Case Information

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OFFICE OF -E ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS - . AUSTIN

-c.yuu( -0oray ’ .: _, ‘, .. ._ .~ ;.. .;

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.: .:. :..-.

ri;:,: requesting the . .

, I_ . -. . . .; * . .’ Said Auditor la hsreb~' to lnepeot all the booka offioera, departmenta State Government and shall &ike a damplets-and thOrOugh~investi.ga- '~ tlon- all ouetodiana~ of public iunde and ‘ ,. disbursing orfioers of this &ate and Shall have oontlnual aooess to and Oball 'examine~all ‘... the books, aooounts, reporta, voucher8 and other reoorda of any offloe,, departmnt, Ju- stitutlon, Board or Bureau ot ths State, land r ..

.,> . . ; ‘, .~ *2 Boaorable I?Uford D, Battle, Page Z

ddl inveeti&i~e the efilolenoy of the per-

3onnel and clerical forces thereof, alld ehall

keep a proper .reoord of his investigationa.

All 3resent’auditora OS each and every.depart-

x:snt and institution are hereby required to

fur.tish sselst&noe to said &ditor end to per-

tit an lnspeotlon OS their aevsral reports,

Lt au thea..w to thb other.

-Art. 1 iilsak. In addition dutlee prcvldtid ‘SW aald Auditor; he shall

ttoroughly’eramlns all drpartmente of the St#,e ..,.:. t;overnment with epeoW. regard to their aoti- vltiss end the duplloatlon of efforts between

tlepartments, and t& efflcienoy cif the’sub-

ordinate amployqee in eaoh of euoh eeveral

Cepartmente b Se ahall eramine into the work

dona by thl. sutiordlaate employee8 in ..the sev-

xc1 depa'rtaente, of the State.Goverriment. .~_ 51 .'_

TIpon completing the examlnhtio'h of any da~M%cent he shall furoiah.the head of aald

dc~rtmnt~wlth a~repert &,(a) the eifl6ieqoy

ol‘ time oubordlna~e~employees; (b):.the statue

aua ooaditgan:df all pubMa fauda. in aharge 'OS.

eald degartaient&(oj thq.emount of.:dupllcation.

between work .done.by the'departawnt ao examln- ed and other .&tipartmentff of the &tats Gcvern- ~_._ _

,,,;$: i mm; (al sqbn.a, ayatsia ol audltlng;~book-.

.,keepins, an&sytvtea of eooounts as will @ovlde

for a udifcrm: system OS euditirig, bookkeeping,

and system~;oi:‘a,ooounts for everydepkr$msnt ,_ ‘~ .- of State. . . IJe:.shall also. maka’~soumm~ndatlon~ .j to the safd head of then departments iOr the.

“,‘i eliniqatio~~~oi..duplioation and iaetficienop.'

1 L A copy of'&ch.etioh report subsiittdd by.seld to.the heed of department~eh&l be ofii~er

: forth-crith.furnlshed of the House, .and the President of the Senate? to the Govern6r, the Spe&r

Nothing onntained herein shall be..oonatrued ..::-.

a8 aut?;orfalng.the.State hudltor to employ or

disoharge any state..emgloyes other than those horein authorized to be a;rpointe’d .by him for : his dapnrtmant~i,n

i

T.&J .have’..failed ,to find any case where the eppel- : of;.th@ State have construed the two above men- lat.3 cow33 ..,::. ~,t:.- ;,,tloned stitu?$$~ ‘+-however; we think that the above statutes /..

Konorable Buford D. Battle, Page S

. only authorize thi State Auditor and 8ifloienor &pert to - iaspeot all the bwka and reoords of all the otiioera, _, de- DzrtrJents and in&ltutlona of the State govement, and .- - further eapower him to make a complete and thorough lnves- tlgatlon orricers OS the .State.and give him aooesa to and the au- ot all Oustodlana ot pub110 funds and disburalng thority to examine all the books; aooounta, reporta,

vouchers and other reoorda of aii$.oftioe, depirtment, in- stitution, board bureau at tha.State. The above enum- erated powers and dutieq are apeolfioally set forth in hrtiole 44lSa-S, aupra. ‘Article 44lSa-4 impoeerr additional.

tiutles upon the State Auditor and Ettiolency &pert, but .’ .‘: .* the power and right to audit a county*e revenue8 and ex- in either of the above mention- ‘.. : penditures arq dot lnoluded ad statutea. :. ,;.... _‘i.. .._.

