The County Collector may not sell for delinquent taxes land which has escheated to the State in accordance with Section 470.010 RSMo 1959. Title to such property vests in the State immediately upon the death of the former owner and Section 470.060 et seq. merely outlines the formal procedure necessary to secure a judicial determination that the title has in fact vested.

ESCHEAT: REAL PROf'ER'l'Y : The Count ~ Collector ~a~ no~ sell for delinq~ent taxes land which has eJcheated to the Sta"te in accordance with Sectlon 470 .010 RSMo 1959. Title to sucn property ests 'n tne st~te lmmediatel~ t..pon -c!'le J.eatn of the former o..:r.er and ~e ctlon 47 .060 et seq. merely outlines tne tormal pro- cedure necessary to secure a judicial deterroinati~n tnat "tne title Has in t'ac t vested. January 30, 1963 Honorable Harold L. Henry Prosecuting Attorney Howell County Weat Plaine, Niaaouri Dear Mr. Henrys Opinio1 Nu . 313 (Denman) ~ .:?! {l :lt•:t) Thla letter 1a in reaponae to your letter or August 18, 1962, requeat1ng an opinion ot thia otr1ce upon the follow- ins ttera "A Mtter naa come up down here 1n th1a County concerning aome delinquent tax land that haa escheated to the State or M1aaour1 . This real property waa owned by a party who died on lanuar.y ll, 1959. leav1na no heirs and it eacheated to the State ot M1aaour1 unc!er order or the Probate Court. On Januar, 1, 196o .. the taxea on the property for the year of 1959 beca~e delinquent .. and there haa been a delinquency for each )ear there- attar. The County Collector haa, there- tore, in view or the three year delin- quency or the payment or these ta~·· advert1aed this land for aale under the reaular delinquent taz aalea atatutea . In view of the provis1ona ot Chapter 470 R.S. Mo. , 1959, and eapec1ally in Seotion• 470.040 and 470.170 thereot, 1 question whether or not the purebaaer at aueh a aale could obtain title thereto. The apeciti c question, aa I aee it, ia whether or not lands that have eachaated to the tate or M1aoouri and on which t he taxea Honorable Harold L. Henry become de~1nquent, can be sold by the County Collector at a delinquent tax sale. "This aale haa been advertised for Auauat 21, 1962, and I would appreciate a memorandum or an opinion from your otf1ce on this question. " Section 470.010, RSMo 1959, prov1dee in part as followss "If aey person die intestate., seized of a111 ~al or personal proper~, leaving no heirs or "presentative& capable ot inheriting the aam.eJ * • • euoh ~a.l an4 perl()nal estate shall escheat and vest in tbe atate, subject to and in accordance with the provisions of aectiona 470. 010 to 47o.a6o," Section 470.060, et seq,, proacr1l.)ea the procedure by which the prosecuting attorney of the county 1n which the real eatate is situate shall secure a ju<l1e1al determination ot title to euch property. All real and personal property belonging to the State is exempted trom taxation by general law. Article X, section 6, Qonet1tut1on Of M1asour1~ 1945; section 137.1001 R&Mo 1959. Taxea levied and aa-aessed aaainet a tract of land While under private ownerahip cannot be collected after such lan4 baa been acqW.red by a goverrunental aaency . State vs. Bauman, 1941, Mo., 153 SW2<1 31. Your question turns upon when the land veata 1n the Stat$ . If 1t «UICheUlta and veata in the State immediately upon the death ot the former owner, it may not be aold for taxes accruing ettber prior or subsequent to hia death. Howaver, it the land doea not vest ~n the State unt11 there has bten a Judicial determi.nation thex-eof, it may be sold for delinquent taxes prior to tbe filing or info~tion to secure such a determination. In an opinion of this off1ee issued on August 11, 1942, to the Honorable ~. M. Brady, Proaecut1ng AttorQey of Benton County, M1aaour1, . th18 office concluded that under Section 470.010, real property formerly owned OJ a decedent who leaves - 2 - Honorable Harold L. Henry nG heirs capable ot inheriting vesta in the State immediately. The procedure to secure title thereto merely outlines tha means of securing a Judicial determination that the title has in tact veated. Thia opinion was modified by an opinion of this office 1asued on July 12, 1943, to the Honorable J'orreat Smith ot the Board ot Pund Commiaaionera. However, the con- clusion reached .in the earlier op~nion pertinent to 70ur question waa not changed or modified. A copy ot both ot these op1n1o~ is enclosed herein. We can tind no Riaaouri cases that have aa yet passed directly on thia point. In State vs. Buchanan, 1948, Mo., 210 SW2d 359, the Court held that where the State was not a party to the proceedings, the probate court bad no Juriadiotion to determine title to certain land in dispute between the State and alleged he1ra of the deceased tormer owner. The Court intimated that escheat land vested immediately, saying (1. c. 362): "Upon the death ot the deceased, the legal title to the real estate descended to &nd v-ested Ln the heirs at law ot the deceksed, taubJect to the payment of his ~ebta, etc.• * • • If there were no heira or representative• capable of inhe?it~ng the described real estate, it eseheated and title veated 1n the state, subject to and 1n accordance With the provisions of Art. l of Chap. 3, Sec. 620, et eeq., R. • 1939, Mo.R.~.A. * • •" Courts in other Jurisdictione have ditf'ered as to the necessity for a judicial proceeding to eatabliah an escheat and veat the land in the State. 30 c.J.S., Escheat, Section 19b(2), page 1184. However, recent dec1aiona hold that on the death of a citisen 1nteatate and without heirs, the title to Ma property vesta 1n the tate immediately upon hie death. 23 A.L.R. 1237. In the annotated caae, Re Melrose Ave., 234 N.Y. 48, 136 N.B. 235, 23 A.L.ft •. l233, and other caaea annotated thereunder and in the supplemental annotation in 79 A.L.R. 1364, the courta held that land veated immediately upon the death of the former owner dying intestate and without heira and could not legally be aold for non-payment of taxea. Puckett va. State, 1853, Tenn., 1 Bneed 355; State va. Goldberg, 1904, ll3 Tenn. 298, 86 s.w. 717; Hanna va. tate, 1892, 84 Texaa 664, 19 SW 1008; Aricona Land & Stock Co. va. Markua, 1931, 31 Arts. 530, 296 P. 251J Schmitz va. New Mexico State Tax Collllll1aa1on, 1951, 55 N. Mex . 320, 232 P.2d 986 . - 3 - Honorable Harold L. Henry CONCLUSION It is the opinion of this office that the county collector may not sell for delinquent ta%ea land which haa escheated to the State 1n accordance with Section 470.010. RSMo 1959 . Title to auch property vests in the State immediately upon the death or the former owner and Section 470 .060 et aeq. merely outlines the tormal pro- cedure necessary to secure a judicial determination that the title haa in fact vested. The foregoing opinion, which I hereby approve, was prepared by my Assistant, John H. Denman. Bncloaurea - 2 Very truly )'Oura, THOMA ~ . &AOLI'l'OI Attorney General