Case Information
*1 ~THEATTORNEY GENERAL OF-TEXAS Aun-rriw ~LTEXAR
GFiRAID C. MANN
Honorable Geo. H. Sheppard
Comptroller of Public Accounts
Austin, Texas
Dear Mr. Sheppard : Opinion No. O-5333
Re: Whether or not the Board ‘of Control may delegate to another the authorltg to approve a voucher claim for the issuance of a warrant.
Your request for an opinion from this department is as follows:
“This department is In receipt of Fur- chase Voucher to The Cooper Company, Inc., 301 South 4th Street, Waco, ,Texas, against an appropriation made to the Gatesville School For Boys, Gatesville, Texas.
“The voucher carries the approval of the Institution Head and appears to, have been regularly requisitioned through the Board of Control. It is approved by Mr. G.B. Carlisle for the Board of Control.
“This department respectfully requests your opinion as to whether it is authorized to issue warrant in payment of this voucher claim that carries the approval of the Board of Control by G. B. Carlisle. It is the information of this department that G.B. Carlisle is Chief, Claims Division, of the State Board of Control."
The statute (Title 20) defining the powers and duties of the Board of Control specifically provides for certain divi- sions; thus, there is a Division of Public' Printing (Art. 607), Division of Purchasing, (Art. 631), Division of Public Build- ings and Grounds (Art. 665), Division of Design and Appropri-
(Art 688) Division of Eleemosyn;;;aj"stitutions (Art.
z$r%d Division Af Child Welfare (Art. .
,Article 604 declares that "the Board may from time to time create such other dlvlsions of its work as may be necessary, *2 Honorable Gee, H. Sheppard - page 2 O-5333 and appoint chiefs of such divisions, . . . . .'
We are advised by the Chairman of the Board that
there has been no formal creation by the Board of a Claims D'ivision, but that Mr. Carlisle is an employee of the de- partment filling the position of Claims Division Chief list- ed as' Item 16 of~'galaries -- ~Main Office in the current General Appropriation for that department.
There is no general statute creating the office of Chiefof the Claims Division nor indeed is there one creating such a division.
Texas Jurisprudence, Vol. 34, p. 459, Sec. 79, in
compendium style declares:
"It is a general rule'that public duties must be performed and government- al powers exercised by the officer or party designated by law -- that they can not be delegated to others. This IS particularly true of duties which are judicial in their nature, or which call for the exercise of reasonable dls- cretion, and which are regarded as a part of the public trust assumed." The rule there announced is In keeping with the gen- eral rule throughout the country'.
In 46 C.J., (p. 1062, Sec. 381) the rule is epitomized as follows:
"Where, however, provision is made by statute for the postlon of deputy, such deputy is regarded as a public officer.' Whether such alter-ego officer be denominated deputy or chief, the rule would of course be the same. As said in Pfeffer v. Mahnke, 260 S,W. 1033:
"The chief clerks are public officers in the same sense and created by the same legal authority as other statutory officers of state." They, of course, exercise their office under precisely the same authority as the head officer, department or board, as the case may be -- that is, the statu,te itself.
Where, therefore, the approve1 of the Board of Control is required, that approval must be the act of the Board es such, *3 Honorable Gee, H. Sheppard - Page 3 o-5333 or of a statutory deputy, assistant, or other alternate clothed with such power,
Under the statutes there is no precise method pre- scribed for evidencing the Board's approval of an Invoice.
There is nothing in your letter, nor otherwise known to us, to show whether or not the Board has approved the invoice.
You should therefore require satisfactory evidence that it has done so.
Very truly yours ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS By s/Ocie Speer Ocie Speer Assistant OS-&R-WC
APPROVH) JUN 7, 1943
s/Grover Sellers
FIRST ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Approved Opinion Committee by s/BR% Chairman