Case Information
*1 November 29, 1947 Hon. Eugene Talbot Opinion NC. V-442 County Attorney Smith County Tyler, Texas
Re: Constitutional fund from which c0unt.y hospital bonds are payable.
Dear Sir:
We have received your letter of November 18, 1947, in which you ask whether county hospital bonds are payable from the county general fund or from the county permanent improvement fund.,
Article 4478, Revised Civil Statutes, under the conditions stated therein, authorizes the issuance of county bonds.for "establishing, enlarging and equipping said (county) hospital and for all other necessary per- manent improvements in connection therewith,"is and parenthetical.insertion added.)
Section 9 of Article VIII, Constitution of Texas, and Article 2352, Revise~d Civil Statutes, limit the authority of the county to levy ad valorem taxes to certain purposes and prescribe the rate~for each purpose. Such purposes are the following:
1. For county purposes. For,road and bridge purposes.
,2.
To pay jurors.
For the erection of public buildings and other permanent improvements. - We believe that the question in which you are interested has already been fully determined both by the courts of the state and by this department: namely, that bonds issued for county hospital purposes under Article 4478 are issued for permanent improvement pur- poses and are payable from taxes levied therefor out of the permanent improveme.nt tax authority, and that the same cannot legally be paid out of the general fund,
Hon. Eugene Talbot - Page 2 L V-442
the case of'Seydler v. Border (W. E. Ref.), 115 Y.W. $7 was upheld. 702, the constitutionality of Article 4478
The court, in effect, held that such bonds were payable out of the permanent, improvement tax, cit- ing the case of Robertson v. Breedlove, 61 Tex. 316.
In Opinion No. O-2599, this department held that the county hospital improvements authorized by Ar- ticle 4478 were payable from the permanent improvement tax. In Opinion No. V-118, this department held that county hospital bonds could not be issued because the necessary tax levy to pay the bond requirements would exceed the constitutional limitation.
Similarly,'this department has determined that county park bonds and county airport bonds are issued for purposes of "permanent improvementsn and are payable from the permanent improvement fund.
If such bonds are payable from the permanent improvement fund, then moneys of the general fund can- not be used therefor, for it is well settled that mon- eys from one constitutional fund cannot be transferred to another. such fund, and can be.ex ended for no other purpose. Carroll v. Williams 109 i ex. 155 202 S.W.
504, (affirming, in part, Wiliiams v. Carroil, 182 S.W. 29).
SUMMARY County hospital bonds, issued under the authority of Article 4478, are issued for permanent improvements and are payable, both as to interest and principal, from taxes levied therefor under the authority of the commissioners' court to levy taxes for the erection of,public buildings and other permanent improvements. Provided, how- that such bond taxes can in no event ever, 'increase the maximum amount of the total permanent improvement tax beyond the con- stitutional limit.
*3 Such county hospital bonds cannot le- gally be paid with moneys belonging to the [*] .
,
.
Ron. Eugene Ta~lbert - Page 3 - v-442
county general fund or with taxes levied for such county purposes. ,
Very truly yours, ATTORNEY G!%NERA& OF TE'XAS GWS : erc
APPROVED: . . .
ATTORNEY GENERAL , .