Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1942 )

i
OFFICE OF ‘WE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
HonorableRalphBrook
CountyAtternoy
LubbookCounty
Lubbook,.Ton@
day of S'anq,A.D.
e l88entio a t
a th r
that they ha6 in the
a 8wa of money ia
~aO,OOO.OO)Dollarr,
an of oaf& Gomlrrioaora
oar* of any rqalrr on the
rat of the oouaty, and the Gouatt
Courtbriryr further aware oi the
ewrity to lrsirrtthr go~emnmn8 in
rable wag to proaaouta the prerait
war lgalnataggrm*lto nationa, 18 18 the opla-
loa or tha court that I)W,OOO.OO 0r the runa
8hou.u br inreatod in govmmat boaar.
"ITI8 l!iWOWCBL
RESOLVEDthat aaidFl?tJ
Dollara be lnvomted in
Btousan&($ao,OOO.OO)
I
Bonorable Xalph Brook, Page 2
Government Bonds upon approval of the Attorney
General of the State of Texas.
0. v. Faraue
tounty Judge, Lubbook County,
Texas
0.L Horton
Eounty Comleeion0r, Preoinot
x0. 1
Ben Eanskrr
County Commisslonsr, Precinot
NO. 2
Edaar E. Gray
County Commieaioner, Preoinot
x0. 3
Kewton Stokea
County Commissioner, Prscinot
l?o.4’
‘118oonnsotlon with this rtatter,I wll.1
state that there ~111 remain available in the
permanent improvement funds of Lubbook County,
Texas, a sum or approximately 415,000.00, whloh
amount will be eufriaient to take oare of all
neaeesarp repairs and fmprovemente upon county
property.
“In looking into the law relative to this
matter, I have found rrtiole 036 of the iWised
civil Statutes of Texas, whioh provldae as tol-
lOWiS:
“*The legally authorized govarnlag body or
any county, city or town, or the trusteee of any
eahool distrlot or eohool:Community, may Invest
their raspeotive sinlrin$zunda for the redap-
tlon and payment of the outstanding bond8 of suoh
aounty, olty or town, or oommunity, in bonda of
the Gnlted States, war savings certificates, and
certificatea or IndebtedneaP,ieaued by the Ssore-
tary of the Treasury of the Gnlted States, and
Honorable Ralph Erook, Fage 3
in bonds of Texas, or any county of thie State,
or of any lnoorporatea oity or tom. 110 such
bondo shall be purchased which, according to
their terms, mature at a date sUbsequent to the
time of mturlty of the bonds for the payment
of nrhloh such sinking fund was areated.'
*Under thin article the county would be
authorized to lnveet any sinking funds that It
might have for the redemption and
outstanding bond8 of the county. i?i%?"b::~
unable to find a- cam or artiole providing
for euoh Inveetment of the permanent lmprove-
nent fund, however, It would seem to me that
If the county could Inveet the sinking funda
in Enlted States Cmvernment 301168, that thr
county ahould also hare the authority to In-
vest the permanent Improvement fund in Govern-
n;entBonds BiAOe the permanent fund repreeenta
a aurplur and Is not needed or required to re-
tire any outstanding indebtedness and it would
seem to me that euch Ed lnveetment would reat
with the dI#cretloA of the ComaIaslonera Court
and If they, in their OpiniOA, thought that
$SO,OOO.OO oould be diverted Into GoQerAmeAt
Ponds and the county property atill adequately
cared for, that such action would be legal.
"The County Commissioners CoUft would llke
your opinion on this question: 'Can a part of
the permanent inprovement Punde be legally in-
vested in u. S. Goverment Defense BoAde?*Vq
The Constitution preeoribee the maximum rate of
taxes for general purpoi3eB, for roada aAd bridges, for juries,
zid ror permanent improvements, respectively. (Section 9,
i&iole VIII, State Constitution). :+hemonies arising from
taxes levied and collected for eaoh of the enumerated pur-
posea are OOAetitUtiOAAl fUAdSi 0Ad the COITJUISSIOAeraCOUrt
has no power to transfer money from one fund to another, or
to expend, ror one purpose , tax money raised oetenaibly ror
another purpose. The immediate purpose of the provision is
to limit the anount of taxes that my be raised for thsee
several purpoees, respectively; but It is also designed to
Honorable Ralph Brook, Page 4
illhibit e~oe~i~eexpenaitur48 ior any such purpose, ana
to mpire that any and all money8raised by taxation for
any purpose shall be Qpplled to that partlotiar purpose
and to no,other. x0 i6tpua power to transfer money rr0m
ona to another of suoh oonetltutiohaL fuuds, or expend such
runde for another pumose, la derived from the raot that the
origidal fund coazalns more than enough to met the current
demanda against it. Suoh exoesa may be retained In that fund,
end applied to auooesding yearr to the very purpose for whloh
Lt was raised, thereby possibly raduolng the future tax rate
for that purpose. Carroll Q. ~illllama,202 S. W. 504; Com-
misslonerst Court of Henderson Go. ‘1.Burke, 252 .S. %. 94i
Texas Jurlsprudenoe, Vol. 11, p. 609.
It 16 stated in our 0 inion No. O-4297, Vhe au-
thority to invest pub110 funan Pn their custody ha6 been-
expressly oonferred upon oertain pub110 orrloera by the Lag-
lslature In some instanoes and by the Conetitutlon In others,
In eaoh fnstanae where this power Is given, the charaoter
of the seaurities In whioh such a;oneys may be invested has
been careiully presuribed. In every aaae where the Legls-
lature har authorlsed lnveatment of publlo funda, It haa
named bonds of the United State8 Government amng the se-
ouritles in which such funds nay be fmpestad, reoognlzlng
the obligations of the United State8 as the safest of se-
our1t1ss. If the power to invest your surplus funds exlst-
ed, ve oould oonoelie of no safer lnvestmant.‘t xe enoloae
a copy of said opinion for your convenienoe.
We find no provlalon of law authorlzlng the Com-
nlcaioners* CouA to invest any portion of the permanent
lmprovenent fund of the count:!in any seouritlee whatsoever.
iiowever, on the other h&ml it is apparsnt. rrom the above
mentioned oases t.hzatany and all money raised by taxation
ror any purpose. must be applied to tnat particular purpose
and to no other, and t:lutthe Coruvlasioners’Court hae no
legal right or authority to ln7est any portion of the con-
stitutional runas (which inoludes the permanent lmproveaent
tunda) in E. C. Government Lefense Eonds or any other sa-
curitiea except sinking funds as authorieed by AlWcle 536,
supra . Therefore, we respectfully answer the above etated
question in the negative.
Yours vary truly