Texas Liquor Control Board v. Ammex Warehouse Co.

384 S.W.2d 768, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2405
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 2, 1964
DocketNo. 11248
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 384 S.W.2d 768 (Texas Liquor Control Board v. Ammex Warehouse Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Texas Liquor Control Board v. Ammex Warehouse Co., 384 S.W.2d 768, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2405 (Tex. Ct. App. 1964).

Opinions

ARCHER, Chief Justice.

This case involves the constitutionality of a State law, a statute amending the Texas Liquor Control Act to provide a permit for and to regulate the retail sale of alcoholic beverages for export. Appeal is from a judgment of the trial court in an action which consolidated five separate but substantially identical suits filed on behalf of seven firms operating seventeen liquor selling establishments in the six major Texas towns on the Mexican border.

Each petition sought declaratory judgment holding the amendatory statute unconstitutional and permanent injunction prohibiting the Texas Liquor Control Board, its Administrator, agents, and employees from enforcing or attempting to enforce the new law. Separate temporary injunctions were issued but the five cases were formally consolidated for trial on the merits. The judgment of the trial court granted to the plaintiffs all the relief sought, declaring the statute unconstitutional and enjoining the Texas Liquor Control Board, its Administrator, agents, and employees from enforcing the statute or in any way interfering with the conduct of plaintiffs’ businesses. The State of Texas, on behalf of the defendants, immediately filed notice of appeal. At the plaintiffs’ request the trial court filed extensive findings of fact and conclusions of law.

[769]*769The appeal is based on ten points assigned as error, and, in effect are that the court erred in holding that, as a matter of law, Federal, Constitutional and Statutory provisions prohibit State regulation of appellees’ businesses, that there is no evidence, or the evidence is insufficient to support the trial court’s holding that appellees are exporting liquor, and no evidence or the evidence is insufficient to support the trial court’s holding that appellees are conducting their businesses in compliance with Federal regulations; that the court erred in failing to uphold the constitutionality of the Statute in question; that there is no evidence, or the evidence is insufficient to support the trial court’s holding that it would be impossible for appellees to conduct their businesses in compliance with the Statute in issue, and that there is no evidence or the evidence is insufficient to support the trial court’s holding that the amendatory Statute in question would create conflict with Federal Law.

The Statute brought into question by this suit (Acts 1963, 58th Leg., Ch. 108, p. 196) as codified (Article 666-15(7b) Vernon’s Ann.P.C.) reads:

“(7b) United States Bonded Liquor Export Permit. A United States Bonded Liquor Export Permit shall authorize the holder thereof to:
“(a) Purchase liquor in bond from holders of Texas Wholesalers’ Permits or purchase liquor from distillers, brewers, wineries, wine bottlers, rectifiers, and manufacturers who are holders of Nonresident Seller’s Permits and import into the State of Texas at a United States bonded dock such liquor in transit for exportation purposes.
“(b) Transport such liquor from the United States bonded dock at point of entry under United States Bond to a United States bonded warehouse within the State of Texas.
“(c) Warehouse such liquor under United States bond.
“(d) For the purpose of exportation only, solicit orders for, take orders for, and accept payment for any quantity of said liquor in unbroken original containers.
“(e) Cause such liquor to be withdrawn from a United States bonded warehouse for exportation, in compliance with United States Custom regulations, and delivered to a public common carrier for transportation, in compliance with such carrier’s established rate schedule, into the country of export by such common carrier or by such common carrier’s affiliated common carrier in the country of export, for delivery to the purchaser at a designated address outside the continental limits of the United States or for delivery to a named qualified person at a designated address outside the continental limits of the United States.
“The annual state fee for a United States Bonded Liquor Export Permit shall be Seven Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($750).
“The privileges authorized by this Section are cumulative and not in lieu of requirements of Federal Law in the conduct of such operations. It is specifically provided, however, that permits under this Section shall not be required for the wholesale export of United States bonded liquor by the holder of any other type of permit which, under existing Statutes and the rules and regulations of the Texas Liquor Control Board, authorizes the wholesale exportation of liquor in compliance with Federal Law.”

The idea of selling tax and duty free liquor “for export * * * without State and Federal taxes” was developed by Hal G. Ward who founded Ammex Warehouse Company, and secured from the Texas Liquor Control Board a wholesaler’s permit provided for in the Act, and filed bonds to operate a Class 2 and 8 bonded ware[770]*770house, and began operations at Laredo, Texas in June, 1961.

Shortly thereafter the Liquor Board can-celled Ammex’s wholesale permit; such permits authorize the exportation of liquor but only in wholesale quantities. The ap-pellees generally sell in quantities of one to three bottles.

Certain phases of this litigation were before this Court in Texas Liquor Control Board v. Jones, 378 S.W.2d 898, and before our Supreme Court in Ammex Warehouse Company v. Archer, 381 S.W.2d 478, and the history of the subject matter was recited and discussed and we make reference to the cases, and will endeavor to confine our consideration to the issues in the instant case and not restate issues disposed of in the decision by the Supreme Court.

There is now pending Civil Action No. 1466 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Austin Division, Ammex Warehouse Company, Inc., et al. v. Texas Liquor Control Board et al.

Appellees take the position in this present suit on appeal that the cases of Hostetter v. Idlewild Bon Voyage Liquor Corporation, 377 U.S. 324, 84 S.Ct. 1293, 12 L.Ed.2d 350 .(1964) and Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control for State of California v. Ammex Warehouse Co. of San Ysidro, Inc., 378 U.S. 124, 84 S.Ct. 1657, 12 L.Ed.2d 743 (1964) are controlling and that the 21st Amendment to the Constitution does not permit the State to regulate liquor passing through its territory, under the supervision of the United States Bureau of Customs acting under Federal Law for sale and delivery at foreign destinations.

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384 S.W.2d 768, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2405, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/texas-liquor-control-board-v-ammex-warehouse-co-texapp-1964.