Texas Attorney General Opinion: C-357 Page: 10 of 11
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Honorable Joe Resweber, Page 10
At page 854, the Court quotes the same excerpt from the
Scottish Rite Benev. Ass'n. case which Opinion No. W-1277
quotes as the accepted definition of an institution of purely
public charity. Suura, page 4.
At page 855, the Court quotes from Massachusetts General
Hospital v. Inhabitants of Bellmont, 233 L 7s.19i-", 12sN.E. 21,
25, tO the effect that one grounO upon which exemptions from
taxation of charitable institutions can be justified in the
constitutional sense is that they minister to human and social
needs which the State might and does to a greater or less
extent undertake to satisfy, thus discharging through the
private charity an ultimate obligation of the state. This
same theory was stated by the court in the Santa Rosa Infirmary
case and is quoted, sura, at page 6.
In the argument submitted to us in support of the
proposition that tax exemption should be denied, reliance
is placed on that portion of the River Oaks Garden Club
opinion, at pages 855 and 856, which states that it
exemption were accorded the Club there would be no end of
exemptions accorded Club houses and meeting places owned
by small groups of persons of common aesthetic interest
who associate themselves to promote and enjoy their
particular interests. The Court said at page 856:
"...It is but a half stride from
the art of gardening to the art of interior
decorating, and less than a half stride to
the art of dramatics. Many other are but
a stride away."
We think, for the reasons stated in the last paragraph
on page 6, supra, that there is a vast distinction between
the exampleWatove given by the Supreme Court and the caring
for the aged. We are still unable to distinguish the oc-
cupancy of homes for the elderly by some residents who pay
for their expenses and the occupancy of hospitals by some
paying patients. It is true that the Court, in the River Oaks
Garden Club case stated at page 856:-1700-
Opinion No. (C- 357)
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: C-357, text, December 8, 1964; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth268775/m1/10/: accessed June 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.