Case Information
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‘...I... OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
H~QOPP~~.O uiifr0rd 5. 600, ~a60
e~~otagh nbn0f to w the 0rrirOrr 8alary; thsn he in turn tokoa a wurant *bioh ir not worth the money and about the c&y way ha oan get ths money is to borrow on it and pay interest until eooh time es there lgi mtf~i,olent mosmy to pay aaid SOID 0r th0 0rri0m me WerPaQts. AS B mat, deputies are grttiag one hu.eUrod par a00 or Weir mlary whsrears other8 havlpg to disoount their warrant8 atid are ~0% getttae, the hoe m&us for us weTrant* This Itlea 1s ruoU.y bawd open t&r opinion that (L Offfoon Selary itrnd oan be eat up r'ar doll oirioor, arzd in mmm plaooo in the &8tuto, .thePe @oem to bo S&Q#J au- supportlrr(l that olrfn. i3m1we~, am ym thority knou, SOISIS or t&e oliioo~r hate offiboa rhL?h we w(t rortonat~ than eara r0r 0mpb tb Ihr &uweor end Oolloetor end the Ooaaty 01.~8~. Ssru af the other orflooaw auoh as tkm Dfatrlot OXor& ad awe7 rtkrrr07 rail t0 got q or tha $80~ due to C&s rO0t t&at stat0 vuzk rOoOlTe8 a0 OOS- penmatloa o#op’tbM thet Motrsa 8et up Sn the to ba, ouppllod by the mtatoq Cob tar- 8tatuts ther with the oltuation bore, other olaiu thm tit089 orrie0p1 oahry, 8up li6e and e~p0n808 hate beau paid out of the Of d oars and scllrrg fuml, 2’hl.e ia the @zwral altoalien io this aoaaty newa
“l* Ihdtw ma 445 eetting ap t&e Ofi%- oira Valery Law, ($ pt under Sootion 29 seams to my that all individual orfi00m md sd.twy Fund 0813 be eat up ror eaoh in4irlduril ot~loar; Wheroes, other oerts of the statuta aeom to a&r that thoko must ibe oroate
+%%P s 0rri00 aaa turn %n aamu ant in lika reoolvo a naTrant which e&all .be drawn en thereor eaid rllnd. Ae I underataml our rltuatim in thim
8 In ~0aBLng the statute set up seems to me that only the du4 *3 Bcmorable aufr0ti s. -4, 55~ 3
eleoted otileexs, deputies, Oar MIleage, gen- era1 office aab suppliee MA be paid O@t expense this Cfficers f3tia -Salmy Funa. Hore+ar, the Comissionern csurt have been paying rent on bulld- irag3n Par rellet offios anti other such olaime out of this futi which I think eooorafag to the atat- ute
the Coaalrslonerr Court WY & paid out of the County General ~UACI tina out or the 2oad aal Brldg~ ?UAa iA thS edhid~ pF0potti0A81 oOUAtYfa&p not to exoeed 75$ or oalary out l3owl aa8 5ria(lo lUQ and the remalmler out of t3enereI l!%Ai end the Cor;sioaionere raay get wll ai their salary out of RtaC and rridge Fund.
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?Axi opinion coveting these questi;ms ttiorough- lp will he oi great aasistanoe to ua, and f am 8ure will go n lbng way towerd olsrring up our birfi0ub
tp in this couAtp.
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Honorable Clifford S. Roe, Pegs b
&mole County has a population of 22,339 inhabl- taut8 aoaordlng to tho last preoadl* federal 0onau8. See- tlon 19 Artlole 3912e, Ver~~on*s Annotated Qitir Statutes, ,wntlonsd in aonneotlan with ysur first question only ep plies to tho6e oowitlee, having a popilatlon in exoess of last pr8oeQlng fe&*ral l$?O,OOO inhabitants aooordlng to t&e 00naua. Therefore, Seotlon 19 does not apply to Panola County.
Eeotlon 4 or Xrtlols 3912a, Vernon*~ Annotated ~lri3. Statutes pr0rld6r:
%.I all oountlea of thlo state containing a population of 1 thm.oo$,I3iWmM and Ninety Thousand (19O.000 Lnheblttitr aoaordiag to the t last preoedlog Fadsral ostiue. wherein the County 0~ P~eolno t ofriom4 04xap0nmted on e salmy beEi* wAaos the provlt3~ons of Q&lie hot, there shall be orsated a funU to be known a8 the Off%- oora* Salary AIIld 0T County, Texas.
sueh runaehallbo kept~epan%eulaapart fro81 all other oounty tutuIs, end bill be held and dla- bureeQ for purpose 0r paJring the wlariee ef ana the mlerlea or deputies, assistants oMoor8 ebd olerks of offlaers who are drtdng a salary fro10 said runa under the prrorialons of the Aat, to pq the authorized er-eness of their off& Bea* Suoh fund ahall be dopositod in the Uouatr Depo~lt~z=y end shell be proteotetl to t&-m ww er- tent a5 other oounty funds.m
3action 4 of Artlole 39120, aupra appliess to all oountioa hating a population of less than 1~0,000 inhabitants eooordlag to the last prsaeding Federal 0anmu wherein tbs oountg or preolnot offlosra are oompenoated on a salary baslr under the pmvl5lon~ of the salary law, Therefore, this pro- to Ekmla County. vlslon of the Statute applies In answer $0 rour first question, you are a&vised that it is our oplnlon t&at there osnnst be meata& a fmd for ea4h offloer afraotea by the provleionrl of the saler? law in a oounty having a population of lass than 190,WXJ lnhabi- tanta aoooraing to the last pre0ePlng Fedetil 8enaafh Panole County is authorlzcsd by the proViHona of Saetlon 4 of Arti- 010 39~0 to weate only one fuud lsnown OS the 0ffl00~~’ *5 Honorable Clifford S. Roe, Page
salary Funa of said county, ana it la the duty or a.11 offi- cera to charge end oolleot in the manner authorized by, law all fee5 end 4ommla5lona which are permitted by law to be assessed ana oolleotea for all offiolal services performed by them end a5 end when suoh fee5 are 40118Oted they shall be depoeitea in the orrioera * *salary Fuzul as provided by the Aot. All offiaera of said oountg who are oampenaated on the salary basis nu5t be paid out of this fund.
