Case Information

*1 ootober 24, 19'(7 Hon. Rrtwrt 0. Ttlompaou, Obalrlaan

Rellroad Oohmlwioa 0r Texas Opialoa Ho. v-412 Awtla, Tear8

~0: mqmiti0n 0r reef3 reoelwd by th6 Coa- misalon for lloenaes Issued under Artiols 6053, v.c.s., 80 ar- feated by rlder oonb ’ tallled 1n.s. 8'; 391, otitw6r 400; m8 or’ “A part of ~OUEO Bill 792 and the tunead- - maat o~ntalaed la Senate Bill 268 provided in

p&Et 88 rOii~@J:

"'All:fess'reoeived bg the State frum lioenuerr lrrmwd under this Aot shall be made avaIlable to the RRllroad Oom- alr8loa r0r use in paying the legiti- aate expenlrer lnourred In adalalster- : bg ati ~~r0~01tig the ~POVISIOUII or

thtm. Aot; and r0r~no other purpose; ~provlded, howwr. that any exoemm ruadr waalalng 8t the end or eaoh two-y ear pmlod l h8ll gotothe WI- l mllhmd.'

II . . .

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. v-412 . ; Eon. Rraert 0. Thompmon Page 2 -

Chapter (H. 8, 792), Aats of the 46th Legisiatwe, during eeah or-the rieoal Jesrs beginning Septelmm 1, 1947, and September 1, 1948, sball be paid to the Qeaelal Revenue Fund." " * . . . you please answer r0110wing au+- Wll

t IOM ; "1. Cm the Legislature by an approi '~ ' pristioa bill ohsags or amend the general law8 or statutes or this State, pfirticu- , larl9 that seotloa or Artlale h53 as above :: ,'ret out?

*2. Ii auah cannot be done, is Sub- beation 8 of Seatfon 2-B of Artlole 6053 still in &feet, and oan the Rallroad Com- .miualon uee suah fund8 (LPWs fee8 oolleot- . . ed) as far 88 they are neoessary to aarq out the provlfW.?n8 of the LPGea Aot?" . * !

The Fort9-elxth Legislature et ltr~regular setwloa In amended Aptla5e 6053, R.O.S., 1925, by enaotlng Chapter 2, H .a. Aots or 1939.: Artlole 6053, supra, ~8 amended by H. B.‘792, ‘provided a cm- 1 prehenalve 89atem of regulation by.$he. Railroad Oonmls- slon iOr the des&m, .l.asteilletloa, aowtruatlon, and

Op8rat10naOr oolrtaFner8 and ecpalpneat' ror the Wmage, bandllng, and transportation of butane at@ liquefied petroleua gabes. The Act further pmmided for the pay- ment of oertsla annual r9e8 .b9 persaab ooming wlthlrr term8 to the Railroad Comlsslon, itr aal Seotlon 2b(8) rpeoirioally provided eb r0110wq

"All r888 reoelved by the state rr0i0 liaeoeea Issued under thls"Aot shall be mnde avellable to the Railroad Oommlsalon ror nne in paying the -legitimate expenres inaurwd In adminiaterlng and enforaing the provlelaam thlu Aot, and for no o.th- er purpose; provided, however, that any OXOO8B fWdS ~EU%iniDg 4t tb end Or 08Oh two-par period &all go to the 0eneral Fbn$." ,. - .~. .,

.*..- -...-. --I- *3 , . Ii&n. Sraeat 0. Thompson - Page 3 v-412 UJ

The Forty-ninth Leglslatme, Regular Seaalon, 1945, further mended ArtIale 6053 aupr8, by elvrotlng 9. 8. 269, Chapter 358. Seatloa 18 or 3.-B. whloh now appear8 88 Seotlm 18 of Artlale 6053, aupm, read8 and prwldea as follqwa: fee8 received by the state from “All

licenikea laaued under this Act shall be made atrallable to the Railroad Coml.saloa for use In p89lng the legltimste expense8 incurred

In 8dmlalaterlng and enfOrcIng the pr~lalona this Aat, and for no other purpose; pro- vided, however, that any exceaa fmda re-

xmlalag at the end of each two-pear period

ah811 go tothe Oenersl Fuad."

The State Depmtmental Appropriation Bill, Chapter 400, Aota 0r the 50th Leglaleture. Regular Sea- aloa, 1947. ootitalna 8 rlder following the appropris; tlon8 therela apeaifiled for the 088 Utllltiea 8nd Llq- u8f$ed Petrolem Iospeotlon DlvIalon of the Commlraion vhioh Dada aa r0lm8; ,.'

'All fees reoelied by the Rallroed Com- nlaalon fran lloeaaea laaued sneer Ohepte? 2 (House Bill 792), Act8 of the 46th Leglala- tubs, during e8Oh of the fiaaal Years begIni alag Septeaber 1, 1947, and September 1, 1x40, ahrll be ml.4 to the &mere1 Reveaue Fwl.

There 08a be no doubt th8t Artlole 6053,~;zxy la a geaeral law i 2 Sutherland Statutors Conatruo 8 2302. Seatloa 2b( of the 1939 amendment (R. B. 7% ' and Section 18 of the 1945 amend:

2 Aata of 193 358 Acts of 1945) uae the 881~0 ::t-(9: 8. Che It'18 olear fra the languege Identloal lm≥ used In these two aeotlona that the moue9 reaelved by the coiunlaaloa ror lioenaea Is~aued under Article 6053, auplur, was devoted to the ap8oIeS purpose of paylag 'the axpeaaea lnourred In eAmlalaterlng and en- leglt@ste r0n:lv the prwlaloaa" or Aat aad "for no other Dw- m. Suoh money waa thereby removed from the General Rewaua Fund, aubjeot only to the provlalon regardlag 8~888 fund8 remalalag at the end of eaoh tWO-988r pePI- 9, W. (2d) (28x. 01~.

