Honorable J. W. Edgar 

State Commissioner of Education 

201 East Eleventh Street 

Austin, Texas 78701 

Dear Mr. Edgar: 

OpiniOn NO. M-1072 

Re: Legality of adoption 

by Independent School 

District of Home Rule 

City's ordinance providing a 10% penalty on 

delinquent taxes. 

Your request for an official opinion is quoted as follows: 

"Pursuant to the provisions of Article 1066b, 

Vernon's Civil Statutes, as amended, taxes of 

the Wichita Falls Independent School District 

are assessed and collected by the City of Wichita Falls. 

"By Ordinance No. 2680 (passed November 2, 1971), 

the City of Wichita Falls has increased penalty 

charged by it for delinquent taxes from 8% to 10%. 

"The Wichita Falls Independent School District 

board desires to adopt the ordinance allowing 

collection by or for said school district of a 

10% delinquent tax penalty, if not prohibited by 

the limit in Article 7336, V.C.S., or any other 

statute.~ 

"The Board of Trustees of the Wichita Falls Independent School District has by resolution requested 

me to submit for consideration and opinion of the 

Office of Attorney General re the following: 

"The legali~by of increasing penalty on delinquent 

school tares of the Wichita Falls district from 

8% .to IO%--whose taxes are collected pursuant to 

authority exercised under Article 1066b, V.C.S., 

as amended." 

-5253- 
Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 2, (M-1072) 

Undoubtedly, the crux of the problem posed by your question 

is whether Section lb of Article 1066b, which gives a city assessing and collecting taxes for another district or m-ipality, the option to collect such taxes in installments as allowed by Article 7336, or in lump sums with an 8% delinquency 

penalty limit, is a limitation on the powers granted in Section la of such Article. This latter Section grants to any 

municipality or district taking advantage of the act in -stion (Art. 1066b) the r1gh.t to adopt 3 law of the State or 

charter provision or ordinance applicable to the levying, assessing and collecting of taxes by the district of municipality rendering the tax service. 

It is apparent that Sections la and lb of Article 1066b 

serve dual functions within the framework of the Act, i.e., to 

achieve uniform and economical collection procedures. Sec. la 

allows the participating municipalities or districts to adopt 

by ordinance or resolution any applicable law of the State, 

and, as well, any ordinance or charter provision of each other 

which are applicable to the levying, assessing and collecting 

of taxes, In order that such tax services may be performed in 

a uniform and economical manner. Sec. lb, on the other hand, 

applies on1 to the agency performing the tax services for 

another, -3 an then only when such active agency is a city. 

This section is plainly a gran t of extra power to cities participating under the terms of Articm66b who performthese 

tax services for other cities or districts. The authority 

here given to such cities is the unilateral option to collect 

such taxes for them- and the other partming municipalities and districts according to the general tax collection laws prescribed by Article 7255 and 7336 (which permit 

installment paymen,ts) or by the exclusive lump sum payment 

plan prescribed as an alternative by Sec. lb of Article 1066b. 

Obviously, this extra power given the City chosen to serve 

as assessor, collector and Board of Equalization in tax matters for the other participants, further serves the stated 

purpose of uniformity and eco'nomy as expressed in Section la 

of Article 1066b. However, ,this option on the part of such 

participating cities is merely permissive and they are not 

(All Articles and Sections thereof herein referred to are 

Vernon's Civ:il Satutes.) 

-5254- 
Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 3, (M-1072) 

obliged to exercise such right. Neither are the alternative 

tax procedures of Sec. lb of Article 1066b exclusive of other 

procedures allowed by law to be chosen by the participating 

members. 

Thus, the City of Wichita Falls, being governed under a 

Home Rule Charter, can serve as a tax agent for the Wichita 

Falls Independent School District while using its own charter 

provisions and ordinances relating to the assessing and collecting of taxes. Furthermore, by authority given by Sec. la 

of Article 1066b the Wichita Falls Independent School District 

can adopt the City's said Charter provisions and ordinances 

relating to the assessing and collecting of taxes. 

It appears from the material furnished with your request 

that the Charter under which the City of Wichita Falls is operating allows a penalty of not more than 10% on the City's delinquent ad valorem taxes. While an Independent School District 

has no power of its own to set penalties or interest on its 

delinquent taxes, it may adopt all provisions of state and county laws on taxation that nay be applicable (Art. 7337); and if, 

as is desired in this instance, it takes advantage of the provisions of Article 1066b, it may by ordinance or resolution 

adopt all or any part of the Charter or ordinances applicable 

to the levying, assessing and collecting of taxes, of the City 

rendering the tax service. (Sec. la, Art. 1066b). 

Hence, it is the opinion of this office that the Wichita 

Falls Independent School District, whose taxes are assessed 

and collected by the City of Wichita Falls pursuant to authority exercised under Article 1066b, may adopt the City's Ordinance allowing the collection of a 10% penalty on delinquent 

taxes, thus equalizing the legal penalty on delinquent taxes 

of the City and the school district at 10%. 

SUMMARY 

The adoQil'~~or! by Wichita Falls Independent 

School District o:? the Home Rule City of Wichita 

-5255- 
Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 4, (M-1072) 

Falls! tax ordinance, will authorize the City 

to collect its and the school district's delinquent taxes at a penalty rate of ten (10%) per 

cent. 

Prepared by R. L. Lattimore 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Kerns Taylor, Chairman 

W. E. Allen, Co-Chairman 

James Broadhurst 

Harriet Burke 

James McCoy 

Malcolm Quick 

SAMUEL D. MCDANIEL 

Staff Legal Assistant 

ALFRED WALKER 

Executive Assistant 

NOLA WHITE 

First Assistant 

-5256-