THEATTORNEYGENEFCAL 

OF XAS 

AUSTIN 11. TEXAS 

April 9, 1962 

Hon. Doyle J. Borchers Opinion No. WW-1297 

County Attorney 

Bosque County Re: Whether operating a twoMeridian, Texas wheel farm trailer, under 

4000 pounds, upon the 

highways without a tail 

light and under the facts 

submitted, violates Article 

6701d, V.C.S.; and whether 

said trailer is subject to 

Dear Mr. Borchers: registration? 

Your request for an opinionsets forth the following facts: 

"A farmer was the owner of a twowheel farm trailer with a gross weight 

not exceeding 4000 pounds. Said trailer 

was being towed at night, between the 

hours of one-half hour after sunset and 

one-half hour before sunrise, and was 

being used to transport two horses to a. 

'horse-show' at the Meridian Riding Club 

facilities, from the farmer's farm, over 

the public highway. The trailer was only 

equipped with red reflectors on the rear. 

The farmer was stopped by a Texas highway 

patrolman and given a ticket for failing 

to have a tail light on said trailer. 

The horse show at Meridian was a sporting 

and/or an entertainment event." 

Section 108(c) of Article 6701d, V.C.S., makes it 

a misdemeanor for any person to drive or move any vehicle 

or combination of vehicles which is in an unsafe condition 

as to endanger any person or is not at all times equipped 

with such lamps and other equipment as required by Article 

XIV of the Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highways. 

Subsection (c) of Section 108 provides, however, as follows: 

"The provisions of this Article with 

respect to equipment on vehicles shall 

not apply to implements of husbandry, 

road machinery, raod rollers, or farm 
Hon. Doyle J. Borchers Page 2 Opinion No. WW-1297 

tractors except as herein made applicable." 

Section Ill(a)(b) provides as follows: 

"Every motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer, and pole trailer, and any other 

vehicle which is being drawn at the end 

of a train of vehicles shall be equipped 

with at least one tall lamp mounted on 

the rear, which when lighted as hereinbefore reauired. shall emit a red light 

plainly visible-from a distance of five 

hundred (500) feet to the rear, provided 

that in the case of a trainof vehicles 

only the tail lamp on the rear-most 

vehicle need actually be seen from the 

distance specified. 

"(b) . . . Any tail lamp or tail lamps, 

together with separate lamp for illuminating the rear registration plate, shall be 

so wired as to be lighted whenever the head 

lamps or auxiliary driving lamps are lighted." 

Section 122 of Article 6701(d), V.C.S., provides as 

follows: 

"All vehicles, including animal-drawn 

vehicles and including those referred to 

in Section 108(c) not herelnbefore specifically required,to be equipped with lamps, 

shall at the times specified in Section 

109 hereof be equipped with at least one 

lighted lamp or lantern exhibiting a white 

light visible from a distance offive hundred (500) feet to the front of such 

vehicle and with a lamp or lantern exhibiting a rehTight visible from a distance of 

five hundred (500) feet to the rear." 

The two-wheel trailer in question, therefore, falls 

within the provisions of Section Ill(a) or Section 122 of 

Article 6701(d), Vernon's Civil Statutes. If the trailer 

in question is an "im lement of husbandry" as that term is 

used in Section 108(c P it would be exempt from the provisions of Section Ill(a), but would fall within the provisions of Section 122. 
Hon. Doy1e.J. Borchers Page 3 Opinion No. W!.i-1297 

Your opinion 

trailers in question 

on the'rear of said 

the trailer was not 

6701(d). 

request states that the two-wheel 

was equipped only with red reflectors 

trailer and, therefore, in our opinion 

equipped in conformity with Article 

Article 6675a-2, V.C.S., is the Texas Registration 

Law requiring the owner of a motor ,vehicle, trailer, or 

semi-trailer, used or to be used on the public highways 

of this State, to register such vehicle. The Act exempts 

"owners of farm tractors, farm trailers, and farm semitrailers with,a gross weight not exceeding 4000 pounds 

. . . operated and moved temporarily upon the highways." 

Section (q) of Article 6675a-1, states as follows: 

"By 'operated or moved temporarily upon 

the highways' is meant the operation or conveying between different farms, and the 

operation or conveyance from the owner's 

farm to the place where his farm produce is 

prepared for ilarket or where same is actually marketed and return." 

Your letter states that the trailer described was 

being used to transport horses to a "horse-show" at the 

Meridian Riding Club. If this was a~sporting and/or 

entertainment event, as.your letter states, the trailer 

would not be "operated or moved temporarily upon the 

highways" as that term is defined by Section (q) of 

Article 6675a-1. 

House Bi.111082, Acts 57th Legislature, R.S. 1961, 

Chdpter 259, page 554, amended Article 6675a-2, and provides in Sub-section (f) that the exemption shall not apply 

to any farm trailer or farm semi-trailer which is not 

operated and e ui ed in conformity with all other provisions of the fiction 2(q), as amended, reads as 

~follows: 

"Any vehicle exempt from registration 

under Subsection (b) hereof or from regular 

fees under Subsection (c) hereof and 

operated and moved upon the public highways of this State in violation of this 

Section shall be deemed to be operated or 

moved unregistered and shall immediately 

be subject to the regular registration fees 

and penalties as prescribed by law." 
Hon. Doyle J. Borchers Page 4 Opinion No. WW-1297 

As noted previously in this opinion, Section Ill(a) 

of Article 6701d requires every motor vehicle, trailer. 

or semi-trailer to be equipped with a red tail light. The 

only exceptions to this are implements of husbandry, road 

machinery, road rollers, and farm tractors. Section 122 

of Article 6701d requires these vehicles to be equipped 

with a rear red lamp or lantern. 

It is our opinion, therefore, that the trailer described was not equipped in compliance with either Section 

Ill(a) or Section 122 of Article 6701d, V.C.S., and was 

subject to immediate registration and uenalties as nrovided 

by Section 2(q) of Article 6675a-2, V.C.S., as amended 

the 57th Legislature. 

by 

SUMMARY 

A two-wheel farm trailer with a gross 

weight not exceeding 4000 pounds, and being operated at night without a tail light, 

and being used to transport horses to a 

sporting and/or entertainment event at 

which the animals are neither prepared for 

market nor marketed is in violation of 

Article 6701-ld, V.C.S., and was subject 

to immediate registration and penalties 

under Section 2(q) of Article 6675a-2, V.C.S. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney Genesal opxas 

,MFS:sh 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE: 

W.V. Geppert, Chairman 

John Reeves 

Arthur Sandlin 

Vernon Teofan 

-Marvin F. Sentell 

Assistant 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Houghton Brownlee,Jr.