Mr. R. L. "Bob" Lattimore Opinion No. c-61 

Criminal District Attorney 

Hidalgo County Re: Whether a Tax Assessor and 

Edinburg, Texas Collector is authorized to 

issue a 30 day temporary 

registration permit to a nonresident trucker, under the 

stated conditions and related 

Dear Mr. Lattimore: question. 

You have asked this office the following questions: 

"1. Is the Tax Assessor and Collector of 

Hldalgo County authorized to issue a thirtyday temporary registration permit under Section 

2A of Article %27b, P.C., to a nonresident 

trucker who complies with every requirement of 

said Section 2A for the issuance of such permit but does not disclose whether or not he is 

a motor carrier or contract carrier, as those 

terms are defined in Article glib of the Texas 

Penal Code, (sic) so as to fully inform such 

Tax Assessor and Collector as to whether such 

applicant is entitled to operate in the State 

of Texas under such permit as issued? 

"2 . If your answer to Question NO. 1 is 

In the affirmative, then Is it your opinion 

that the State Highway Department of Texas, 

under the present law, could require such lnformation to be disclosed before such a temporary permit would Issue?" 

The pertinent parts of Section 2A of Article 82713 of Vernon's Penal Code are as follows: 

"To expedite and facilitate, during the 

harvesting season, the harvesting and marketing of wheat, oats, rye, barley, grain sorghums, 

flax, rice; vegetables in bulk, field crates, 

or bags, produced In this State, the Department 

Is authorized to Issue to a nonresident owner 

a thirty (30) day temporary registration permit 

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Mr. R. L. "Bob" Lattlmore, Page 2 (C-61 ) 

for any truck, truck-tractor, trailer or semitrailer to be used in the movement of such 

commodities from the place of production to 

market, stora e or railhead, not more than 

seventy-five 7 75) miles distant from such 

place of production. 

"To expedite and facilitate, during the 

harvesting season, the harvesting and movement of farm products produced outside of'Texas 

but marketed or processed In Texas or moved to 

points in Texas for shipment, the Department 

is authorized to issue to a nonresident owner 

a thirty (30) day temporary registration permit for any truck, truck-tractor, trailer or 

semi-trailer to be used in the movement of 

such farm commodities from the point of entry 

Into Texas to market, storage, processing 

plant, railhead or seaport not more than 

eighty (80) miles distant from such point of 

entry into Texas. All mileages and distances 

referred to herein are State Highway mileages. 

Before such temporary registration provided 

for In this paragraph may be issued, the applicant must present satisfactory evidence 

that such motor vehicle is protected by such 

Insurance and in such amounts as may be described In Section 5 of the Texas Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 670lh, 

Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) as it is now 

written or as It may hereafter be amended,, and 

such policies must be issued by an Insurance 

company or surety company authorized to write 

Motor Vehicle Liability Insurance in this 

State; and that such vehicle has been inspected as required under the Uniform Act Regulating 

Traffic on Highways in Texas (Article XV of 

Article 6701d, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) 

as it is now written OP as it may hereafter 

be amended. 

"The Department is authorized to prescribe the form of the application and the 

information to be furnished therein for such 

temporary registration permits. If the appllcation is granted, the Department shall issue 

a special distinguishing insignia which must 

be attached to such vehicle in lieu of the 

regular Texas Highway registration plates. 

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Mr. R. L. "Bob" Lattlmore, Page 3 (C-61 ) 

Such special insignia shall show Its expiration date. The temporary registration permit 

fee shall be one-twelfth (l/12) of the annual 

Texas registration fee for the vehicle for 

which the special permit is secured. 

"The temporary permits herein authorized 

shall be issued only when the vehicle for 

which said permit is Issued Is legally registered in the nonresident owner's home State or 

Country for the current registration year; and 

said permit will remain valid only so long as 

the home State or Country registration is valid; 

but in any event the Texas temporary registration permit will expire thirty (30) days from 

the date of issuance. Not more than three (3) 

such temporary registration permits may be issued to a nonresident owner during any one (1) 

vehicle registration year in the State of Texas. 

