Houston Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Morris
| Decision Date | 13 July 2011 |
| Docket Number | No. 01–10–00043–CV.,01–10–00043–CV. |
| Parties | HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, City of Houston, Harris County, Harris County Education Department, Port of Houston of Harris County Authority, Harris County Flood Control District, Harris County Hospital District, and Houston Community College System, Appellants, v. Ned B. MORRIS III, Daniel W. Shipper, Patrick A. Shipper, Anita Gibson, Mary Ann Mosely, Deborah L. Moore, Linda Shipper Bender, Caroline D. Armstrong, Pamela K. Moore, Joyce Salter, and James R. Hunt, Appellees. |
| Court | Texas Court of Appeals |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Anthony W. Nims, Victoria Duncan Vonder Haar, Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, L.L.P., Houston, TX, F. Duane Force, Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP, Austin, TX, for Appellants.
Ned B. Morris III, Friday Harbor, WA, Stephen G. Hunt, Bond, Hunt, French & Company, PLLC, Houston, TX, Thomas A. Ryan, Attorney at Law, Irving, TX, for Appellees.
Panel consists of Justices JENNINGS, ALCALA, and MASSENGALE.
Appellees, Ned B. Morris III, Daniel W. Shipper, Patrick A. Shipper, Anita Gibson, Mary Ann Mosely, Deborah L. Moore, Linda Shipper Bender, Caroline D. Armstrong, Pamela K. Moore, Joyce Salter, and James R. Hunt (collectively, “the Taxpayers”), have filed a motion for rehearing and a motion for en banc reconsideration of our opinion issued on March 4, 2011. Appellants, Houston Independent School District, City of Houston, Harris County, Harris County Education Department, Port of Houston of Harris County Authority, Harris County Flood Control District, Harris County Hospital District, and Houston Community College System (collectively, “the Taxing Units”), have filed a response. We deny the motion for rehearing, withdraw our opinion and judgment of March 4, 2011, and issue this opinion and judgment in their place. Because we issue a new opinion, the Taxpayers' motion for en banc reconsideration of our prior opinion is moot. See Richardson–Eagle, Inc. v. William M. Mercer, Inc., 213 S.W.3d 469, 472 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2006, pet. denied).
The Taxing Units bring this interlocutory appeal of the trial court's order denying their plea to the jurisdiction.1 The trial court determined it had jurisdiction over the Taxpayers' claims for refund of taxes. In their sole issue on appeal, the Taxing Units assert that the trial court erred because the Taxpayers did not exhaust their administrative remedies prior to filing their claims in district court. We conclude the Taxpayers were required to exhaust their administrative remedies and, therefore, the trial court lacked jurisdiction. We reverse and render an order of dismissal.
The Harris County Appraisal District's appraisal roll listed the Taxpayers as the owners of certain tracts of land, including 9.38 acres actually owned by the Taxpayers and .96 acres not owned by the Taxpayers. The Taxpayers did not timely challenge this determination administratively. In December 2004, the Taxing Units filed suit against the Taxpayers to collect taxes unpaid on all 10.34 acres for the years 1983 through 2003. The Taxing Units placed a lien on the properties to secure the payment of taxes, penalties, interest, and costs. The Taxpayers answered with a general denial and affirmative defenses, including that the petition failed to comply with the requirements in the Tax Code, that the Taxing Units never properly notified the Taxpayers of the delinquent taxes, that the assessment of taxes is erroneous based on the description of the property, and that designated parties to the lawsuit have no ownership interest in the properties.
While the suit was pending, the Taxpayers, under protest, paid the taxes to stop further penalties and interest from accruing, to avoid foreclosure of the 9.38 acres that they did own, and to avoid breaching a contract to sell the 9.38 acres. The Taxpayers explained that they paid under protest the entire amount because the Taxing Units would not accept payment of the taxes apportioned between the 9.38 acres that the Taxpayers did own and the .96 acres that the Taxpayers did not own. Shortly after paying the taxes, the Taxpayers filed a counterclaim for a refund of the taxes, penalties, and interest they had paid on the .96 acres.2 After receiving payment, the Taxing Units nonsuited their claims for delinquent taxes. At the Taxpayers' motion, the district court realigned the parties, designating them as the plaintiffs.
In their eighth amended petition, the Taxpayers contended they have never owned any interest in the .96 acres for which they paid taxes under duress and they sought a refund of that amount through a declaratory judgment. The Taxing Units answered by asserting affirmative defenses of governmental immunity, failure to exhaust administrative remedies, voluntary payment, and other allegations. The Taxing Units filed a plea to the jurisdiction asserting the district court lacked jurisdiction because the Taxpayers failed to exhaust their administrative remedies as required by the Tax Code. The court denied the plea.
