Hon. Clifford 5. Roe Opinion No. 

### O-6885

County Attorney Panola County Carthage, Texas Rer Registration of out of State passenger automobiles in Texas.

Dear Sir: Wequote the following material parts of your letter of October 

### 19,1945,requesting an opikion of this department:

I’

. . . Weare located near the Louisiana state line and license plates are muchcheaper in Louisiana. Also manynewpeople are coming to Carthage from various places due to the gas boomhere. As a consequence, there are numerous out of state license plates seen daily, most of them however, are Louisiana license plates. *Some of the newpeople work here and stay at Carthage during the week and go to Louisiana on the week end or on occasional trips while others have moved in and brought their families with them. However, when most of these people are questioned, they say that they are not a resident of Texas and that they are only working here temporary, however manyof these people have lived here for months and are wearing out our roads and bridges, but do not license their cars in Texas.

. . .

“If possible, I would like to knowthe following questions. 

### “(1). Whena person moves his family to Panola, County, howlong does he have before required to register in Texas? 

### “(2). If a manlives in Panola County Texas the greater portion of the time working and his family resides out of the state, does he have toHonorable Clifford 3. Roe, page 2 :*':

"(3). If a man works for a companywho, owns leases an&property in Panola County, Texas, but does not have theirmain office in the state and said employee drives a Company car registered in Louisiana and goesback and forth at night, does this car have to be registered in Texas?"

Article 6675a-2, Vernon's Annotated Statutes, in part provides:

"Everyowner of a motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailerused or to be used upon the public highways of this State shall apply each year to the State HighwayDepartment through the County Tax Collector of the county inwhich he resides for the registration of each such vehicle owned or controlledby him for the ensuing or current calendar year or unexpired portion thereof; e . *'

'Article

### 827bof the Penal Code of Texas, comprising six sections;pertains to non-residentregistration ofmotor vehicles registered in states outside of Texas. The material sections or portions thereof provide:

"'MotorVehicle' means every vehicle as herein defined which is self-propelled.

"'PassengarCar' means any motor vehicle other than a motorcycle or a bus as defined in this Act designed or used primarily for the transportationof persons.

"'Owner

tmeans any person who holds a legal title of a motor vehicle or who has the legal right of possession thereof or the legal rl.ghtof control of said vehicle.

"'OccasionalTrip' means not to exceed five trips into this State during any calendar month nor to exceed five days on any one trip.

"'Non-resident'means every resident of a state or country other than the State of Texas whose sojourn in this State, or whose occupation, or place of abode, or business in this State, If any, covers a total period of not more than one hundred and twenty~days in the calendar year..

Honorable Clifford 3. Roe, page 3

“Sec. 2. A non-resident owner of a motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailerwhich has been duly registered for the current year in the State or country of which the owner is a resident and in accordancewith the laws thereof,may, in lieu of registering such vehicle as otherwise required by law, apply to 3$a: State Highway Department through a County Tax Collector for the registration thereof as providedby law, except that the privileges granted as otherwiseprovided for in this Act shallnot apply to any motor vehicle, trailer, or semi-traileroperatedwithin this State for the transportationof persons or property for compensation or hire.

. . . “Sec. 3. The non-resident owner or operator of any passengar car shallwithin twenty-fivedays after commencing to operate such vehicle, or oausing or permitting it to be operatedwithin this State apply ,totheDepartment, through any County Tax Collector, for the temporaryregistration thereof upon the appropriate official form stating therein the name and home address of the owner and the temporary address, if any, of the owner or operatorwhile within this State,
. . . "Sec. 4. The CountyTax Collector shall file each applicationreceived, and issue to the owner a temporaryregistration certificate of distinotive form to be furnishedby theDepartment containing the date it is issued,a brief description of the vehicle and a statement that the owner has procured temporary registration of such vehicle as a nonresident. Said certificate shall entitle the owner or operator of said vehicle to operate It In this State for a period not exceeding one hundred and twentydays from date of issuanceof said certlfiaate.
"Sec.5. f

. .Nothing in this Act shall prevent a non-resident owner of a motor vehicle from operating at will such vehicle in this State for the sole purpose of marketing farm products raised exclusively by him, nor a resident of an adjoining State or country from operatinga privately owned and duly registere, vehicle,not operated for hire in this State at vP11, for the purpose of going to and fromhis place of>egtiIar-employmentand the making of trips for the purpose of purchasing goods,wares and. ,

