Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1966 )

J,Jne l?, 1966
Hon. Robert S. Calvert Opinion No. C-711
Comptroller of Public Accounts
Austin, Texas Re: Construction of Section
14 of Article V of House
Bill 12, Acts of the 59th
Legislature, Regular Ses-
sion, relating to rate
of transportation allow-
ance to State employees
who travel in a conveyance
not owned by the employee
or rented from a public
Dear Mr. Calvert: transportation company.
Your request for an opinion reads, in part, as follows:
“Article 6823a. Section 3b provides:
‘b. The rate of per diem and transportation
allowance and method of computing those rates
shall be those set forth in General Appropria-
tion Acta providing for the expenses of the
State government from year to year.’
I
. . . .
“Please advlse, If you find that authority
exists, what rate of pay should be allowable for:
“1 . the use of an automobile, not per-
sonally owned, or rented from a public. tranpporta-
t ion company?
“2. the use of an airplane, not personally
owned or rented.from a public transportation
company?”
Section 14 of Article V of the current General Appropria-
tions Act provides, in part, as follower
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Hon. Robert S. Calvert, page 2 (C-711)
"TRANSPORTATION ALLOWANCE.None of the
moneys appropriation by this Act for travel
expense may be expended to reimburse costs of
transportation on official business except in
compliance with the following conditions,
llm1tations, an3 rules:
"a. The rate of such reimbursement for the
employee's personally owned automobile shall be
eight (8) cents per mile. No additional expense
incidental to the operation of such automobile
shall be allowed. None of the monevs acorouriated
for travel expense for mileage within t&S&e of
Texas for use of ersonally owned automobiles shall
be expended unless%5r-li--
e s ortest route between ooints
is used. This shall also include the use of Farm-to-
Market roads.
II
. . . .
"The rate of reimbursement to executive heads
and key officials for travel in their personally-
owned airplanes within the boundaries of the State
of Texas and between points of necessary official
business shall be sixteen (16) cents per highway
mile.
"Reimbursement for out of State transportation
for the use of
with per diem s
cial first class transportation from the nearest air-
port and the per diem required had the employee trav-
elled by such conveyance. The determination of the
allowances due owners of personally owned automobiles
in compliance with this paragraph shall be as follows:
(1) Per diem shall be determined by the use of an
airline schedule which would have sufficed for the
performance of the official business. (2) Expenses
of transportation to airfields from points where air-
ports are not available shall be allowed in addition
to the cost of first class commercial air transporta-
tion. (3) when additional passengers are conveyed
on out-of-state trips in personally owned automobiles
they shall receive as their expenses per diem based
on automobile travel time. (4) Persons traveling
to points not served by airlines shall receive mileage
and per diem based on actual miles traveled and other
expenses as authorized elsewhere in this Act for
out of State travel.' (Emphasis added)
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Hon. Robert S. Calvert, page 3 (C-71,1)
The pre-existing law for the above quoted rider in
the Appropriations Act is the Travel Regulations Act of 1959, as
amended~, (Article 6823a, Vernon’s Civil Statutes). Section 6 (c)
of that Act was amended in 1963 so as to provide:
‘In determining transportation reimbursement
for travel by private conveyance, the Comptroller
shall base reimbursement on the mileage by shortest
highway distance between point of origin and the
destination via Intermediate points at which of-
ficial state business is conducted and other nec-
essary mileage at points where official state
business is conducted. In determining the amounts
of reimbursement for transportation b
car within the state, the Comptroller 4Z%%putes
ndistances in accordance with the latest official
state highway map. ” (Rmphasls added)
An examination of the pre-existing law authorizing
the rider in question together with Section 14 of Article V of
the General ,,Atproprlat ions $ct , reveals that the terms “private
conveyance, personal car, and “personally owned automobile”
are terms used Interchangeably and, therefore, are, to be con-
strued synonymously In arriving at legislative intent.
Subdivision 1 of Article lo, Vernon’s Civil Statutes,
states that the ordinary significance should be applied to words,
except words of art or words connected with a particular trade or
subject matter when they should have the significance attached to
them by experts in such art or trade with reference to such sub-
ject matter. Since the phrase “private conveyance” is not a word
of art, the ordinary significance must be applied to such phrase.
In Ripley v. Railway Passengers’ Assurance Company, 83
U.S. 336 (1872), the term “private conveyance” was defined as “a
vehicle belonging to a private individual.” It is our opinion
that this Is the proper definition to give to the phrases “private
conveyance, ’ “personal car, ” and “personally owned automobile” as
used in the Travel Regulation Act of 1959, as amended, and Travel
Regulation riders in the current General Appropriation Act. Any
other construction could; in certain circumstances, lead to absurd
conclusions. For example, travel by a State employee in an auto-
mobile, the tit.le of which la in the name of the employee’s spouse.
You are therefore advised payment of eight (8) cents
per mile for Use of an automobile owned by a private Individual
is allowed to an employee entitled to transportation allowance
whether such automobile is owned by the State employee or owned
by some other private individual.
-343%
Hon. Robert S. Calvert, page 4 (C-711)
We are of the further opinion that the reasoning and
holding to your first question Is also applicable to your second
question, and therefore executlve,heads and officials are en-
titled to a reimbursement of sixteen (16) cents per mile for the
use of an airplane not personally owned or rented from a public
transportation company.
SUMMARY
The travel allowance of eight (8) cents per
mile for use of an automobile is allowed to an em-
ployee who travels by an automobile owned by a
private Individual, whether such automobile is owned
by the State employee or is owned by some other
private Individual. Executive heads and officials
are entitled to reimbursement of sixteen cents per
mile for the use of an airplane not personally
owned or rented from a public transportation com-
PanY.
Very truly yours,
WAGGONER CARR
Attorney General
JR:sck:mkh
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
W. V. Geppert, Chairman
Pat Bailey
Malcolm Quick
Mark White
Terry Goodman
APPROVEDFOR THE ATTORNEY
GENERAL
BY: T. B. Wright
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