Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
GERALD C. MANN ATTORNEY GENERAL
Honorable T. A. Booth, Chief Veterinarian Livestock Sanitary Commission W. T. Waggoner Building Port Worth, Texas
Dear Sir:
Opinion No. 0-4406 Re: The appropriation account out of which expenses of having the state Veteri- nary Laboratory should be paid.
Permit us to quote your letter of February 9, 1942, requesting an opinion from this department. It reads:
"During the month of December, 1941, it was necessary that we were the state Veterinary Labora- tory from one building to another, located in the city of Port Worth.
During this movement it was necessary that we employ an electrician and a plumber to take down cor- tain of our equipment and install it in the new location.
We received bids for each of these two activities and gave the work to the lowest bidder, with the approval of the state Board of Control. We have sub- mitted to the comptroller the accounts of the elec- trician and the plumber and today we received back a letter from the comptroller as follows:
"I am returning the account of the Bohoot Electric Company. It is drawn out of an incorrect appropriation."
"It would seem to us that the expense of installing equipment would come within the appropriation for equipment and supplies for the laboratory. We would
*2 Honorable T. O. Booth, Cheif Veterinarian, Page 2 appreciate very much your opinion as to the prop- or fund from which to pay these accounts. "The comptroller has also turned down the ac- count of moving the laboratory and equipment from one building to another, which we charged to the laboratory equipment and supplies account, and in- dicated that this account should be paid out of our regular office expense account."
As we construe your letter, no new laboratory equipment or supplies is in any way involved. Present equipment has merely been moved to a new location.
Senate Bill 423, Acts of the 47th Legislature, con- tains the appropriations to the Livestock Sanitary Commission. Under the heading "Maintenance and Miscellaneous" there appear these two items: "106. Laboratory equipment and supplies . . . . . . . 2500.00 "109. Rent, telephone, postage, of- 109. Rent, telephone, postage, off- 109.
There is no specific appropriation for expenses inci- dent to moving the State Veterinary Laboratory. This type of expense is infrequent, usually not foreseeable, and was not specifically provided for by the Legislature. Expenses of such nature were intended to be included within and paid out of con- tingent expense appropriations.
Moving laboratory equipment is obviously not the purchase of new equipment or laboratory supplies; it does not involve the installation of newly purchased laboratory equipment. It is our opinion that the appropriation item "labor- story equipment and supplies" was intended to cover the pur- chase of new equipment or new supplies and, of course, the necessary installation of such new purchases. It was not in- tended to cover the installation of old equipment involved in a change of location of the laboratory.
*3 Honorable T. O. Booth, Chief Veterinarian, Page 3
It is therefore our opinion that the expenses described in your letter should be paid out of the "office and contingent expense" appropriation to the Livestock Sanitary Commission.
Yours very truly ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
By (a) Zollie C. Steakley Assistant
ZC5:0J
APPROVED FEB. 18, 1942 (a) Grover Sellers
First Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED Opinion Committee By B.W.B. Chairman