Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1946 )

j >., ,r r ., _ .,J : * --. L* , I- ; _, 1:i ; zj OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 0; AUSTIN GROVERSELLERS ATronNEr GENER*L Hon. Ernest Guinn county Attorney El Paso-County El Paso, Tems .DearSir: OpinionX0. O-7515 Re: Conntitutionality No. 90 of ?he 43r YOur letter of Nommher 18. 1946 OS this departmenton the above statAdmatte follows: chasing: Agent ty of this bil.l.~arises ourt,s ditcision fn Km.er vs. city n by-the SupremeCburt, reportedin and similardecieioneholding acts officesin a limitedbracke$ un- '\ After careful considerationwe have concludedthat tMs Act-is a local end speciallaw violatingthe provisions of Article III Section 56 ,oSthe ConstitutionoS.Texas and is ,therefore un&titutio& and void. Article XXI, Section56, of the Texas Constitution,providesas follows: _. - Hon. Smeat Cuinn - Page 2 eleetifmor schooldiotricte;. , . lIt Xt is manifestttit.the law m&r considerationre,Yulr&es the s.ff&.nof the countyto which it m$ies, wwteo sz oS^pIce, md prescribesthe p3xmpL4 r?nddxtl.esof mlch 0Sficers. It fApJ.J,pliRR OI-&y to coilnties ir: this State kvvlzq a popv-lstfon OS rme thzn Due I-kmdred l'hammnd~(1OE),CW) inhhsb%tmtsand less tbsn One IhmdredFifty Tlmus- and &iO,OOO)~inhab5ftants and conteIn3.ng one city OS One Hunrhwd 'i'houmnd(lOc),UN)inhsbitontsas ehown by the latestFsderslSew-&s. 3% io atatdi in our opinion No. o-22x0 * . . l!on.Ernest Guim - Page 3 ‘IhQ ::.ct creates the office of purchasiw a~m^i.and rescribesthe rmier;jmd dut%csof the ofliccrholdingsuch office. E populationaffordsi:gound for crefiting the officeof cou:lty p~&~d~ agent2 it nust be upon one of two theories: 11) the mailer the poptiationof the county,the pvater the nee~cl 0T such bffice, (2) the gsntcr th.l~ populationof the CO'UR~;Y, the g~e~tor theneed of such an office. The bracket 'isfrom Gnc !Iundrcd Thous-. and. to 0x10 Hundrse~ Fi3.y Thousand (Z~O,OOO). Upon the first theory, the.ILM ia arbitraryziiddis&i?&mtory becauseit excludescomities below One ltundred Thouscnci(lOO,Otx,) which wx~ld have& :;rcat;cr ked then countiesin the bracket. Upon the sccortd theory,the 3.z~ir, likewisearbitrarymd discrinirnstory in thet it does not exbrzcc countiesfx~i~ a greaterpop3.atj.o~ thm One Hmd:ec!Fifty fhousmd (15O,irOO), which countiesw01CLdhave a g-rector need for z purchcsint-; azcnt than the co~mtico-&thin the brackets. In timi of the foregoingauthorities,it is ow opinion that 2. E. 30 of the 43x-dLegislatureclccslyviolatesthe provision of Ia-ticlo 111, Sectior?56, of the Stste COllStitUtiOll Nld is therefore um~nstitutional2nd Void. Furtherin this connectionCI call.pour attention. to the . fact that the City oA c 21 Paso, accoruingto tm 19&O FederzlCensus< h&c popu&tAon of~i:inety-Six %hcusand2ight !kkdrod md Ten. (96,tlO). If the City of El P.1260 has not liada succaedi~ PedertiCensus since 3.940, than ST. Paso uould not be governedbg thks Article. Very tn.&y yours