax board, 

and made various provision8 for the astertaihment by the board of the true value of ' 

the intangible asset8 of a railroad company, 

for the purpose of taxation; and for the 

apportionment of such value, for taxation 

purposes, to the various counties in which 

lines of the railroad 1118. The standard by 

which such apportionment is to be made by 

the board is prescribed in the act, The 

oonclusion rea8oI&3b~ly~follow8 that, by 

these apportionment provisions of the statutes, the Legislature intended that such apportionment, when made a8 prescribed, would 

fix the situs of each portion in acoordanoe 

with the allocation made by the board. . . ." 

This ease clearly demonstrates that the Legialature has the authority to fix the situs for the purpose of taxation in the respeotive counties sha'ring in 

the apportionment, in derogation of the comnon rule that 

the situs for the 'taxation of personal property is at 

the residence of the owner. 

Raving by legiislative aation fixed the situs 

of the taxability of the intangible assets of those subject to the act, it became necessary to commit to some 

appropriate authority the collection of the tax and the 

enforcement thereof, and this ha8 been done by committing 

it to the county officials a8 taxes upon other property. 

The intangible value8 as certified by the Intangible Tax 

Board are entered by the tax assessor upon the assessment 
Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 4 (V-215) 

rolls of the county and the amount OS tax liability determined by the application of the appropriate rate. 

It follows from the foregoing that suit for 

the collection of delinquent Intangible taxes should be 

filed in the counties where the tax is levied and by the 

same official and in the same manner as provided by statute for collection of delinquent taxes on tangible property. The County Attorney of Leon County should proceed 

to collect the deli,nquent Intaligible tax of this taxpayer as in the case of any othek delinquent taxes as 

provided by Article 7345b, V. C. S. 

County officials are authorized to 

collect delinquent Intangible taxes in the 

same name; and under the same statutory 

provisions as delinquent taxes upon tahgible property. 

v.. c. 

Arts. 7105-7116 and 7345b,::,w 

s .; State of Texas vs. Texas Pacific 

Ry. Co. 62,s. W. (2d) 81. 

Yours very truly, 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

U'L/lh/wb 

,,ZPJ~ 

L. P. Lollar &@ 

Assistant 

APPROVED WY 24, 1947