Case Information
*1 OFFlCEOFTHEAlTORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS AUSTIN
Honorable Harry 3. Sohulz
County Attorney
Live Oak County
oeorge west, 'i'smu
Dear 81rr
ha intereat uf 0 au6Uef8 Biver a River Con86r-~, ion M ibtrfat . aatlng aa apinlon, has been roes1
the rallorimg questioat on Distrlot a8 ,#ey deem proper in ttesrs oi flood watrol on the Rneaea Vur6uant to the above order, X, ae Ccmnt~ Attorney, here been requested to write ytm for an opinion on the 1egalit.y~ of tho above appropriat%on.* *2 Ronorable Harry J. Schulz, June 8, 1939, page $2
The ,Nuecea River Coneervatlon and Reclamation Dia- trlct is a governmantel agenoy end body politic and oor- porate wlth the power of governing end with delegated authority. Such district was created by Acts of 1995, Forty- fourth Legislature, First Called ~saion, page 1660, Chaptar 427. Te have read the Act very oarafully and nowhere In the Act do we find where the Leglalatura gave the oomiasfonars* court8 of the various oountlea in the district the powar to grant loans or advance money to the Reclamation Dlatrlot.
Furthermore, there 88rersl oountias in the dIs- triot and when this money is turned over to the offlosrs of the district to be used in the m&tar of blood oontral as tbs Nueaes Biver, It Is not osly possible but probable that theMnay would be erpendad in another oounty. The money aan appropriated would be oompletaly out or the bands of the nommlasioners and would be aontrollad by the oiiiosra oi tha .~Peolsmstion Distriot, whiah is In itself & '(pnarmantal agenay,
It has long bean sssousoad in Texas that -ssion- ers~ oourts sre aourta o?Umitad jurisd.lotloninj$st their .uuthority 43rtena8 only to~Mttsrs psrtsisi~-to,thslir raspaat- its aoxuities and that their powaqs am,onIy those akprassly or ixpliadly oonfarmd npon them by law.. Amar~aaan Soraty~Cmgmty T. Hill County, 267 8. 111. 265; Xl Paso tr Xlam 106“Sr 9. (2d) 598; &ward T. Henderson County, lid 8. XI (?!&?9; Xill County T. Bryant and Euffman, 264 8. W. 820; Comds8ioness* cool-t t. wallaaoa, 1s s. wq 0%) sss. <'.,
In the last oasa oited in anpport of this proposItIon the aourt tiaid:
The aomni~7sioners~ court 18 a oreattm of tbs Stats Constltutlomsnd its powers are lim$tad asd oontrollad by the Constitution ssd the.laws as passad by tha legislatura.*
In view or the authorities olted above, the oommissios- era* oourt would have to have aosm express or implied authority to appropriate money from the general fund of a oounty to a River Consarration aml Raolamation Dlatrlot to be mad by It8 orri0ers.
Fionorsble Harry J. Schulz, June 8, 1939, psga #3 7re have made an exhsustlve search of the Constitu- tion and the Statutes of Texas, Including the Act oraating this district, and have found no express or implied autho- rity anywhere for the comiasioners* court to make such appropriation.
Therefore , you respeotfully advleed thet It la the opinion of this department that auoh appropriation of funda by the oommisaioners* oourt ia illegal.
Trusting that this answers yaw quaation, we ramain B
ATTORNEY CBRlSRAL O? TXAS