Case Information
*1 Honorable, ffeorge H. Sheppard
Comptroller of Public Aoaounts
Austin, Texas
Dear Sirr Opinion No. O-2703
Be: Use of appropriation for one fis- oal year to purchase suppUss for use in the follcming fiscal year of a biennim.
Your letter of August 31, 1940, subnits several questions for the opinion of this department. We quote such letter in full:
"In August of 1939 the Department of Publio Safety ordered a supply of drivers* licenses to be used in the year 1940 and, at the time of the order, charged or attempted to sncmber their 1939'appropriation mith the amoti of the purchase. The drivers* liosnsss ?mre mot delivered to the Departmeat of Public Ssfety u" til January, 194% The Department of Publio 8afety now desires tc pay for these lioenses out of the appropriation available for the fisoal year olssing August 31, 1939, o1a.imingtha-b at the time the order was made, they encumbered thpt appropriation withthe rmtit of the purchase*
"Is this department authorized to issue warramt in payment of this alaim against the ,appropiation made for the Deprhnent of Publio Safety for the year ending August 31, 39391
"If not, is this departam& authorized to issue warrantagainst a subsequent appropriation for the payment of these lioenses?
"The Department of Public safety further olaimsthat the balance remaining in the appropriation'for the maintenance of the Drivers* License Mvision for the year ending August 31, 1940, is insufficient to pay claims that ars not out- standing against the appropriation for the yew 1940,,if the depmbnent should be foroed to lxy the aocount in questioa out of the 1940 appropriation.
"Ifyou hold that the socount iu question should be paid out of the approplla- tion for the fisoal year ending August 31, 1940, and since there would be in- suffioient funds tc pay,this aoaowt and &her outstanding aooouats,thea whioh of the'aooouats would maintain priority?'
Drivers' licenses are suoh supplies as are consumed by their'use. Ex- penditures made in the purohasa of suoh supplies fall under the head of expen- ditures for current operating expsnsss, rather than expenditures for fixtures *2 Hon. George Sheppard - page 2 (o-2703)
or permanent operating faoilities. Our Opinion O-2390 rules the situation which you present in your letter, so that the cost of the supply of drivers' licenses purchased for use in the year 1940 may not be charged againtithe appropriationmade available for the fiscal year ending August 31, 1939.
The item of expenditure must be oharged against the appropriation with reference towhioh, oonsidering the nature of the itsla aad the purpose for which it is to be used, the deparhnent making the expenditum was authorized to oontract. Thus, unless at the time that the ooatraot for the nurahse of the supply of drivers' lioenses for use during the year 1940 i8aa made,the approprg- . . ation available for suoh purposes for the fiscal year ending August 31, 194.0 was already fully expended or enoumbered, this expenditure must be aharged against such appropriation end the arrant aooordingly issued.
In reply to your last question, you are advised that the question in reality involved is not one cf priority of aooounts, but of availability of the appropriation to pay a partioulv aocount. lplen a department of the State gov- enrment having been provided with an appropriation available for the purchase of certain supplies, purchases suoh supplies for use during~the fisoal year for whiohthe appropriation is provided, suah appropriatioa is expemded or enoumber ed to the extent of the smou+ut involved in such purohase, and, of oourse, to the extent ~that the appropriatioa has beem thus enoumbered or expended, the authority ofthe department to contra& with refereaoe to the appropriation has been accordingly diminished. When, 9 suooessive purahaaes, the depatient has fully expended or encumbered the particular Item of appropriatioa, the author ity to contract with respect to suohappropriation is likemiss exhausted, so that accounts incurred or expenditures made after the appropriaticm has beea filly enombered or expended are not entitled to be paid out of such appropria- tion, for, at the time suoh aooounts were incurred or expenditures made, the authorityof the department head to oontraot dth~referenoe to the appropria- tion had been exhausted.
Yours very truly AlTORt?EYGERRRALOFTEUS By /a/R. W. Fairchild R. We Fairchild Assistant APPROVWD AFPROVED SEP 14, 1940 Opinion Cmnnittes /s/ Gerald C. %nn By B.W.B.~ ATTORN8YGEMERAL OFTXAS
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