Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTlN
Dear Sir:
Opinion No. 04093 Ret Door Wk. Team Hl&way Departm+nt
hare authority to@ystroy l uoh old nporbr anU noordm b&oh ax-o no% a0050a. important or whloh us not nupporting; to other dofnment8h Thirr Will a0rnow10dge rooalpt or your 3atter of Ootober 8, 19&l, wherein you xaque6t the optnlon of thls Dopart- &latent on the iaot 8ituatlon dt out therein a8 tollowar
“For a number of years in the past, this Depnrkment bar noouaulat~da vast aiwunt of ol& rsoomle oonaiotlng or uetai1su reports al&u buplioata reooreu uhioh ara not important beaauas the orlglnal or swh raoord8 are on file either In tlm Highway Oaparbaent or the Stat44 Oomp troller's orrioe. Ibet of these moor&s hare not bee wed or~roferreb to ln several fbara.
"'6-W. you please advfue this Department ii we hnoe authority to deatroy suoh 01.d r'eport%and reoords' whioh are not deemed lmportsnt or which are not supporting to other documenta? It is not our desire to deetroy any otficial mlriutea or their oupportlng papers, nor any files, nor important oorrespondenoe. project oonstruptlon Your early ,advlos wfl.1 Le eppreolated.e ~Bnared on these faote you ank us the foll&tng qu%stion: DOW the Texas El&way Department have the authority to destroy such old reporta and ~oords nhich are not ~eemad OF which are not sup%sti:?g lqortnnt to other ~ooume~ltS, of such reoords am on x3l.e wither In the where .the orl(;iml Ri&hwny Reportment or the kitate Comptroller*8 oitioe? *2 I@. D. C. Greer, page 8
Tlw Texas XlghwaJ papartatdat, being l area&m of the 8tatUt% a8 a gOverWUinta1 ag8noy, hU8 O&Y those p~uera #at are oonferred upon it by the statute, elthm expre88Q or by neoessary lzaplloatlon. iYe have been. unable to tin4 any provieion ln the statute oreating the Tour8 Xl&away Department, which would authoriza the Dsgartrmnt, to destroy any of it8 original rsoords, and themfore no lapse of tiaie would authorice the Qestaxctlon of arty original rcoorda cf the Highway Dope+ent.
A8 we understand tfle qwstlon propounded in your lett4r, hOW%Ver, :t is Wh8th%r Or tlQt the tighUu,y Department to Cemtroy copies af detailed rsgorte an4 dupll- ha;etzzhght - wkioh 6re not lqbrtant booauee the orlglnalaor suoh reoor4i'are on file either la the Xlgbviay Pe~artaent or the stats Comptroller~o 0rri00. It La ,tbo opinion of tide Departxent an4 you are thererors udvlem6 thqt in tha oa80 or the80 rc~oor48,whe~ thci origlqale thi3r00roh r&aim4 in the flleo of the Xi&may Bopartmnt or the Stabs Oo8p~rell&8 to 43wtxwp tha aogles offfa that you woulQ be autihorlned . You un4eratand or, oourui that We opinion I8 roe- rtriotod to the ~pooifio,raot 8ltuation pro8imteb La your letter or Ootober 3, 1943, and 8hull not be eon8ttie4~~ hold- ias that the Xl&way Depart&et kan geimral authority to dbrtroy it8 0ia x000*8.
Trut3tlng thut thio, unmer8 your. queetlon, we ar8 Yours' very truly FIRST ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY Gm
COMM‘ITEU