Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1958 )

TRE A ORNEY GENERAL 0~ TEXAS AUSTIN ``.Tsxan April 1.6, 1958 Honorable Price Daniel Opinion NO. ``-416 Governor of Texas Capitol Station Re: Whether the funds received Austin, Texas by the State Industrial Commission In the form of donations and appro rlated under Senate Bill 484 are available to the State Industrial Commission despite the faot that Senate Bill 484 was not aubmltted to the Comgtrol- Dear Governor Daniel: ler for certification. We have received your letter of March 24, in which you state that the 55th Legislature passed Senate Bill 484, codified as Article 51903, Vernon's Civil Statutes, giving the State Industrial Commission authority to a,cce$ contrlbu- tions for the purposes set forth in such Act, which contribu- tions are to be deposited In the State Treasury in a special fund to be known as the "State Industrial Commission Fund". You further state that the Comptroller has notified the Commission that In as much as Senate Bill 484 was not passed to him for certification, none of the funds reeelved as donations and deposited in the State Treasury are ap:?ropriated for this biennium, although Senate Bill 484 apgraprlated no funds except those received as donations. You ask our opinion on two questions, substantially as follows: 1. Is it necessary that a bill, @ontaining an appropriation of only this type, be passe. to the Comptroller for his certification? 2, If the answer is "no", then Is the State Industrial Commission authorized to expend any donated funds deposited in the Treasury during this biennium? Senate Bill 484, Acts 55th Legislature, Regular Ses- sion, 1957, Chapter 319, page 782, reads in part as follows: Honorable Price Daniel, Page 2 (``-416). "In addition to ita other duties, the State Industrial Commission is hereby authorized to plan, organize and operate a program for attracting and locating new industries in the State of Texas; pro- vided, however, that no S,tatefunds shall be used for this purpose. The Commission may accept con- tributions for such purpose, all of which shall be deposited In the State Treasury in a special fund to be known as the 'State Industrial Commission Fund', and such sums are hereby appropriated to the Commission for the purposes of this Article." (aphasia added). Section @a of Article III of the Constitution of Texas reads In part as follows: (I From and after January 1, 1945, save In the case'of emergency and imperative public necessity and with a four-fifths vote of tinetotal membership of each house, no appropriation in excess of the cash and anticipated revenue of the funds from whloh such appropriation is to be made shall be valid. From and after January 1, 1945, no bill containing an appropriation shall be con- sidered as passed or be sent to the Governor for consideration until and unless the Ccmptroller of Public?Accounts endorses his certificate thereon, showing that the amount apprnpriated is wi,C,hin the amount estlmat:d to be available En t?,eaffected funds, D D s It is clear from the undereo3rad portion of Senate Bill 484, above, that the Legislature apsr5priated no money to such fund or for such purposes, except to ,theextent that funds were available from specific donations, If there are no donations, nothing is appropriated, If there are dona- tions, that and no more is appropriated, In our opinion, this appropriation falls within the purview of Attorney General's Opinion O-6626 (1945), which reads, in part, as follows: "'You will n&e from the text of House Bill No. 56 that no stated amount is mentioned In the bill and therefore the appropriation could not be in excess of the cash anticipated revenues of the funds from which such appropriation Is to be made. The Bill only appropriates the moneys to be . Honorable Price Daniel, Page 3 (~-416). deposited in the affected fund for a given period. The fund is created by existing law and the allo- cation of revenues directed to be placed in said fund has already been made by existing law. House Bill No. 56 only makes the appropriation of the fund to the purpose for which it was created and only in the amount which may be deposited In the fund. . . . t 11. . . "It Is, therefore, our opinion that K. B. 56 did not require the certificate Inquired about." This Interpretation of Section @a of Article III was followed In Attorney General's Opinion s-64 (1953), which reads, In part, as follows: If no balance exists, nothing is appropriated; If a balance does exist, that and no more Is appropriated. The only action which the Comptroller could possibly have taken If House Al.11 39 had been sent to him for certification would have been to certify that the amount appropriated in this Section was within the anticipated revenue. We think this appropriation falls within the view of Attorney General's Opinion o-6626 (19f?- 5), which held that an appropriation of all the money coming Into a soeaific fund, without stating any speci.Picamount; did not have to be certified, since the amount appropriated CQUM not possibly exceed the available revenue. . . . I, If House Bill 39 had been submitted to the Corn&oiler for certification, the only action he could have taken would have been to certify that funds for paying this appropriation would be avail- able. In keeping with the import of the holding In Opinion 0-6626, we are of the opinion that certlfl; cation is not necessary under these circumstances. In our opinion, and you are so advised, Senate Bill 484, appropriating to the State Industrial Commission accepted contributions deposited In the special fund, known as the "State Industrial Commission Fund", for the specified purposes, is not such an appropriation bill requiring certification by Honorable &ice Daniel, Page 4 (``-416). the Comptroller of Public Accounts. In answer to your questions, it is not necessary that a bill containing an appropriation of only this type be passed to the Comptroller for his aertlflcation, and the State Industrial Commission is authorized to expend any donated funds deposited in the State Treasury during this biennium. SUMMARY The funds received by the State Industrial Commission in the form of donations and appropriated under Senate Bill 484, are available to the State Industrial Commis- sion despite the fact that Senate Bill 484 was not submitted to the Comptroller for aertification, suoh certlfloation not being required of this type of approprla- tion. Yours very truly, WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas By Jo&L~Q,J&,; Tom I. McFarling TIM:mg:jl Assistant APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE Qeo. P. Blackburn, Chairman J. Arthur Sandlin B. H. Timmlns, Jr, J. Mark McLaughlin REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY QENERAL BY: W. V. Geppert