Article III, Section 55 of the Texas Constitution ("Extinguishment of Indebtedness to State or Political Subdivision")
As amended November 8, 1932:
The Legislature shall have no power to release or extinguish, or to authorize the releasing or extinguishing, in whole or in part, the indebtedness, liability or obligation of any corporation or individual, to this State or to any county or defined subdivision thereof, or other municipal corporation therein, except delinquent taxes which have been due for a period of at least ten years.
Editor Comments
This section first appeared in the Texas Constitution of 1876. Neither the Republic of Texas constitution (1836) nor any of the state's first four constitutions (1845, 1861, 1866, 1869) contained a provision with similar substantive language.
As adopted, it read: "The Legislature shall have no power to release or extinguish, or to authorize the releasing or extinguishing, in whole or in part, the indebtedness, liability or obligation of any incorporation [sic] or individual to this State, or to any county, or other municipal corporation therein." It has been amended once. The 1932 amendment corrected a typo, included defined subdivisions, and added the exception.
Recent Decisions
None.
Historic Decisions
- Corpus Christi People's Baptist Church, Inc. v. Nueces County Appraisal Dist., 904 S.W.2d 621, 625 (Tex. 1995) ("This tolling provision is similar to statutes of limitation, which we have held are permissible under article III, section 55. In Sam Bassett Lumber Co., the City of Houston sought to obtain a personal judgment for delinquent property taxes. The defendant asserted limitations as a defense. The Court concluded that a ten-year statute of limitations did not violate article III, section 55 because limitation statutes do not release or extinguish a debt but merely affect the remedy when its enforcement is sought.")
- State v. City of Austin, 331 S.W.2d 737, 742 (Tex. 1960) (citations omitted) ("After the occurrence of events which under the law then existing give rise to an obligation on the part of an individual or corporation to the state, the Legislature has no power to release or diminish that obligation without consideration. Moreover, the use of public money to pay a claim predicated on facts which generate no state liability constitutes a gift or donation in violation of our Constitution. . . . In our opinion this does not constitute the release of an obligation to the state within the meaning of Article III, Section 55, of the Constitution.")
- Jones v. Williams, 45 S.W.2d 130, 137 (Tex. 1931) ("Applying these rules, it is plain that sections 51 and 55 of article 3 cannot be construed to render nugatory the power to remit fines, penalties, and forfeitures by general law. Our construction of the Constitution that the Legislature may remit accrued penalties by general law, notwithstanding sections 51 and 55 of article 3, and the equal taxation and other provisions of the Constitution, is consistent with the authorities generally . . . . The tax cases cited proceed upon the principle that a penalty is not a part of the tax-proper, and is therefore subject to legislative control.")
Library Resources
- Vernon's Annotated Constitution of the State of Texas (this multi-volume and up-to-date resource is available at all law libraries and many municipal libraries)
- The Texas State Constitution: A Reference Guide (this one-volume resource is available at most law libraries and some municipal libraries)
- The Constitution of the State of Texas: An Annotated and Comparative Analysis (this two-volume resource is available at most law libraries and some municipal libraries)
Online Resources
- Constitution of the State of Texas (1876) (this resource is published and maintained by the University of Texas School of Law)
- Amendments to the Texas Constitution Since 1876 (this resource is published and regularly updated by the Legislative Council)
- Reports Analyzing Proposed Amendments (this resource is published and regularly updated by the Legislative Reference Library)