Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1944 )

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
jloaorrble Shelby K. Long
County Att.orney
JeffersOa COUaty
Be8tmOnt s TeXa 8
Dear Mr. Long: Opinion No. O-6318
Your letter of reoent
this dep8rtnrent on the queetion
88 follorsr
-1 wish you would me aopiee oi
opinions oa the the Commte-
sioaere Court oa if you h8te
pretloasl y thl n matter.
Otberw¶~ser pl a for me on the
following qu
rtiaulrr empbrsle
sioner receiving ae
red by 8 Commimdoner
his motion thst the
Whether or not re8aons
voting on 8 proposition
ourt to support his rote where
rely to inalude the fin81 rote
em rithout including in the
r reasons for 'so voting, should
*I am ena&oeing herewith 8 copy of an opinion
rendered br me-to the Ccmmfssloners Court on the
date 8s shown ia the OpiniOa.'
We th8nk you for the oopy of your opinion on the '~
questions under coacsideration-
drtiole 2342, VexnOn'f# Annotrted Ciril f9tatute8,
providesr
honorable Shelby K. Long - page 2
“The sereial aommissioners, together rfth the
aonaty judg4, shall aompose the oonm~issloners’
aourt, and the aounty judge, when present, shall
be the presiding offiaer of said court". (Sea. 18,
Art. (I of the State Constitution contains langUag4
similsr to the foregoing statute I .
Article 2349, Vernon’s Annotated Ciril Statutes,
resda II8 follorsr
sThe court oh811 require the eounty clerk to
keep suitable books in which shall be recorded
the proceedings of eaoh term of the ooart~ rhiah
reoord sh811 be read 8nd signed riter e8ah term
by the county judge, or the member presiding and
attested by the alerk. The alerk shrll 8160 re-
aord 811 authorised proaeedings of the oourt be-
Geen ten!is; and suah records oh813 he r88d and
signed on tbe first dry of the next term after
such proceedings oacurred.6
Artlole 2345 is 8s follorer
"The aounty alerk shall be ex offiaio elerk
of the ~~asioaers' Court; and he ah811 rttend
upon e8oh term of mid Commissioners' Court.1 pre-
serve 8nd keep all books, papers, reaords 8nd ef-
feats belongiag thereto, Issue all aotioes, rrltr
8nd process neaess8ry for the proper 4XeoUtion of
the posers 8nd duties Of the ~O~~SS~on8rS' Court,
sad perform 811 such other duties 8s m8y be pre-
scribed by 181.'
It is uniformly held th8t the Commissioners' Court
is a court of reoord. Oano T. Palo Piato County, 8 S1 1. 634;
BraMord vr Moselep, 223 8. X. 171. Article 2349 8bore quoted
necessarily makes It so. Any court whose proceedings 8re re-
quired by Yaw to be recorded in minutes or books kept for thrt
purpose i R a court of reaord.
The rord sproaeedlngs" Is used here in Its ordinsry
sense, and means the official functions of the court. Suah
functions are not limlted to any partiaulor al888 of functions,
but on the contrary they Include every of'fiaial rat done by the
members of the court in the course of their sitting. This
Would Include a pertinent motion m8de by 8ny member of the
court in the course of passing a resolution or order shatso-
eyer. suoh motion Is an integral part of the resolution or
Soaoroble she3by E. Long - page 3
538
order l Furthensorer a motion e8de by 8 member of the oourt
duly in eeeeion is it8elt 8 "proceedinga In the r8gUl8r 8ad
ordinary r8yt 8nd, we think, 8hould be entered upon the min-
utes, whether such motion reoeiree 8 seaona or not. In par-
]lamentary wage In such a c8se the motion is lost for r8nt
of 8 seoond, and is thus effectually disposed of.
A good reason is e88lly 888iga8dS It re88oa for
the 8tatnte were required, why mah proceedings should be
m8d8 8 mrtter of record. The hSaI~8#~on8rS’ COUPt 14 8
eourt of general jurisdiction in thi8 St8te, 8nd as we h8v8
seen, Is 8 oourt of reoord. It i8 8 aourt of tremendou8 la
portsnae, 8ino8 it hrs jUri8diOtiOn Over the County affairs
of the aounty. The public h88 a deep concern with the ofti-
0181 8ate of suah court, 8nd Its proaeeding8 therefore 8re of
such lmportanae 8s th8t an aaour8te reoord should be kept for
the general inform8tion of the publie ooncerned. Moreover,
while it sometime8 h8pp848 that the tailure to make 8 minute
of certain praoeedlags is not fat81 to the V8iiaity ot the
~88mc (See Land8 7. State, 131 8. V. (2) 3211, 8nd thrt the
rrlldity of an order properly P8884d IA susaeptible ot proot,
and the order may be proved by or81 teatlmony (~eoum v. Ford,
262 6. W. 4911, nererthelesst the st8tutory requirement tar
dulT record,ed minutes, attested by the proper officers, is
the ssfer ~87, 8nd matters of such %mportanoe should not be
lett to the diffloult and sometimes uncertafn method at proot
dehors the reoord.
It does net tollor
from rh8t 8e h8V4 snld that re8-
soas given by a commissioner in Voting upon a proposition eub-
mltted to the court should be entered in the minutes -- they
are not within the requirement8 of the 8tctut.e -- tar they con-
stitute no part of the aourt proaeedings, as do the motion, the
rote and the order.
Trusting that what we have said IR a suttloieat
answer to Tour inquiry, we 8re
Very truly yours
n
ATTORNEY GENRRAL OF TE
W
OS-RR