Case Information
*1 -747 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
Hon. Sam Bein
county Attorney
Leon county
Contervllle, Texas
Deer Mr. Ealnl
Your regusoti ior an
hsrciin &at& kaa been roo
1. can ttle t county Auditor I&on county UJR se per manth, mm& Ml- amttobopaidb rarrantcr? Leon Ceuaty appelat a.u ludit.or .aa4
ty karlllg a populatlen of tklxty- 000) hahablknts ar ooer, acMx&- ng Federal Camms, or haviag far en Zpi~Lioa Dollars ($lS,OOO,S#,OO), to the last appiovod tar+ roll be county auditor, who shall hold Ma oiZioe i'ox two (2) p~fa, and who sEaI1 remita ae compsasatioa tar his t3sxvlcss One %m¶red Twenty-flea Dollars (*US) for qkach million dollars, or mpejor potiioc Cber4bof 0n th8 annual salary to be OUa- the aanase%d v%h%tiO%, puted grm the last; appravad tar rell; Said lniattal salary frolp county funds ahall not ~XWM T-0 Thooi sand six Windred Dollars ($3,800). . ..* *2 Hon. San Baln, Page 92. 1640, Revieed Civil Statutso, provide8 that:
Arti TQhsn the Commleslonsro~ Court of e oounty, not mentioned and rnumeratsd In the prsoeding Article ahall
detennlne that an auditor la a pub110 neoerslty in the
dlspatoh of the oounty business, and ehall enter an
ordar Upon the Eiinutea of said Court rully. eetting out
the reaaona and neoerelty Oatma raid order of an audltor, and shell be oertlfled to the Dietriot Judge8
IVvlng jdrlsdlotlon in the oounty, said Judge8 shall,
if suoh reason be oonsldersd good and suffloient, ap-
point a County Auditor, a8 provided in the 6uOOeeding
ArtlOle, who rhall qualify and perform all the dutlee
requlrad of County Auditors by the Laws of thlr State!
provided, said Judee ehall have the power to dlroontinue offloe of suoh County Auditor at any time after the of one year when it Is olearly shown that
rxQlratlon
ruoh auditor 18 not a pUbllo neoessltp and hla servioes
are not ocnmnensurate with hia salary reoeired; . . .”
.Artlole 1646a, Reviatd Civil Statutes, reade ae follows:
“The Commlssloners~ Court of any oounty under twenty-five thoueand’populatlon~according to the last
United States Censur nay make an arraneemsnt or
agreenent with one or more other oountles whereby all,
Oountiets, parties to the arrangement or agreement,
me7 jointly employ and oompeneate a rpeolal auditor or the purpoees speolfled In ArtlOlen 164S
auditors 1646. The oounty oommiasionere’ court of every
oountg affsoted by thie article may have an audit made the book@ of the county, or any of them, at
oi all
any time they may deed& whather suoh arrawemenfe
oan be m&r wlth other oountlee or not 1 provided the judge or grand jury 1x09 order said audit lf
dlstrlot
either BO deelres.w
We are informed by the Comptroller’s orfioe that Leon
County had a population of 19,tW3 inhabitants to according the la& United States oeneus, and a tax valuation under Fifteen Kil- lion Dollars. He bate been unablb to find any statute empowering a oom- ,
tiS8iOnfJrE court to employ a eltrk to keep all accounts in
which the county intereeted and have en auditor oheck them le
at regular perlode. Commlsoloners courte are oourts Of limited jurlsdlotlon, in that their authority extends only to matters to the general welfare of their respective counties
pertaining
.- Hal. San Baln, Pago PS
and that thelr ptmen ue only ttoae upready or lmplledly eon- zrssd,uratihem by law, that 18, by Constitution end ntatuter
. Al80 800 the eaaea OS sun Vajmr Eleotrlo Ll&ht Co. t8. Deaea, SO SJ. 868; Ulll County t8. Hanllton 293 s.U.* 292; beetle Umber CO. ~8~ Camaie8lonerm Court of 3abLe County, i 2S9 3.W. 668; Comlssionarr Court TBO Uallaoe, l5 S.V. (26) 535; Sward w3. ?allm County, 246 S.U. 920. :
ArtAole l647, Revlso~ Civil Statute8, read8 as r0lhte: ', \ *The district Judges having jurlndlotlon in the oouaty, shall appoint the ownty audltat at a apeolal aeeting held ror that purpose, a aajorlty ruling1 pro- tided, that if a nrajorltf oi.suoh Jud@8 iall to agree upon the 6eleOtiOrl of sane pes8oa as aUditoX then either aaid judges tihall oertlfy suoh raoi to the Governor, who ahall thereupon appoint odlrs other tllatrlot $xQge to aot and rote with the al’vmaeld judge8 in the eeleotlon of suoh auditor. The aotlon ahall then be reoorded in the alnutea of the dlotrlot court or the county the clerk theroot &alleertll'y theeants totheoonm&aelanere~~urt,wbloh shalloauee the mum to be reoorded in its minute8 togother with an order direotln& the paynmt of the aud1tor.a aalary.w la rlew 0r rorf3g0bg atatuteu, you are respeotfuUy ad- it la the o&dnlon or thlrr dopartmreat that Iaou . vised that Cauatymey wloy a oounty -tot under Art1010 1646, su a, by O- rith tbs phin rmaaQt0w ~XW~S~OM 0r ati0 r - 0 l647 by reoordiag la lts.rPlnutea the oertlfled copy of the of the Dlstrlat Court appolntlng the auditor and enter- mluutes lag an order direct&g the payment of the auditor*a sUary each mopth as it mamaeat You ue rurther adoieed that ii Iaon cbianty appoints an auditor under the prcwislonr ot Article 1646, that.elther tha.Distrlot Judge or the Comlsaloners Court oan- not l'lx the salary of euoh auditor, ae the Le&lature has rixed the salary or oounty auditors by the plain provision8 or hrtlole 3.645. In that artiole la found a yardetlok by which-every oounty auditorts 6alnry may be derinitely determined, exoept thow Moose aalarles are rlred by numerous braoket amendcmts thereto, and by other brakket statute8 with whioh we are not .here conoerned,'beoause they do not apgly to Lecin County.
Aa Leon county has a population under twenty--ilYe thoumanil lnhabltanta, you are further advised that the oo;nis- slonera oourt or Leon county nay nifika an arrangement by agreommt *4 . . Bon. 3nmEaln, page#I
rith one or mare o&r aountlea whereby all oo\ldt$ea, part&a to the WI%QgWUUlt or ~reement,aay Jointlyenqloyand o-
psnrato a l peolal audltar or audltOr6~for purposes apeol-
fled in Artlola 1645 md ~rtlolo 1646 or the Cdealonara
Court or Zion xzounty may hate 'en audit aada or all books the oounty, or any or them, at any tlma thoy amy dealro,
uhether mob ar~onsnta 0~1 be amdo with other oountlea qu
not and the Cmm.la8loner~* Court may oontraot with suoh ape- old auditar pay him a reaBonabl0 ree tor hla e~loea tor mnklng tho l peoial mdlt.
Trusting thht the rorf%Oing answers your Imp&Y, wo remain
Your0 very truly