OF XAS

August 25, 1961

Honorable D. C. Greer OpinionNo. WW-1122 State Highway Engineer Texas Highway Department Re: Austin 14, Texas Propermethod of acquisitionby the Highway Department of parcels of land for highwaypurposes when such landwas heretofore by tax sale conveyed to the State upon foreclosure of tax liensheld by the State, City of Houston and Houston Independent School District Dear Sir: and related questions.

You have made request of this office for an opinion relating to the transferand conveyanceof lots located in the City of Houston to the State Highway Department for right of way in connectionwith InterstateHighway Loop 610. This land
was purchasedheretofore at tax salesby the State of Texas.

Your letter states that one of these tracts, designated for acquisitionpurposes as ParcelNo. 441, was acquired by the State of Texasunder a sheriff'sdeed datedApril 5, 1927,pursuant to foreclosureof a tax lien against such property for delinquentState taxes by a District Court judgment entered on August 13, 1926.

The second tract, designatedas ParcelNo. 456, was acquired by the State of Texas under a sheriff'sdeed dated March 24, 1955,pursuant to a District Court judgment entered
on September 7, 1954, foreclosing tax liens against such property for delinquentState, City of Houston and Houston IndependentSchool District taxes in a tax suit brought by the State.

In your letter expressing the Highway Department's desire to acquire this property for highway purposes,you have requestedan answer to the following questions:

"(1) Is it lawful for the County Judge and County Commissioners,acting
as the Commissioners'Court of HarrisHonorable D. C. Greer,page 2 (WW-1122)

County, to execute a transfer of jurisdiction to the State Highway Department on said Parcel 441?
"(2) Is it lawful and proper to include the court costs as part of the considerationto be paid by the Highway Department for such transfer of jurisdiction of Parcel 441, or should the considerationbe limited to the amount of delinquent taxes reduced to judgment?

“(3) Is it lawful and proper for the Commissioners'Court of Harris County to transfer jurisdictionto the State Highway Department of the State'sundivided interest in Parcel 456 and also make a conveyance to the Highway Department of the undivided interest in said propertynow owned by the City of Houston and the Houston IndependentSchool District?
"(4) If your answer to above question (2) is in the negative, then is it lawful for thatportion of the court costs assessed against the City and School Dlstrict to be includedas a part of the considerationfor the conveyance of the City and School District's interest in Parcel 456?’

In answering these questions, reference shouldbe made to Article 7345b, Sec. 9, Vernon's Civil Statutes, and particularly the followingprovisions thereof:

"Section9. If the property be sold to any taxingunit which is a party to the judgmentunder decree of the court in said suit, the title to saidproperty shall be bid in and held by the taxing unit purchasing the same for the use and benefit of itself and all other taxing units which are parties to the suit and which have been adjudged in said suit to have tax liens against suchproperty,pro rata and in proportion to the amount of the tax liens in favor of said respective. taxingunits as establishedby the judg-HonorableD. C. Greer,page 3 (WW-1122)

ment in said suit, and costs and expenses shallnot be payableuntil sale by such taxingunit sopurchasing same. The taxing unit may sell and convey saidproperty
so purchasedby it, or which has heretofore been purchased in the name of any officer thereof, at any time in any manner determined to be most advantageous to said taxingunit
or units either at public or private sale,

. . .but suchproperty shallnot be sold by the taxingunit purchasing the same, at private sale, for less than the adjudged value thereof, if any, as established in the tax judgment, or the total amount for which such judgmentwas renderedagainst the property in said suit,whichever is lower,

. . . . If the State of Texas is the taxingunit which purchased said property at the tax foreclosure sale, the CommissionersCourt of the county inwhich the property is located shallhave authority to act for the State of Texas in making private sales and conveyancesof said property, as herein provided,

. . . .' Consideringyour questions 1 and 3 together, it is the opinion of this office that the above statute would authorize the CommissionersCourt of Harris County to transfer and convey ParcelsNos. 441 and 456 to the Highway Department for interstatehighway purposes, including the interest in such parcels held by the City of Houston and Houston Independent School District.

For the proper form of conveyance for transferring the State's interest in the above parcels to the Highway Department, it would be proper, in view of Article 6674w-3, Sec. 2,Vernon's Civil Statutes, for the CommissionersCourt to execute a transfer of use and jurisdictionof subject property to the Highway Department.

By virtue of the provisions of Sec. 9 of Article 7345b, the tracts can only be sold at private sale for not 'lessthan the adjudgedvalue thereof, if any,
. . . or the total amount for wiich such judgmentwas renderedagainst the property

. . whichever is lower. rendered for the takes and costs of court. Tax judgmentsare Your second and fourth questionsare answered in the affirmative.Honorable D. C. Greer,page 4 (WW-1122)

SUMMARY

The CommissionersCourt of Harris County is authorized to execute a transfer of use and jurisdictionof the State's interestand a conveyanceof the interest held by the City of Houston and Houston IndependentSchool District in Parcels Nos. 441 and 456, and the consideration for such transferand conveyancewould be any amount,not less than the adjudged value thereof, if any, or the amount of the judgment in the tax suit,whichever is lower.

Yours very truly,

WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas

&L BY Thomas Burrus Assistant
TB:ljb

APPROVED:

OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman

Charles Lind Glenn Brown Gordon Cass

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: Howard W. Mays