With referenoe to your aeooud question, you are advl5ed that no dlalma other then the aelarle5 of offioers and the aalerles of aeputiea, assistants and olerka or offi- oer5 who drawing a salary from eald fund uuder the pro- tieions of the Aot and the authorized expenditure or thalr offioe8 4en be paia from suoh orfleers* salary Fund. It la immaterial whether not there ia.a aurplua in raid fund ne other expenditures are authorized. Seotlon 6 of Ar-tlolr 39120, paragraph (4) apeoifio~lly providea:
"Any money5 remaining in the Offloera( Selary Fuhcl or Funds of ahy county at 'the end of any flaael year ertsr all aaleriea and authorlasd expenses lnourred against eald fund for said ye~er alrall have been paid aray be, by order of the Oom- .mlaalonerat Oourt, trensferrea to the oredlt of the gm6mi tu~d or the 00unty.-
.With refermoe to your third question you are ea- vlaed that the Offloors' Salary Law la not applioeble to Oouuty Commlsslonera and that the County Conniila5lonera oen not be paid out of the Offloors' Salary Fund. couuty com- mlsslonera mu& be paid In the mknner and out of the funds as authorized by Artlole 2350 and Artiole 2350(i), Veruon*r Annotated Olvll Statutes. Artlals 2350(l) provldear
*The salary of each County Commlaaloner end eeoh county Judge may be paia wholly out or the County General Fund, or at the optlon of the Oem- missioners' Court, may be paid out of the County General Fund and out of the Road and Bridge Fund in the following proportioner County Judea not to exoeed seventy-five peroent (75$) OP auoh 5el- arlea may be paid out of the Road and Bridge Fund, end the reaalnder out of the General Fund of tha County, and each County GoUmlssionera* Salary mey, *6 B;onorable CllfNrd 9. Roe, Pege
at the dlroretlozi of tba Wmlasione,zs’ Court all be paid out of the Road ana Bridge Funal providea this Seotion shall not apply exoept in oouaties where the oonstltutional limit of twentr-fire aente (25g) on one hundred dollar valuation is levied r0r gan0m purpot30a.~
ThIe Artlole waa snaotea in 1935 by the 44th Lsgls- laturs, page 1036, ohapter 362, eeation 2, berore the orri00rO' Salary Law went into dr80t. The Of’floera’ Salary Law beome tbrreotive Jit~ry 1, 1936. Artlolee 2350 and 2350(l) hare no appli0ation to the payment or the salary or a County Judge or a oounty where the oountp oltflaerr, are compensated on a sal- my basis. In all euoh o0untle8, the Oouuty Judgea are got- emed by the provirlons Of the OfYiO0rs’ Salary Law and tauat be paid ln the aam@ manor aa other oounty oirloere are pala, 09 th0 OrflOM’ SalarJ hm4. bp WammI# 4hMt
We now 00naider your fourth question. Seotion 5 or Artlola 39120, ?ernon~a Anneteterl airI Statute6 propdaoo lo. partr
“It shall be the duty or all offl0ers to oharge anb 00lleot In the manner authorized by law all raea and oonualssionm whioh are pormlttea by law t0 be l aaeamd aa 0m00tOa ror all 0f- riobz remleer perrozmea br than. A8 when suoh rees are 00lboted they &a811 be deposited in the OttIwrs* Salary Fund, or Fur& pmvldad Wf 8 ht. * (Aloe see Seotion 3 or Artiola
. The Orfloere’ Salary Law speoifioally requires the orrioera who ax-0 oompematsa on a salary basin to 0olleot all fees ana aommiaelons whloh are per@tted by law to be amomed ana oolleoted tar all eiiiolal sertioes perfOrmd by them and such rees and oDlnmiaaiona when oolleoted must be depoolted in the Ofiioers’ Salary Fund. 3eotion 7 or Artlole 39l2e provides:
“All manlea drawn rrom said Oriioers’ Salary Funa or Puna ahall be paId out only on warrant0 approved by the County AuQl.tor fn oouutlea hatlng a County Auditor; otherwise all olairaa against eaia Aind shall ifret have been audited and ap- proved by the Codserionerts* Oourt or said Countg ana the money ohall be dl@bur#ed 00 8ulush approrsd *7 Ronarable Ollfford 8. Bee, ws
olalms by warrauta arciwn by the aoun$y Treasurer on sala iand, ~. i iw
Your rourth ip&stlon as stetea above is in taot two questions or at least oontaimtro parts. In view thq fore- going eta&ate*, we respeotfully answer the first part 0r your fourth question in the negative and the sosond part in the er- firnative.
Trustfng that the forsgolng full;r answers your in- quiry, we are
Youri vary truly A!iTOMWY WWXRAL OF TEXAS h. AFPROVEEJm 29, 1942