When, as here, the facts are undisputed and the plea to the jurisdiction presents purely a legal question, we review de novo a trial court's ruling on a plea to the jurisdiction. Tex. Dep't of Parks & Wildlife v. Miranda, 133 S.W.3d 217, 226 (Tex.2004); see Mayhew v. Town of Sunnyvale, 964 S.W.2d 922, 928 (Tex.1998). A trial court's judgment is binding only if it has jurisdiction over the parties or property, jurisdiction of the subject matter of the suit, jurisdiction to enter the particular judgment, and the capacity to act as a court. State ex rel. Latty v. Owens, 907 S.W.2d 484, 485 (Tex.1995). Subject matter jurisdiction involves the kinds of controversies a court has the authority to resolve. Davis v. Zoning Bd. of Adjustment of City of La Porte, 865 S.W.2d 941, 942 (Tex.1993).3 Subject matter jurisdiction cannot be waived. Tex. Ass'n of Bus. v. Tex. Air Control Bd., 852 S.W.2d 440, 443–44 (Tex.1993).
Statutory construction is also a legal question that we review de novo. HCBeck, Ltd. v. Rice, 284 S.W.3d 349, 352 (Tex.2009). In construing a statute, we must “ascertain and give effect to the Legislature's intent.” Id. To ascertain that intent, we begin with the “plain and common meaning of the statute's words.” Id. (quoting Tex. Dep't of Transp. v. City of Sunset Valley, 146 S.W.3d 637, 642 (Tex.2004)). We also consider the objective the Legislature sought to achieve through the statute as well as the consequences of a particular construction. Id.; see also Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 311.023(1), (5) (West 2005). We “must not interpret [a] statute in a manner that renders any part of [it] meaningless or superfluous.” Columbia Med. Ctr. of Las Colinas, Inc. v. Hogue, 271 S.W.3d 238, 256 (Tex.2008). We thus construe the text according to its plain and common meaning unless a contrary intention is apparent from the context or unless such a construction leads to absurd results. Presidio Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Scott, 309 S.W.3d 927, 930 (Tex.2010).
The Texas Constitution expressly allows the Legislature to bestow exclusive original jurisdiction on administrative bodies. Cameron Appraisal Dist. v. Rourk, 194 S.W.3d 501, 502 (Tex.2006) (citing Tex. Const. art. V, § 8). Pursuant to this power, the Texas Tax Code limits the general jurisdiction of the district courts and provides “detailed administrative procedures for those who would contest their property taxes.” Id. (citing Tex. Tax Code Ann. §§ 41.01–.71 (West 2008 & Supp.2010)). The Texas Supreme Court has held that “a taxpayer's failure to pursue an appraisal review board proceeding deprives the courts of jurisdiction to decide most matters relating to ad valorem taxes.” Id. (quoting Matagorda Cnty. Appraisal Dist. v. Coastal Liquids Partners, L.P., 165 S.W.3d 329, 331 (Tex.2005)). “The administrative procedures are ‘exclusive’ and most defenses are barred if not raised therein.” Id. (citing Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.09 (West 2008)).
Section 42.09 of the Tax Code states:
REMEDIES EXCLUSIVE.
(a) Except as provided in Subsection (b) of this section, procedures prescribed by this title for adjudication of the grounds of protest authorized by this title are exclusive, and a property owner may not raise any of those grounds:
(1) in defense to a suit to enforce collection of delinquent taxes; or
(2) as a basis of a claim for relief in a suit by the property owner to arrest or prevent the tax collection process or to obtain a refund of taxes paid.
(b) A person against whom a suit to collect a delinquent property tax is filed may plead as an affirmative defense:
(1) if the suit is to enforce personal liability for the tax, that the defendant did not own the property on which the tax was imposed on January 1 of the year for which the tax was imposed; or
(2) if the suit is to foreclose a lien securing the payment of a tax on real property, that the property was not located within the boundaries of the taxing unit seeking to foreclose the lien on January 1 of the year for which the tax was imposed.
(c) For purposes of this section, “suit” includes a counterclaim, cross-claim, or other claim filed in the course of a lawsuit.
Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.09.
To complain about ownership or any other matter adversely affecting the property or the taxpayer, the property owner is required to timely file a written protest with the appraisal review board within the applicable period of limitations. Id. § 41.44(a) (West 2008). Generally, a property owner must file a written notice of protest within 30 days after delivery of notice. Id. After exhaustion of the administrative right to protest, a property owner may file a petition for de novo review with the district court. Id. §§ 42.21(a) (West Supp.2010), 42.23(a) (West 2008). Administrative decisions are final if not appealed to the district court within 60...
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