Honorable Clifford S. Roe, page 4

merchandise. And provided, further, that any non-resident owner of a privately ownedmotor vehiclemay be permitted to make an occasional trip into this Statewifh such vehicle under the privileges **of** this Aat without obtaining such temporary registration certificate. Any person violatingany provision of this Section shallbe deemed guilty of a misdemeanor;and upon conviation thereof shallbe fined in any sum not exceedingTwenty-five ($25.00)Dollars.
"sec. 6. If any person shall operate any such vehiole or any owner thereof shall operate or permit to be operated, any such vehiclewithln this State for a period of more than twenty-five days without applying for the temporaryregistration theP@~,as herein prescribed,unless otherwiae provided for in this Act,he shall **be** Ueemed guilty of a misdemeanor,and upon convlotion, shallbe fined in any 8um not exceeding Twenty-five ($25.OO)l?ollara

e If any person shall operate any such vehiole or if any owner thereof shall operate or permit to be operated any such vehiclewithin this State after the expirationdate of any certificate issued for such vehicle under the provlslons of this Act withoat registering the vehiole under the laws governing the registration of the vehiclesby the resident8 of this State or without having display-e%thereon licensenumber plates duly~ assigned thereforunder the provisions of said laws, he shallbe deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction, shallbe fined in any sum not exceeding Twenty-five ($25.00)Dollars."

We find no conflict in the statutes to which you refer in our oonsiderationof your request. We cannot,however, answer your questions categorically, since eaoh involvesquestions of both~law and fact. From the faots presented,we must assume that you are eonoerned primarilywith Texas registrationby such passenger car "owners" under Section 4. other than temporary registrationas ErovideSf We likewise assume that all of such owners maintain their domicile or legal residence in the adjoining State of Louisiana.

In our Opinion No. O-1023 approved July 10, 1939, we held that the term "resides.*I" for registrationpurposes, as used in Article 6675a-2, supra,means legal residence with this statute fixing the situ8 for registrationpurposes.

The above quoted pro+isions~ofArticle 827b of the Penal Code are applicable to the owners of such foreign registered motorHonorable Clifford S. Roe, page 5

vehicles. Such ownersunder the provisions of Section 

### 3 have twenty-fivedays before they are required to take out a temporary registration certificateprovided for under Section 4.

In our Opinion No. 

### 0-981approvedAugust 9, 

### 1939,and inOpinion No. O-1043 approved July 8, 

### 1939,we held in effect that in the event such non-reaident owner desires to remain In this State for a longer period than the additional 120 days authorizedby such temporarypermit, it la necessary for his vehicle to be duly registered in the State of Texas. In construing the statutesabove referred to, we also held in Opinion No. O-2050 approved in limited conferenceMarch 

### 18, 1940, that the definition of "non-resident"above quoted, controls and such owner is considered a "resident"for registrationpurposes of the county where he remains InTexas exceeding the 120 day period during any calendar year.

The above quoted provisions of Section 

### 5, Article 

### 82711, do not require suchmotor vehicles,assuming theyare duly registered in the State of Louisiana, to be registeredwhere they meet the requirements of that section.

In answer to your questions,under the facts stated and assumedherein, it is our opinion that such "owners"of passenger cars defined In Art, 

### 82711 of the Penal Code and duly registered in an adjoining State have twenty-fivedays before they are required to register in Panola County for a temporaryregistration certificate. If the car "owner",legally in Texas under such temporary registration certificate,remains inTexas longer than the total period of 120 days in the calendar year,he is, at the end of such period, residing in a county of this State for reg-~ lstratlonpurposes and such owner'svehicle 1s subject to registration in accordancewith Art. 6675a-2,V.A.C.S. The passenger car of such "owner"residin quirements of Sec. 

### 5, Art. 8 in Louisiana,which meets the re271,of the penal Code of being operated for the purpose of going to and from the owner's place of regular employment In Texas, is not required to be registered during such statutorydefined operation.
Yours very truly,
ATTORNEYGENERAL OF TEXAS

WmK~LJort
APPROVED NOV. 

### 7, 1945 !Tis:%ss%Y ATTORNEY GENERAL By; /s/Urn. J. R. King

- Assistant.
APPROVED Opinion Committee