Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-427

Opinion No. 427. l\lotor Vehicles - .Registration, County Treasurer to Receive Application for- County Treasurer. HELD: Applications for registra- tion of motor vehicles by the owner OPI~IO~S OF THE AT'l'ORNEY GENERAL 293 thereof, as distinguished from a dealer in motor yehicles, must he made to the county treasurer of the county where such motor vehicles are owned. and to him alone. January 25, 1934. You ha,'e addressed me as follows: """Te arc in possession of the opin- ion of the Montana Supreme Court in the case of Wallace Vennekolt v. Lutey, County Treasurer of Lewis and Clark County. It seems that this opinion hfils declared unconstitutional rhat portion of Chapter 158, Laws of 1!l33, which states that automobiles lI1a~- he taxed. and the tax must he paid. on or he fore the license plates may he if;sued in 1934. This opinion is confusing and we would ask your opinion on the following: "Could this department accept ap- plications for registration or re-regis- trntion from an individual when ac- companied by the proper fee. retain- ing the fee in this office to the credit of the particular county until the fee is apportioned to the different coun- ties, or must all applications come through the different county treasur- ers? "If we are allowed to accept appli- cations as outlined above, what if any evidence of taxes having been paid in 1933, would this office require before the application would be accepted and license plates issued." After having carefully read the opin- iOIl of the Supreme Court in Vennekolt '-. Lute~-, 96 Mont. 72, it is our dew that so far as applications for rel,,'istra- tion of motor vehicles n re concerned the pro';sions of Section 1, Chapter 158. Laws of 1933, still have force and vitality: in other words, that an owner of, as distinguished from a dealer in. motor vehicles must make application for registration thereof to the county treasurer of the county wherein they are owned and to him alone. Indeed, the court was at pains to point out that only such parts of Chapter 158 as re- lated to the taxation of motor yehicles were invalid.