Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1975 )

Tmm ATTORNEYI GENERAL
OF TEXAS
AUBTIN. Tmx~s 787ll
JOHN I,. BILL
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May 13, 1975
The Honorable Hank Anderson Opinion No. ‘H,- 604
County Attorney
Wichita County Re: Whether a commissioners
Wichita Falls, Texas 76301 court may contract with the
County and District Retirement
Dear Mr. Anderson: 3ystem.
You have asked if
[f]or the purpose of achieving amortiratiorrof the
county’s liability for prior service, . . . [may the]
County Commissioners . . . contract with the
Board of Trustees of the Texas County .and District
Retirement System for the annual payment of a
specific sum of [tax] money which could be credited
to prior service and which would enable the county
to fulfill total liability for prior service credited by
the year 1992.
The Texas County and District Retirement System is established by
article 6228g. V. T. C. S. Section 4(2)(d) provides:
Each participating subdivision shall make payment
of Prior Service Contributions to the Subdivision Prior
Service Accumulation Fund of the System each month
of an amount equal to a per cent of the current-service
earnings during such month of the members of the
System’employed by such participating subdivision which
per cent shall be the difference between the normal can-
tribution rate, as above determined, and the subdivision
benefit contribution rate as determined pursuant to para-
graph (a) of subsection 1 of this section.
p. 2680
The Honorable Hank Anderson, page 2 (H-604)
Without fully exploring the computations involved, we note that this
section, in conjunction with other provisions of article 6228g, establishes
the method for determination of the amounts to be paid for various retire-
ment purposes. These amounts are determined from the current service
earnings in each particular month. Section 4(2)(d) establishes the method
for determining the amount to be contributed to provide retirement benefits
for service rendered prior to the effective date of article 6228g. Your
question arises from the desire of a county to forego this method of deter-
mination and to contract with the Board for the annual payment of a specific
SUl-ZL
The recently enacted article 16. section 67 of the Texas Constitution
empowers the Legislature to provide a statewide system of benefits for the
officers and employees of counties and also provides that current statutes
shall remain in effect. Thus, the Texas County and District Retirement
System is to be operated as provided by statute.
The terms of article 6228g are mandatory; there is no contemplation
of alternate methods. A method provided by statute is generally read to
exclude other methods. Foster v. City of Waco, 255 S.W. 1104 (Tex.
Sup. 1923); Weaver 268 S.W. 133 (Tex.Sup. 1924). We there-
fore construe article 6228g, section 4(2)(d), to be the mandatory and exclusive
means by which tax monies may be contributed to the prior service sector of
the Texas County and District Retirement System. -See Attorney General
Opinion V-508 (1948).
We express no opinion concerning such a contract when the subdivision
wishes to contribute money other than tax money and such contribution is
additional to that required by article 6228g. See art. 6228g, sec. 5(7), (entitled
Endowment Fund).
SUMMARY
Article 6228g. section 4(2)(d) is the mandatory and
exclusive means by which a subdivision may contribute
tax monies to a retirement system, in order to satisfy
its prior service obligations.
Attorney General of Texas
p. 2681
The Honorable Hank Anderson, page 3 (H-604)
APPROVED:
DAVID M. KENDALL, First Assistant
I
Opinion Committee
p, 2682