A vehicle registered under the terms of this 

Act may not be operated in Texas after the expiration of the temporary permit unless the nonresident owner secures a second temporary permit 

as provided above, OP unless the nonresident 

owner registers the vehicle under the approprlate Texas vehicular registration statutes, applicable to residents, for the remainder of the 

registration year. No such vehicle may be registered with a Texas farm truck license. 

"Nothing in this Act shall be construed to 

authorize such nonresident owner or operator to 

operate or cause to be operated any of such vehicles in this State in violation of Acts, 1929, 

Forty-first Legislature,, Chapter 314, as amended 

(Article glib, Vernon's Civil Statutes) or any 

of the other laws of this State." 

Section 3 of Article %27b, Vernon's Penal Code, provides 

in ,part as follows: 

"This Act applies to registration of vehlcles only, and nothing herein shall be construed 

to authorize the operation or movement of any 

vehic:Le in this State in ViolatLon of any other 

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Mr. R. L. "Bob" Lattimore, Page 4 (C-61 ) 

your 

held 

laws of this State." 

We can find no cases interpreting the statutes insofar as 

questions are concerned. In 1947 in Opinion No. V-66 we 

that: 

"Trailers and semi-trailers as defined 

In Article %27b, Section 1, V. A. P. C., that 

are owned by nonresidents and used in transportation for compensation or hire over the 

public highways of Texas cannot obtain a 'ternporary registrationcertificate' as provided 

for in Article %27b, supra, but in order for 

their operation to be lawful, such trailers 

and semi-trailers must be registered in accordance with Texas Laws regarding the registration of commercial vehicles." 

The language of the statute has been changed since then and the 

conclusion in that opinion does not apply under the present law. 

For this reason we overrule that opinion insofar as the above 

language is concerned. Section 2a authorizes the issuance of 

thirty (30) day temporary registration permits when; (1) satisfactory evidence that such motor vehicle Is protected by insurance as set out in the statute, and (2) such motor vehicle has 

been inspected as required by the uniform act regulating traffic on highways in Texas. The Act further provides that the 

temporary permit "shall be issued only when the vehicle for 

which said permit Is issued is legally registered In the nonresident owner's home State or Country for the current registration year." We can find no requirement In the statute that 

the State Highway Department or the Tax Assessor and Collector 

of the county is authorized or permitted to add any additional 

requirements as a prerequisite to the Issuance of these certificates nor can we find any place in the statute where the duty is placed upon the Tax Assessor and Collector to see that 

no certificates are issued except to those who disclose whether 

or not they are motor carriers or contract carriers as defined 

in Article glib, Vernon's Civil Statutes. Article 82713 is a 

registration statute only and does not affect the regulation 

of motor carriers for hire. The enforcement of Article glib, 

Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, is made a duty of the Railroad Commission of Texas and the Department of Public Safety 

of Texas by Articles glib, Vernon's Civil Statutes, and 169Ob, 

Vernon's Penal Code, and not the duty of the Tax Assessor and 

Collector or the State Highway Department. We are, therefore, 

of the opinion that the Tax Assessor and Collector must issue 

the certificates provided the conditions stated in the statute 

as set out above are complied with. 

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Mr. R. L. "Bob" Lattlmore, Page 5 (C-61 ) 

According to the terms of Article %27b, Section 2a, as 

quoted above, the form of the application and the Information 

to be required of the applicant is placed within the discretion of the State Highway Department. The State Highway Department may, under the present law, require the applicant 

to state whether or not he Is a motor carrier or contract 

carrier as defined in Article glib; however, whether or not 

they require such information is entirely within their dlscretion. 

SUMMARY 

The Tax Assessor and Collector of Hidalgo 

County must issue a thirty (30) day temporary 

registration permit under the provisions of 

Section 2a of Article %27b, Vernon's Penal Code, 

to nonresident truckers who comply with the requirements set out in that section. 

The State Highway Department may require 

the applicant to state whether or not he is a 

motor carrier or contract carrier as defined 

in Article glib, Vernon's Civil Statutes, however, whether or not such information is required rests entirely within the discretion of 

the State Highway Department. 

Yours very truly, 

Assistant Attorn y Genera 

NVS:nss 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Scott Garrison 

Edward R. Moffett 

Malcolm Quick 

APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Stanton Stone 

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