2he rider ooat8lued la Obapter Aota or tbeyJthLe&8lNme; Re@8r 988810~, 1947, and abow

\ *4 kL ‘*7U Hon. Ernest 0. Thompson - Page 4

quoted, purports to transfer the license fee fund cre- ated and devoted to a special purpose by Artlale 6053, aupre; to the General Fund. The rider is lneffeotual to aaccmpllah such purpose !because it is no longer an open question that a rider 8ttached.t.o an 8pp~prlatlOQ bill cannot modify or repeal an exleitlug general lav: State v.~Steele, 57 Tex. 200 (1882); Linden v. Finley,

T 451 .45 9. W. 578 (1899). Moore v. SheDDWd, 192 9 w. (26) 559'(1946) Former opln- 144.;:;. ions or the ittorne; General have conalitently so held.

Your first queatlon is therefore answered la the aegatlye.

In answering your'aeaond question, we 0811 attention to the faot that Seotlon 2b(8) Artlale aupra, as It exlated as a result of the 1939 * eaeadmeat (H. B. 92, Ohapter 2) was replaced by seo-

tloa 18 ln the 19 5 amendment (9. B. 269, Ohapter 358). We thererore aaaune that you have referenoe to Seotlon 18 or &tlale 6053, aupra, sud not Seatlon~2b(8).

Artlole VIII, Section of the Coaatltutloa or Texas, reads as rollowa:

"100 monef shall be drawn from the !Preaa- DRY but In Duraumoe of aDe~lflo awromla- tlOu8 made bs law: nor Shall any aDDPODrl8- tloa of money be made for a lonner term them': '-

exoept by the first Legislature -",., under this Conatltutlon,'whloh -.' ma9 meke the aeaeaaary appropriatlotia to OS'+" ' rj on tM government until the eaaaablage of l lxteenth Leglalsture.' (1pnphaala oura)

This ooaatltutlonal provlaloa la not limited to fnada pnld Into the General tid, and applies to funds dedicated to 8 apeolal porpoae. Suah oonatltutlonal provia on oon-

detiiia Me 5, 1939. trola 81 eppmprlatlona out'of the State Treaiury ati~moaey not appropriated by the Leglalature oannot.

ba witbdimwn from the Treasury. Likewise, the appro- pr?irrtlona made by th8 Leglalatum oannot b8'fOr &.tO~ ln axoe#a~of two. dr8. plakle v. Fl nlby 91 !l%x..,484, 84 5, a *a. ._. Tex. Jur. 44 8. w. 480 (18aj

The Le~g?aleture et its regular aeaalonii.la’ 1941;1943, sad 1945 apeoiriosiiy pmvlded la the *5 _ v-412 73. ; Ron. I&neat 0. Thompson -) Page approprletlon bills that the fees received by the Rall- road Ccnunlaalon for licenses issued under Artlale 6053, aupre (Ii. B. 792, Chap. 2, Acts of 1939, as emended by 9. B. 269, Chsp. Aota of 1945), were appropriated to the OommLaalon for uae In enforcing end fbdmlnlater- lng the proolalona of the Act. See Acts of 47th Legia- lature, Remlar Session, 1941, Chapter 571, p. 1274; Acts of.48th Le ialature, Regular Session, 1943, Chap- ter p. ; Aata of the 49th Leglaleture, Regular Ef Seaaloa, 1945, Chapter 378, p. 929. For acme reason

the Leglalature did not see fit to appropriate this money to the use Of the Commission for the two-year perlodbeglnnlng September 1, 1947. See Aota of 50th Leglalature, Regular Session, 1947, Chapter 400, p.

919.

It follows from what has been aaid~above that elthough tM general law (Artlole 6053, aupre) had the effect of dedlaatlng the fees euttaorleed by said Act to the uae of the CcnunZsaloa, such was not, end could not be effeotlve as en spproprl.stloa or same to the uae of the Oommlaaloa more then two years later. Johnson

Your aeooad question la therefore 4QBirOrO~ IQ the aegetlre.

1. The rider aontalaed la an approprla- tlti bill purporting to transfer certain f%ada prevloualy dedloated by a general statute to a 8peolal purpose la lneffeotual to transfer . Bush apeolal fund to the General Revenue Fund of the St&i0 (ooaatrulag rider ~oontalned ln chpfer 4OO;pagO 919, Aata of 50th Legla- lature, 1947, regerddi transfer of apeolal~ R.O.S., 1925, .fbaila oraated by amended, *6 fIOa. -eat 0. Thompson - page6 v-412

2. Funds dedicated by a general Ut+?&tUta l to a special purpose must be appropriated by

the Legislature in accordance with Artiale VIII, Ssotlon of the Oonstltutlon of Texas before mloh fmda maylegallybe used.

Yours vesrytru1y AT~'ORREYGE~~B~ULOFTIWIS By

w. v. ceppewt Asrilrtant =.~w- Charlelr D. M&hews AP&OVED: