# THEATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

PRICE DANIEL ATTORNEY GENERAL 

### AUSTIN 11. -~BCKAS April 7, 1950

Hon. B. F. McKee County Auditor Hidalgo County Edinburg, Texas

Dear Mr. McKee: Opinion No. V-1040
Re: The disposition to be made offunds received indelinquent tax cases from property /purchased by ataxing unit, as trustee for all taxing units, and sold prior to expiration of redemption period, and related question.
You request the opinion ofthis office upon two questions, both ofwhich deal with sales ofproperty purchased by ataxing unit, as trustee for the benefit of all taxing units,parties to the suit, and subsequently sold by the taxing unit, prior tothe expiration ofthe period of redemption.

Your questions may be stated as follows: (1) How should the proceeds ofthe second sale by the purchasing taxing unit be disposed of ifthe sale is made prior to the expiration ofthe redemption period; (2) ifthe property is sold for an amount in excess ofthejudgment, costs and expenses at asecond sale, is the owner required to pay statutory penalty upon such excess in order to redeem.

The answer to both your questions is found in Sections 9,12, and 12-a ofArticle 7345b, V.C.S.

These statutes are rather lengthy, andwe do not deem it necessary to set them out in full, but only the pertinent parts. Briefly, Section 9ofthe statute provides the method and manner for asecond sale by the purchasing taxing unit. After thus providing, the statute directs that the purchase price be disposed of as follows:

“When such property is so sold atPublic or private sale, the proceeds thereof shall be received by orHon. B. P, McKee, Page 2, V-1040.
paid over tothe taxing unit which purchased said property at the tax foreclosure sale, for the account ofitself and all other taxing units adjudged to have atax lien against such property, and all taxing units so receiving said proceeds shall first pay out ofthe same all costs andexpenses of Court and of sale, anddistribute the remainder among all taxing units for which purchasing taxing unit purchased and held said property, pro rata and inproportion to the amounts of their tax liens against said property as established in said judgment. ” Thus it is quite apparent that the purchasing taxing unit should distribute the proceeds ofthe second sale, after first paying all costs and expenses of the sale, to the respective taxing units, parties to the suit, upon apro rata basis inproportion to the amounts oftheir tax liens adjudged against the property as established by thejudgment. This, ofcourse, is true regardless ofwhether the second sale is aprivate or public sale. This answers your first question.

Inanswer toyour second question, said Section 9ofthe statute further specifically provides as follows:

1.

. . .provided, ifthe period for the redemption of said property from said tax foreclosure sale has not expired atthe time ofsaid sale, said conveyance shall be made expressly subject to the right of redemption provided inSection 12 of said Act.”
Inthis connection it is only necessary to say that the amount received by the purchasing taxing unit at asecond sale has nothing to dowith the amount required to be paid by the owner to redeem. This is governed by the amount bid atthe first sale, which must conform to the terms and conditions provided for inSection 9.

The amount required to be paid by the owner or others entitled to redeem under the proviiioas ofSection 12 ofsaid Article is governed exclusivaly byethe provisions ofsaid section, andthis regardless ofwhether the first sale is to ataxing unit or to aprivate purchaser; and no greater amount is required to redeem than that provided for by this section ofthe statute, andHon. B. F. McKee, Page 3, V-1040.

the addition of any further penalty is wholly unauthorized.

From the foregoing it is clear that when asecond sale is made by apurchasing taxing unit, either atprivate or public sale, before the redemption period has expired, the entire proceeds after the payment of costs and expenses ofthe sale, shall be distributed pro rata among all the participating taxing units inproportion to the amount oftaxes, penalties and interest adjudged in favo.r of each. The amount received by the selling taxing unit atthe second sale has nothing to dowith the amount required to redeem, This is governed by the bid atthe first sale, andno greater amount may be exacted than that provided in Section 12 ofArticle 734%. ,V.C.S,.
SUMMA.RY Under the provisions ofSection 9ofArticle 7345b, V.C.S., the purchasing taxing unit should distribute the proceeds ofthe second sale whether made before or after the expiration ofthe period of redemption, after paying the costs and expenses ofthe sale, among all taxing units pro rata and inproportion to the amounts oftheir tax liens as established by thejudgment. Section 12 ofsaid Article specifies the amount required to redeem and refers to the first sale and not the second, No greater amount may be exacted to redeem than that specified.
Yours very truly,

APPROVED: PRICE DANIEL Attorney General
W. V. Geppert Taxation Division Charles D. Mathews Executive Assistant LPL/mwb/f By $?L?iz--

. . Assistant