There ‘atie other statutes lmpoalng oertain dutien upon the State Auditor and requiring the Auditor to perform certain funotions in oonneotlon fherewithr To illustrate, .,I : .I: Article 6S9a-3, Vernon’s Anuotated Civil Statutes, requires ‘. the Auditor on or before the lat tiny of Ootober or the year . . . preoedin& the re&ular blennlal 8eraion oi the kedhtely L~glslatare to ‘aeoure, qompile and submit to the Goverhor a =epo~% aontalidng the-lnformatlon required by said stat- :: use. However, we have~ialled to find any statute authoriz-

* the State Auditor and tsirioienoy l%port to audit a oounty*s revenges a+d expendlturee~ 1.. -,j’

ArtGiia,1645-1676, inolusive, Vernonis Annotated Clvll Statutes,,,‘and .the amftndments thereto, prescribe a ’ definite and certain metho&g%r3iudlting a oounty*s reveouee ‘..

: ! and expenditures. by oounty atidltcirs. It is a well recognized ” of law that where. the ‘Legislature prescribe8 a ‘I prlnoiple definite, oertaln method oi prooedure 16r a olty or oounty ‘. to. follow, othei rethoda are by implloatlon of law’ ;Oxoluded. ,..~~,:~,. -_

_. Foster v. Qity,di Waoo, (Sup. Ct.) 25s 8. VI. 1104.

Gtm&ly s$eaki& it is’ stated In Texas Jurls- Y’ prudeme, Vol. 84, p. 43Sr ._ I *The powers and duties ot pub116 diiioers _ are quit6 generally presorlbed by the Coastitu-

tion end statutes, and, subjeot to constitution- al limitations, these matters are under the oontrol of the Leg$slature; indeed, In many ;: instances the Constitution expressly gives It

,;i:

kmorable hford D.,Battle, Page 4

power co preaaribe the datlss oi partfetiar

otff4ers. The therm *dtltie8* in suoh a graat . . . , to the Legielsture oomprehende the further idea o? powei or authority and the legis-

lative aot will be looked to for the arithorlty

of tie offfcer’as well as for a definition

of his duties. Power and duties are ooexten-

OiVe, Rnd an OHiO8r ha8 ao authority to perform an sot in -spot oi whioh no duty - haar been made to devolve upon hicn.a. ft is farther’stated ln Texas Jurlsprudenoe, 001. 94, :.-" :_ p. 440:

Vublio offloers and governmental and uddnistrativs boards poseras only such powers

as are expresely oonferred upon them by law

or are neoeasarily implied front the powersso

ooirierred. They cannot le&ly pertorn aote law, and the repeal.

not authorlzad by. rxlstlng

or a 8tatu$v auth.orlsfng an oirloer to do a

partloulsr tw; or ot the statute that

meat.88 the offioe, neaessarlly revokes and

terminates his powerf

;Luotlng further Srom Teeme Surisprudeaos, Vol. 34, p. 443, it is state@ _,. :. ,: *Statutee.irhioh presorlbe and limit the

exerolse OP offlolal duty are strlotly eon-

strued ln rsspbot oi the powers qmfer~sd and

the manner of their exeroIs8, and such poaeru . .

are not to be enlarged by oonstruotion. ) .t . *‘It is e&&.y well settled, however, that a law whioh oonfers a power or imposes a

duty upon an o~ilfioer board oarrles with it

by lmplloation,the authority to do such things

as are reasonably necessary to oarry into ei-

fact the poser granted or the duty imposed.

. . .”

AS above stated we have failed to find'any statute expressly authorizing the State Auditor to audlC a countyts revenues and expenditures; neither do we find any statute from which suoh power or authority may be aeoessarlly impLied. *5 :

iionorable 3uford.D. ffattle, age 5 *mror9. it 18 our opinion that the State AUditox' and Wflclency &pert has no sorer a* autborlty to go Into any Pema oounty end ineke a oomplete audit or'the countybi re~e- : ;.' nues and expenditures: We aannot speoffloally ansrsn-yootlr CT second qaeetion w2thout the pressntatioa or all the faota. s' ': i that are or may@s Involved.

Your8 iew truly .: :l ..;:I Awro . ‘:” __. i’. : . . . .’ . . \-.::