Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1947 )


Menu:
  •                           November    29,   1947
    Hon. Eugene Talbot                   Opinion NC. V-442
    County Attorney
    Smith County                         Re:    Constitutionalfund
    Tyler, Texas                                from which c0unt.y
    hospital bonds are
    payable.
    Dear Sir:
    We have received your letter of November 18,
    1947, in which you ask whether county hospital bonds are
    payable from the county general fund or from the county
    permanent improvement fund.,
    Article 4478, Revised Civil Statutes, under the
    conditionsstated therein, authorizes the issuance of
    county bonds.for "establishing,enlarging and equipping
    said (county) hospital and for all other necessary per-
    manent improvementsin connection therewith,"is
    and parenthetical.insertion added.)
    Section 9 of Article VIII, Constitution of
    Texas, and Article 2352, Revise~dCivil Statutes, limit
    the authority of the county to levy ad valorem taxes to
    certain purposes and prescribe the rate~for each purpose.
    Such purposes are the following:
    1.    For county purposes.
    ,2.   For,road and bridge purposes.
    To pay jurors.
    For the erection of public buildings
    and other permanent improvements.-
    We believe that the question in which you are
    interested has already been fully determined both by the
    courts of the state and by this department: namely,
    that bonds issued for county hospital purposes under
    Article 4478 are issued for permanent improvement pur-
    poses and are payable from taxes levied therefor out of
    the permanent improveme.nt tax authority, and that the
    same cannot legally be paid out of the general fund,
    Hon. Eugene Talbot - Page 2 L V-442
    the case of'Seydlerv. Border (W. E. Ref.),
    115 Y.W. $7 702, the constitutionalityof Article 4478
    was upheld. The court, in effect, held that such bonds
    were payable out of the permanent,improvementtax, cit-
    ing the case of Robertson v. Breedlove, 
    61 Tex. 316
    .
    In Opinion No. O-2599, this departmentheld
    that the county hospital improvementsauthorized by Ar-
    ticle 4478 were payable from the permanent improvement
    tax. In Opinion No. V-118, this department held that
    county hospital bonds could not be issued because the
    necessary tax levy to pay the bond requirementswould
    exceed the constitutionallimitation.
    Similarly,'thisdepartment has determined that
    county park bonds and county airport bonds are issued
    for purposes of "permanent improvementsnand are payable
    from the permanent improvementfund.
    If such bonds are payable from the permanent
    improvementfund, then moneys of the general fund can-
    not be used therefor, for it is well settled that mon-
    eys from one constitutionalfund cannot be transferred
    to another.such fund, and can be.ex ended for no other
    purpose. Carroll v. Williams 109 iex. 155 
    202 S.W. 504
    , (affirming,in part, Wiliiams v. Carroil, 
    182 S.W. 29
    ).
    SUMMARY
    County hospital bonds, issued under
    the authority of Article 4478, are issued
    for permanent improvementsand are payable,
    both as to interest and principal, from
    taxes levied therefor under the authority
    of the commissioners'court to levy taxes
    for the erection of,public buildings and
    other permanent improvements. Provided, how-
    ever,  that such bond taxes can in no event
    'increasethe maximum amount of the total
    permanent improvementtax beyond the con-
    stitutional limit.
    Such county hospital bonds cannot le-
    gally be paid with moneys belonging to the
    *       .
    ,
    .
    Ron. Eugene Ta~lbert- Page 3 - v-442
    county general fund or with taxes levied
    for such county purposes.                                 ,
    Very truly yours,
    ATTORNEY G!%NERA&OF TE'XAS
    GWS:erc
    APPROVED:
    ..       .
    ATTORNEY GENERAL
    ,
    .
    

Document Info

Docket Number: V-442

Judges: Price Daniel

Filed Date: 7/2/1947

Precedential Status: Precedential

Modified Date: 2/18/2017