Case Information
*1 qp'inidn No. i-1021 Honorable Roger M: 'Dreyer ” County Attorney
204 Ciiri'stian Bullding '~ "-' Re: .Authority of county 711 St. Joseph Street .to lease two-way Gonzales; Texas 78629" radios for a deputy sheriff and related Dear Mr. Dreyer: questions.
Our former Opinion No. M-969 (1971) is withdrawn and this Opinion issued in its stead.
Your opinion request contains a series of questions, . which~ may be consolidated and paraphrased as follows:,'
1. May the county commissioners .&ease two-way radio
equipment foruse by ,i+e sheriff7
2. May .the county cotiissioners lease.or purchases and maintain two-way radio equipment. for the.personal vehicles of the sheriff and-his deputies, including especial deputi,es?
3. May the county commissioners lease two-way radio equipment for the automobile of a game management officer employed by the Parks and Wildlife Department?%'
The authority 'for the county commissioners to pay for the expenses incurred byla sheriff is found in Article 3899, Vernon's Civil Statutes, which,~in ~the relevant portions :. of part (b?, reads as follows:
"(b) Each officer~named in.this Act, where he receives a salary ,as,compensation forhis ser- '. vices, shall'be entitled.and permitted to purchase or charge to his county,all reasonable expenses necessary in fbe xroper, and ,le.g.al conduct of his office. . . . The Commissioners. Court of the county 1 ~A11 Articles referred;.to .are Vernon's Civil Statutes unless otherwise stated.
Honorable Roger M. Dreyer, page 2 (M-1021)
of the sheriff's~ residence may, upon the writ-.
ten and sworn application of the sheriff stat- ing the necessity therefore,. purchase equipment for a Bureau of Criminal Identification, such as cameras, fingerprint cards, inks, chemicals,, microscopes, radio and laboratory equipment, filing cards, filing cabinets,, tear gas and other equipment, in keeping with. the system in use with the Department of Public Safety of this State, or the United States Department of Justice and/or Bureau of Criminal Identifi- cation."
The commissioners court, is also authorized'by Article 6699a to furnish equipment reasonably necessary for deputy sheriffs who.serve as county traffic officers,
The commissioners court has jurisdiction and authorky limited to that provided by thaConatitution or by law, but the.commissioners court has the implied power to exercise broad discretion to accomplish the purposes' intended by any right conferred.or"obligation,.imposed;' .Anderson v. Wood, 137,Tex. 201, 152 S.W.'2d 1084 (1941); Do&on v.~Marshal& 118 S.W.2d.621 (Tex..Civ.App. 1938; error dism.),~
Two-way radio equipment is'an obvious incident-to'ef- fective law enforcementi'and.the~usefulness-of radio.equip- sent ,is recognized specifically by Article 3899;. 6ince.the zommissioners'court is,authorized"to provide for all r.eason- able.end neceasary'expenses.of the,.sheriff., ,then clearly they nay provide.forthe,purchase'or lease of two-way radio equip- nent.for use by the sheriff and his deputies in accordance, with the provisions of Articles 3899 .and 6699a..
Sheriffs and theirdeputies are authorized to-use their personally owned cars inthe performance of their official iuiiies. Frtiole 6877-I. Our opinion is that the commissioners. :outt has'authority un'derboth Articles 3899 'and 6699a to'in- StalLand maintain two-way,radio equipment, either purchased or Leased,, in personally,owne,d ;oars used in the performance off lffioial duties.
Your request; insofar .as.it applies to .a special reserve deputy sheriff warrants specie1 ~attention. ,The special'deputy in question, according:to the information furnishes, has been
.Honorable Roge,r M. Dreyer; page:'3 (MLlb21j " :: authorization entered court;. The special' ~. appointed by the sheriff pursuant to upon'the minutes of.the commissioner reimbursement"abd has-:
deputy serves without pay or mileage The last,legisl,ature ‘! only part-time or emergency duties. . _ . . - enacted specral provzsions sor reserve deDutV~ sheriffa to serve, without pay. (Acts 62nC Lea., R.S.', 1971r.ch;..5D6, p* 17399 and Acts of the same Legislature, ch. 829; p. 2531, .. as amended by Acts 62nd Leg., 1st C.S., 1971, ch. 'Cl;. pi + 3434). The commissioners court has the discretion'to'diter- mine if the purchase or lease of two-way..radio equipmerit for the special or reserve deputies is a reasonable and necessary expense of.the ,sheriff. ,.. .: '~
Your,#ira questicn'con&rns‘ furnishing radio equipment' for the state-owned vehicle of a game management officer employed by the Parks:,and~Wildlife Department. This officer is expressly named as a peace off.icer in Article 97Sf-5c, Vernon's Penal Code.' According to information furnished this office by 'the Parks.and~Wildlife Department, the Department of Public Safety, and the Sheriff's Association of Texas, a number of counties,have provided radio equipment for instal- lation in vehicles operated by the Departmentof Public Safety and game managementofficers. ,The ,equipment so furnished op- berates on the radio frequency‘used,.by 'the sheriffs and enables the sheriffs to maintain contact with the other officers.and materially facilitates cooperation among all peace Officers in law enforcement.
