Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Ran. Yarrln Ball, Ccatisilssioner
Board or xn8ureil4e comlssloa4re
Ausitln, T4xaa
Dear sir; of Sr. I. Blak Attention
opinion no. o-ls96 Rat wlat 4onsti*tlt
Mre xnstlreM *2
of rim or lightning or tornado or wind storm or hall insurance ih thio Stat4 aooording to the repcirts made to the Boar4 of In8Uranae COIP- mlssionsrs as required b3 lnw; and asid taxes when 8olleetsd shall be plaoed with tb4 Stat4 Treaaursr in a separate fun8 whioh shall be known as the ?lre Imuranae DMiaion FuM, rblah Fund shall be kept sepalWe and apart from other run@8 anKmon4ye in his hands; and said sp4uial Fund or SO ruuh themof as may be neo488ary ehall bs helQ and Q-ended forth4 purpose of aarry%ng oat the protialons of this Chapter; and ehould there be an unexpended Mlanoe at the end of uny year, saldbalsno4 shell remainlaaaid 'Feed ana the Board or IMuramoe Cad8sionen shall r4du44 the aesesamnttorthe y4arsothst the -tprodue~6al4~~ 8uooesUng into the State Treasa~~ together with said an eQ bnlqx44 in saLd'FUn@l in the !!Masury, XF- bs sufSiol4nt to pay +l 4xpeoses to? th4 dur- rent year, ~a~ not 4x448& the amount moe88wy puy all ilaoessary axpenses of maj~. Fbe siuJumn44 *Ttaion of 84iU Boara,: that no ~deflait -8hdi ooour in .Mld FtM, -4h ,tuuds shall be paid out upon r4qoisltfo!l Blade oat and riled by 4 majority of the Coim~L~Ellon, when ths CmiptroZler shall i88tre wurrante thare- for, The taxee 14714& and 4884884d by this S48- tion ohall be inbepanQ4& oY and in eddftzon toall othert4m8nowSnposed, orwhiohoay hereaftsrbe lstpo84dbylaw, a&nst8nyaam- pany, mentioneil herein.*
Artials 49W, BeTkSea Civil 8tazrt48, ren68 4.8 follows0 .,~
The prssidcrnt or riarpr88ld4nt and s44z4- tarp or each fir4 marln4 or l&and lneuran44 caapeay 401~ busfmess in this SUit4, 4nau4lly, on the itret day or eaah ye8r, tithln six&y shall pr4p4ra underoathaad day8 themafter, deposit nith the Oonmirrsfon8r 4 Nl, true and acmplete 8tatemext oi the oondition ai 8Ubh aoaqany on the last day or the month of Deoeaib4r pmeding.-
P~irtigra h 4, page 34, of Senate bill NO. 4129, Act8 of the 46th Ll Si4tUT8, P8468 48 rOmW8 t
"Frovlded that the roi-egol~ approptitiOnS for the Firs ~ViSiOn Sh43.l be paid Out Of obteined iroe revenues tax on p84 praaiUm8 0r laaumaae aomp44ia8 with the la 44oordenoe exlsthg laws, exempt the foregoing appro- prlatlona for fire esoape lnepeotors and their ~898, whlah shall be paid out Or the General Revenue Fund.
"For the purposs of m-printing the Texas Gen4ral %nSlS Schedules Of rlre and WincSt4~ lnaurenos rates es provided in Artlole 4B8JZ of the Revised Clvll S~ty~S~ and other matter% lholdeat thereto, there is hereby appropriated ror the tlsoal yearn endla& Au@& Sl, 1949 and August 31, 1941, 80 mUoh Oi the %8SSBMentS aolleoted under Artiale 4902, and any ba&nOOS remalalng in the Irire Insuranae DivlSiOn Ehad end. of eny at iisa.~ ywar, or SO mwh there- Out Or 48 l!Iay b4 WO48.“~$‘, iOr Oar~fXl& 14~8~ of this ,@ate with regard to these eohe- dules.*
Regarding llmltatleu Of pagment8, Senate Rlll 429, SUpl?%, Pags 149,~ provldeer
Ttxaept us othenisa providsd, wheaever, by virtue Or the p~liSiOXl8 O? this A&, lt4ms 8X-8 to be paid out fees, lY304i~t8, apeclel fuade .or out of other ZtIIIdS available ror ose.by a dep4rt.rmnt' it is the intention or the k&slature to &It expeadltur48 out Or aaid fees, X'%V34iptS, Sp@Oi41 fund8 4r other available funds to the purposes and in the twmunta Itemized herein, and it is so pmvlded. If, however, the amount ot.the fee8, reoelpts, or otbcii available funds here111 referred sp4lal to %re mOr8 then suffiafeat to pay the iteiS8 hereln tbSigIUh4d to be paid theref'rcuu, th8 departnmnt to whloh the 8ald fW8, reoeipts, special funds or other araZl4ble funds 6cce appropriated XQRy, ii ?leSe884~ to EdmdaqU%t4ljr pprtornt the fuaetiona of Said department, u%8 %XIy p&t&m Or 84id %Ur~lU8 special funds or other
