Case Information
*1 r I
,R-150 PRICE DANIEL ATTORNEY GENERAL 1947
Mmob 28, Bon. Jep 8. yullsr Opfnloll NO, v-110 County Attormky Jefferson County Beaumont D lWXa6
Re: Right of County’co8ml8Y slonrra D Court to re- co&m a union ae ool- leotive bakgainiw agent ior county employeea and to enter into a oollect- ive bargaining agreement with said agenoy. ‘~ I Dear Sir:
You ask us to a&vise whether the Commissionerse court or ~Jrrr6rroh County may enter ‘a dollsotive bar- gaiunfng agreement with an awooiation or’ union and re- cognize it a6 the oolleotire bargaining agent for oounty employees 0 YAttaohed to your request is a oopy or”an agreement bdtwaen the County CommissIonsraP Court of your ooonty with Looal No,, of the Ameriaan yedera- tion of State, County,, and WnicfRal Employees. This contract provide8 for the Union as the bargaining agent ror all oounty dmployees; for an 8 hour working day and a I+0 ho.ur work Week, *All houra worked in exaena of A0 houra are to be added to the employee*6 iaoationor the employee to take euah time off at any time; that silita the convenienoe of the department of his employment.” ” It also, provides ror eiok leaVea, ta6ations and obser- vance of designated legal holidaya. The’oontraot is for a term of one year and “shall autmnatioally remain in full force and effect from year to year, unless a written notioe is given, thirty days prior erpfra- tion of the year that said contraot ia in foroe, by either party upon the other, of their intention to ter- minate said contract or until a new agreement la mutually agreed to by the parties herein,*
The substantial queetion is of the legalit of the authority of the County C c!wullf*- of the contract; sionersn Court to make such a contraot,
It ia axiomatio that in a governmsnt ih whioh tho dutie8 of all orficere, as yell as their ponerr, are
Han, Jep S, Fuller
defined by written law, no power should be exerciesd unless authorized by law, It is important Co beer in mind that the CommissionersO Court &es not have the same freedom of action whioh private bmployers enjoy.
Their authority is confided to them by lawg an8 by that law it is limited, That authority may not YI $rlogated or surrendered to others sinoe it a publio trrist 00 be disoharged by publio OffiOialS a8 mided by ZWDla
In the case of
t %19071, 90 TeXe 606, 4
?f ourt of Texas said:
*It is not true 0 0 e t,hat the @on- sti tution confers upon the CommiB*foner~~ Court any general authority over the ooun= ‘tyDs business, but merely gives them nuah speoial powers and jurisdiotion over all county business as is conferred by the con* stitution itself and the laws ot the State, or as might be thereafter preacribr)llo We had occasion to consider thi$ ques%li?a in the case or Bland v. Orr (Tex, Bup,) B9 S, VB, 558, and reached the conclusion that such courts could exercise only so@& ow%r8 as the constitution itself or PM 1% #la- !
ture had specifically conferred uwb Umn,*
The Supreme Court of Texas reiterated the above fo~;~i;oChildress County v, State (1936) 92 So WO (2d) 16, saying:
0
“The authority of the CommisBiOnersO Court of Childreea County to Bike OOP- traote in its behalf is striotly 1iaSW to that oonferred, either expWs#ly or by fair or necessary implicatfon, em- by stitution and laws of this State**
Nor oan the Commissioners0 Court 11&&t it8 Srsew dam OS contract with its employees aa to the wobdit$oLM stipulatfone of employmentD Thus County oSfio@T~ who are authorized by law to contraot for the buildfaa; et a oourthouae aannot delegate such sullhorfty to a pe&mtO indivfduab~
The ComissfonersB Court bould not dsleeate to an architeot their authority to make a contraat % construct a courthouse, Russell v. Gage (3886), 66 .%X0 428, 1 S. W, 270,
Bon* Jop 8. Puller ~0 Page 3 V-ll0 lleo C, &'1919) T
208 8. ‘99, 2 3# or held that tEo Cc%lalas&-oneTa Q co r the om8traetioa of a eowthouse oannot make the oontSaotor glr agent with authority to ptroel out the oontrao8 M others and themby telease the oontraotors trOm all lW%lty, Suoh aotion was void bWaur@ it delegated to others tho court @I powera ot passlng QD the omtraot.
And the dupreme Court in
County: (1888) 71 Tex, 99, 8 a0 W, 6
oounty oom&~eioners~ oourt nwt them&olver ssleot auoh agents aa may be neoessary to assist thun in tk die- charge of their fuuotions when suoh agents smro~ae jud$ment and discretion in pWfomna8 or tbs worlc as- signed to thm; t&e duty of aaktsg arleettoas should not be delegated; and a ~artaDl to tEu uMrary would br unree+#onable and not bindln$.