'This interpretation-of Articles 389,9 and 6699a.and gener- al administrative practice in wide application 'over'the State for many years, involving the range of discretionallowed com- missioner's courts, 1.8 entitled to substantial weight in the construction qf..the statutes under con~sideration. 53'Tex.aur. 2d 259-264,.Statutes; Sec.. 177.
No etatutory authority express'ly authorizes a sheriff to provide radio'equipment for.installation'.$n'vehic~es~oper+ted by game management officersor other law enforcement personnel but Article 3899, expres.sly.authorises the sheriff *i .'. .to purchase or charge tom his county.,all reasonable expenses nec- essary in the 'proper and legal conduct of his ,office. . . ." and expressly authorizes the purchase of ~radio equipment. A broad and libera~'.interoretation is to.be~siven .this lancuace. ,Rodgers v. County.~of 'Taylor, 368 S;-W.:Zd 794 (Tex&v.App;, - m63, error ref.n.r.e.1. The Department of Public'Safety and the~sherif'fs and other law.enforcement officers dare re- quired,to cooperate under statutes such as Articles 4413(15), 4413(19),, and ,44.L3(21). *4 .,
Honorable Roger M.' Dreyer, page 4 (M-lO21)
Our opinion is that the commissioners court can provide .radio equipment for the sheriff to install in the vehicles of game management officers or other law enforcement personnel as an aid to'the'sheriff in law enforcement if the. commissioners court, in its discretion, finds the use of such equipment to be a reasonable and necessary expense in the proper conduct of the sheriff's office. To the extent of any conflict herein with Attorney General's Opinion.Nos. 046649 (1945), R-2442 S 51 (lg!X), and'C-743 (lS6) and any other such opinions, those opinions'are overruled.:
'suuuARY Xn accordance with the terms'of.Article * 3899, Vernon's Civil'Statutes, the~commiseioners court is authorized to provide for all reason- able expenses-necessary 'inthe proper'..and legal conduct of the. sheriff% office andfmay, in its discretion, purchase or,.lease and maintain two- way'radio. equipment:
1. for 'use by the sheriff.~an&his-:deputiest 2. for'instalZation and use in the:Derson-
ally owned cars of the .sheriff and;-bierdeputies when the vehiclesare used in the performance of official duties3 ..~..
3. for"~.installation- 8nd use im.the 'person- .ally owned vehicle of a ,speciaI or.reserve deputy sheriff when,the.deputy is appointed:inaccordance with the law and the vehicle. is us&in the per- formance of",offj;cial‘.~dlities: : ;.. ~. , . : for installat~ion~and~use~:~n:~the:state- 4. 'ji
owned vehicle of 'a-game management:::offfcer or other law ,enforcement officer, whe~n thd.:tise~.i an_ aid.,tothe ;sheriff in the.enforcement,:of law,in the county.'
Attorney General,,Opin$on No.:M-969 .(19.71) is withdrawn; :and to the,~extent of :any:.confl,ict with this opinion, Attorney General Opfnion Nos. O- 6649 (1945).and R-2445 S 51 (1951) ,end C-743 (1966) and any other conflicting opinions. are: overruled. *5 Honorable Roger M. Dreyer, page 5 (M-1021) truly yours, / c&2?= TIN . ey General of Texas Prepared by Roland Daniel Green, III Assistant Attorney G.eneral
APPROVED: _ OPINION COMMIT&E
Kerns Taylor, Chairman
W.E.,Allen, Co-Chairman
Sam Jones
Gordon Cass
Max Hamilton '-
Bart Boling
,SAM MC DANIEL
Staff Legal Assistant
ALFRED WALKER
Executive Assistant
N&A WRITE
.Firat Assistant.