August 

### 30, 1951

Hon. Robert S. Calvert Comptroller of Public Accounts Austin, Texas 

### minionNo.v-1268

Dear Sir: Re: Whether the "rider" in the general appropriationbill (Subd. 

### (15),Sec. 

### 2 of Art. III, H.B. 

### 426,Acts 

### 52nd m3., 1951,ch. 

### 499,p. 1228) applies to pickup and panel trucks.
In your request for an opinion, after quoting the "rider"which is the subject of your Inquiry,you state that "this department is contemplating (1) the purchase of a pickup 

### or (2)a panel truck" and ask:

"Is either the pickup or the panel truck a passenger-carryingvehicle as defined in the above quoted section of the rider?
"Should this departmentpurchase either of the above mentioned vehicles during this fiscal year, would we be required to sell the same in September of the next fiscal year?" The "rider" in question (Sub& (15), Sec. 2 of Art. III, H.B. 

### 426,Acts 

### 52~1Leg.,1951,ch. 

### 499,p. 1228,at 

### p. 1438)reads in part:

"All State-ownedmotor-propelledpassengercarryingvehicles under the control of any department, commission,board, or other State agency are hereby declared to be no longer needed. Suchmotor-propelled passenger-carryingvehicles shallbe sold in compllante with and as provided for in Article 

### 666,Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, as amended, or otherwise as provided by law, not later than ~October1, 

### 1951. No motor-propelledpassenger-carryingvehicle may be purchasedwith any of the funds appropriated In this Article,

. . .ll. L.

Hon. Robert S. Calvert, Page 2 (v-1.268)

The term "motor-propelledpassenger-carryingvehicle" is not defined in the above-quoted rider or elsewhere in the general appropriationbill. In fact, neither the statutesnor the decided cases of this State define the term.

In the Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highways, the word "truck" is said to mean "everymotor vehicle designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property." Art. 670ld, Sec. k(a), V.C.S.

In Article 66V5a-1,V.C.S., relating to registration of'motor vehicles, a "passengercar" is defined as follows:

"'Passenger car' means any motor vehicle other than a motorcycle or a bus
. . . designed or used primarily for the transportation of persons." This office has heretoforeheld that the meaning of the term "passenger car" contained in the general appropriation bill adopted by the Forty-seventh Legislature for the biennium ending August 31, 1943, "is to be determinedby considering its design and construction." Att'y Gen. Op. o-4182 (1941). In that opinion it was said that if a vehicle is "designedand constructedby the manufacturer for the primary use of carrying passengers, it is a 'passengercar." We think the reasoning of that opinion has application to your first question. A motorpropelled vehicle designed and used primarily for the carriage of passengers comeswithin that portion of the "rider" in question held valid in Attorney General's OpinionV-1253 (1951), which provides that "No motor-propelledpassenger-carryingvehicle may be purchased with any of the funds appropriatedby this Article,

. , . .l( On the other hand, a motor-propelledvehicle designed or used primarily for the carriage of property is not a "motor-propelled. passenger-carryingvehicle" within the meaning of the "rider," and the purchase thereof from appropriated funds for official use is not prohibited.

Webster's New InternationalDictionary (2dEd. 1938) defines "pickup"as "a small commericalbody interchangeable with the rear deck of a roadster," and "panelbody" as "an enclosedbody for a motor truck." In Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary (6th Ed. 1949), "pickup" is defined as "a light commercial truck for quick collectionand delivery of goods."

Moreover, a "pickuptruck" has been held to be a "truck"within the meaning of the New Mexico statuteprohibiting "trucks" from operating in excess of a certain speed. H. W. mass Drilling Co. v. Ray, lOlF.2d 316 (C.C.A. 10th 1939).I..,’

r‘ ~. ~,..“~ Hon. Robert S. Calvert, Page 3 (v-1268)

In view of the foregoing,we agree with you that a pickup or panel truck used primarily for the transportationof property is not a "motor-propelledpassenger-carrying"vehicle within the meaning of the portion of the "rider" in question prohibiting the purchase of suchvehicles. Under the "rider," a pickup or panel truck may be purchased and used for the purpose for which primarily designed.

We believe your question relating to whether the "rider" in questionwill require the sale or dispositionof pickup and panel trucks purchased during the currentbiennium ending August 31, 1951, is fully answered by Attorney General's Opinion V-l253 dated August 24, 1951, addressed to Honorable Jack H. Drake, Executive Secretary of the Texas Citrus Commission.

SUMMARY

A pickup or panel truck used primarily for transportation of property is a "truck" as distinguished from a "motor-propelledpassenger-carryingvehicle," and the purchase thereof is not prohibitedby the "rider" to the general appropriationbill (Subd. (15), Sec. 2 of Art. III, H.B. 426, Acts 52nd Leg., 1951, ch. 499, p. 1228). This "rider" does not require the sale of a pickup or panel truck purchased during the biennium endingAugust 31, 1951. Att'y Gen. Op. V-1253 (1951).
APPROVED:
C. K. Richards Trial and Appellate Division
Jesse P. Luton, Jr. Reviewing Assistant Yours very truly,
PRICE DANIEL Attorney General

Everett Hutchinson Acting First Assistant EJ:lg E. Jacobson Assistant