Ita r&z&d no authority &I C&e Uu for a Oormdr- sioniro” Court to enter a eolleotiYe bargaining oontract
or it8 &e&al dutlea to aa aWeelation r8snkiw who ahaU ba sQ&oye&, and provtlirrs ngul;atirrg suoh am- p1oymut.
“Xn this oonneot&bn we lo 8ot de1 it inappropriate to quote the Iota
dent Roosevelt, am no o&e ban tH&tb my he was fi any #en86 inialaal thr Ratloolrl
In a letter rbaezu ~Q~~WHI, adoa Wwt i(lp *4 Hon. Jep 9. Fuller
the late president is quoted as saying:
OAll government employees should re- alive that the prooess of oolleotive bar- gaining, as usually understood, oannot be transplanted into the public servioe. It has its distinct and insurmountable liti- tations when applied to publio personnel management O The very nature and purpose or government make it impossible for adminls- trative ofiieials to represent fully or to bind the employer in mutual disoussions with government employee organizations e The em- ployer is the whole people, who speak by meana of laws enacted by their representa- tives in Congress. Accordingly, adminls- trative employers and ofriolala alike are governed and gutded, and in m,n instanoes restricted, by laws which estab E: ish poll- oies 9 prooedur61, or rules in personnel matters. sm
,WhiLe the GeaWmaioneras Wart has the right of aad disehaq!&g some ereployees, preillme cowt Si,Teza8, 1941s 152 8,. ot by direat%- iBdiraQtieB in- fringe upon an elected county officer*s right and duty of selecting assistants of his choice.,
(San Antonio Court of Civil Appeals,
w. (2d) 636, 646, Artiale 3902. Revised givil Qbatutel. 1925. as I -.
amended, provides that H - the position numbor needed, numbor needed, the position to be filled a$ the amount to be paid, Said tpplio at~ien shall be aecempanfed by-statomnts SheWi~ t&m prob- able reoeipte rrom fe,es, oom~&&enr amd oofnp peneation to be collected by said effiee during the risoal year and the probable dibbureeliatr b..; whioh mhall inolude all aalariee and expense0
of,said 0friee; ash. mid QQWW~ ab&U 8g&J& *5 ., .
Bon e Jep 9. Fuller
’
(Undersooriag , Like priwirfonr ar+a r0uad in the 0th or a trtutss .’ dealing with the appolntnent and salaries o? county emplg-
eeso
Though the Comml~elonors.~ Court vaa, 081~ aa au- thorized by law, limit the salaries and nu&er of county empI@yees, thep have no power @?er, the naaing or the lndi- ’ viduals o do w* (24) 537. bv law. Ths Court werrlho4 inh~ “‘ph. Commlesloarti * llmlteti Ju~l~~6tler1, . Then atatutoEy authority is given ?or the axWolse ef cor-
taia pawek and the per?ormutee of oorta5.n duties, those requlroments aust be striaPZg ?dlloweU. D D * The alg authority under rhioh a Wnni.asionara~ Couxt oould assist in the appeintmrtlt Of the doputlea named in Artiole 3902 is the authority oanierrel thorola, 6A& oould be exeouted only In the manaar presorlbod la the statute, Johna”@noa, (San Antonio C, A, 1932), 52 So II, (2 . 23118 department la b)inhan Elo. O-2633, approved reached a like oono~urlen -- helding
Septembrr 9, 19 that the Lowor. sfondo Biver Autbwrrlt,y la&M r the author- tkgree- ity to enter ipto a pxopoeo~ oolleetive kx@ni “f I att8ohed ment with a labor unloo. A oapy of that oplnloa hereto.
In view or w&t has bran paid l b cwo, it 1s thr settled rule of law in this Utate that the 'Coamln4l$msrrr' Court oannot by direotion or indireotion ln?rin@‘upon an orfioer~s right and duty o? seleoting raBlatant8 o? his, oholce. The reaponslble head or an orfioo oanabt be re- *6 Hono Jep 8, ?ullrr - Paga V-U.0
lieved from the general duty of supeniaion and control or his office in a reasonably sffioient man- ner by placing restrictions ar to whom he shall ap- point nor aa to the conduct o? his O??iOoe
!?sithor can the Ccn@s616#2ere* @our& 4nt4r into a eolb4ti+4 bargaining aId ?44ogniz4 a&rOmOd The Jorrrrson mmby mmml~iaram~ roea#4##@ a
Qourt ir not authorized p~ion arrwiation es a 00~14otl4U ‘k* gaining agent statutes Bo not
Courtos authorllty as to the aoadibl~ 6f oznployment, working hour*, vaMt401, and other matters relating to such omplO~nto
RespooUull~r yours, A’M’ORNBY (IEHwEaAL OF ‘l’l+B ---++-t . BY David Wuntoh AMietant