Case Information
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‘OFFICE Oi= THE A~T~IWJEY GENEIWL 0F TEXAS Gear Sir: Opinion No. 0-2GO3-A ~~ Re: :zhcthor State &~~&rahtlse supplies from Nm Zwzmnfela~ Texti.la.~Eilla, (1 vioe-prasldent of that aonaern being a member of,'the.?e%as Prison Eoard.
In your letter.'of +Iugu& 15, 1940, YOU advise that xaltsr Dillord,.a member.c$the Texas Prison Eoard, is also vice-president of the New Brauntels Textile Xills, and in view of such faot request our opinion QS to whether the State my purchase cer$dn supplies for the use of the Prison System fron slid I\'e;q Brhunfets Textile Xills,~ nhich we assme is a aorporation. ,. ~I' ,. .,,,,
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T&co~rts alr?ost"unanimusly hofd void t!lose contracts bet.tieen puhUc boards 3s one party rnc? a filembber of that boerd'iu his pri.vote ccrpncity es the other party, without in,quirin(: lnto th&..fr:irnes,s of the trcne.act?on. Our opinions Numbers q-l.014 and 04378,~~and authorities therein cited. This 6,etitti'ne see.me Cenerallp to have been applied~in the undoing c@ cQntracts between municipalities hnB firms or corporations
*t:hich an officer or employee of the nunicipzllty wcs a "%t ,, me-her; stockholdtir or employee, ahether such ofiicer or em- ployee perticipatcd in makin& the contrcct in bc>mlS of the ciUd0ipality or not. 44 C. J. 93; Dillon o?, Xunicip~l Corpora- tions, 5th Ed., Vol. 2, pp. 1146-ll.47. See also, City of Eain- burgh v. Ellis, 59 S. :I. (2d) 99. tTowever, we are convinced that such holdings will not be applied un:ualifiealy to contracts m&e by the State, considering the ltlrge nwn.Qer of State officers and enployees, their wisely ticctt~;red rer;ifiencc-L: im5 consquently reduze& liXcllhood of co.~lusio~ end double deeling.
*2 3on. Geo. H. Sheppard, PnGe 2 In this cuse, the Texas Prison Doard does not mke the contract of purchase. As stated in our Opinion Ko. 0-2&OS,!/ . such purch!ases os t!ie one now involved are made by the Doara of Control, of l:zhich Mr. Dillord is not a member. i
t’fe hive winy penal statute3 bearMS on soncr?hat sinilm +ostious, but nose directly coverinK the instont one. Art. XI), C. C., provider, that '1P*y officer of this State v;ho shall trade for, buy, or be in any viny conccrnod in the purchase of any claim or demand against the State, shall be fined one thousmd dollars.q* By Art. 371, P. C., county and city officers are prohibited from txadiug in claim cCainst such counties and cities. ,2nd, Art. 373, I?. C., provides a fine for a county or city offioer who should becon;e interested in any 1 c htract with such county or city. Other related stututes are found in Ch. 6, of the Penal Code, but In our opinion none nppljr to this case.
There WCS a statute, Art. 6171, Civil Statutes, vthich prohibited members of the Board of Prison Cognisoioners fron beinS directly or indirectly con.necteC withor interested in any contract, sale or purchase of any property or thing whatso- ever which may be mde during his ters.of oiiice, and in which the Stute LX the prison system i:: interastefi," md mking the violation thereof a Ground for rcrlovul. Eut, that statute '$us repealed by the act shioh abolished the DoorC of Prison Comxia- siomss ac(i create6 the Texas Prison Poord. Act: 1927, 40th LeC.,.p. 29S, ch. 2113.
T!?e rcpc:al of the old izticle‘GlP1, Civil Statutes, .;ihioh h:,rYbren cuczted prior to the crootion Ci tbo Eoard of Control, r:nd the failure to cnan,t a similnr 15~; applicable to the Prison E03ra, to 3 cctrttiu mtcnt indicater: t.bc lfqislative thou[;ht as :c ?:hat tho public policy 3houU be. ‘.it;ti the authority to m'ce ::uch contracts 1ocCed in tho Marc! oi Control f,!lc Lesisla- ture ev:.d: ztly felt that tha problt:iticn r;&nst the Prison Bomxl ';jas no locC.cr necessary or desirable.
In O'ir oj:inicr. 3 contrsct zCr by th? Fo?rd of Control for the ~~~rchone of supplies fro= o- corporation, one of the officers of r:hlch !o .z a?ez.ber.of the Tcxnc Pri.%~? Doard is not ?~lr se void 3s r: mttnr oi‘ 13~1. On that basis 7:s:~ m%::er your 2uoytion ifl the ai:irmtive. Cur opinion rr.iClit bt: different if it should be n::de to opprar that the Prison L!o?.rd zember his taken so~ie advantage 0;' hi3 position to induce t!lo piirchase fron the: concern in which he is intcrerted.