Ron. Y%rvln Hall, Page 4
however, that before doing so the heed of 6UahdeparfJmIt sh4& Under oath,u%kL) application, jointly, to CovarpQr, the Attorney Ceneml and the Stat4 Tre48Urer setting forth in detail the aeaesslty for Using 8Uah SUrp1U3 f488, r404fpt8, SpbOidl flails or other available fund8 and ItmalS- lng the pUTJBOSe8 r0r whloh the mme 0 to be used. UdesS the appliaetion is 4ppr0Wd by at least two or the thraa permna afara- mentioned, the surplus fees, reoeipts, spa- cl%1 fuude or otber 4rallsble f'U%dS shall not be expended. Any itex Set out in the 4pplicatlou 04% be deleted by d4Oi.SiOn o? 4 majority threa pemons aforemeatlonetl. All applications which %re approved or denied must be signed by those rotlug.to 4ppr0va or deny 84Ula. Said ~pliC4tiOllS artet approval 0~ rejaatlan, shrll be &led with and retained by the State Auditor for 4 of Six months after the 4x@ration period of the bien&m ending Auguet 51;1941, an6 Shtil rermluopen public inspoatlon during 6%1d period. -All 8urplue fees, raaelpts, SpeOial .funds, or other atallable funds on. hand at the'snd oi each ye4r of the bleuuim Shall revert to the thnorel~Tenu8 Fund of this gtata udle88 othenrim prohibited by &B, or u&e58 otherwise provided herein.
ao salary paid additional employees shall exaeed the amount here14 appxaprlated tar sM- law poaitlons. l&l disbUrSemtut8 Shall be made 011 warrants issued by the Comptroller oa the St&e Tmaeury."
Article I.+$, Revised Civil Statutas, reatle 48 r0iw73 :
The fiscal year or the State shall terminate 04 the thirty-first dcy of Augmt 0r em91 year and appropriatIona OS the State governuent shall aonform thereto. All off;- uers who ere required by ler to report amumlly or biennially to the &&elature 0r Governor shall close their aeeounta oa that date, aad *5 60 soon therrarter %s rr'catloabla 8h411 pm- pare and corplla their respaatlve rapartS.*
By virtue of the above quoted statuta, 4ll approyrl4tlon of the State Cavenmntnt muat amform to tha flsoal ya%r therein desl((pat%d and not to thu budget year Of any State departumt,.
Artlola 4908, aupra, ~paalfl~lly pravldas that:
"....aald SpOCfa1 FuAd ar SO nu9h thaxw 48 xtny ha aeoesaary ahdll ba hald arid axpsnd 2 purpcme of oarrylng out tha prwbfons rorthe of thir Cheptar; sad should th4ra ba 44 UA~X- pend44. balance 4t the end or 44 yerr, aaid balaaoe 6ha11 rwain In eald Rurd and the Boer4 of Insurance Comml~sloners shall reduce the a8sca6ment tour the suaaeedlng year so th4t the muiotiat pmCuaod and paid into the St4te -aSUrf, together with salti unexpenfied b4l4~o4 la eaid Fwnd in the Traasury, will b4 8tUflolent to pay 832 sxpezmaa for the aunant ye%r, end not ex- seed the nmaunt neoess4ry to pay all waes84ry expanse8 of maintaining th8 Flra 1AsWtrAO4 Mvf- slon of MM Board, so th%t no aeriaft 8hal.l oeaus in 86ld Fund, which funds ah411 be g4.id out upon raqulsitloa made out and tiled by 4 rpejorlty of Ccmmloceio~, when the ccnptroller shell fsaue nrrant therMor....*
The f4glslature wso&zrr the c?l8blnotlon k- tweed the year for oollaotlng funds by tha tarLou stata departments whhlah 1% usually tha aalondar ye%r and the year ror expanblture of svh runa which la the ri84ta ~uvplus XuAde.althiA ths meaning of that tarn a5 year. used in th% U.nzltatlans of Payeaenta clause of Seunte Bill So. 487, Aota uf the 46th Iagielature, am only rerir pluses with reapeat to Itans a~propriatad for 4Xp4ndltur4 by ths dqxtxtsant for the flrwaf. yunr.
Theretom, you are'reqmctlklly 4Uvlee4 that It Is the opinion of this &apartReat that Is only la it evant th%t there my be in tte spsnlsl tund en amunt of