Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1942 )

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GE:NERAL;OF TEXAS AUSTIN nonorablo B. Y. Cuunln&am C6unty Auditor Eavcrro County corsicall3., T0ras Dear sir3 . . datory sot to Arti- ornimn’o Annotsted of this dopnrtment i ~Q.w .Co-~..nlijj Trwxmrcr, who CSC~ into office January 1, ‘1941, wa3 accordail tho ama troatmant .. .-. Donorablo E. Y. Cunn@h;ham, Pace 2. as th& othar abovs named officials, ard he tms refunded tbt portion of his bond covorirq October, ~Xovombor and Docomber, ,.’ 3.941. Horn, houovar, ho has rquested thnt ..*% tho County refund tho full amount of his .~- bond for tho yoar 1941, or rather, for the months not alroady refunded, . .. Wo fail to sed’ how.3 can Co this ‘1*&l- :: . ly, and would appraoiato an opinion from your : office on this mattor, so r7sshall hnow what to do.” Article 3S99, Vernon% Annbtatsd Civil Statutes, CBS aZl0nd8d by Eiousa Bill 524, Acts of the 47th LoSislature. - The purpose of the cmcmkeat wo to provide for thu.payment of bond proniumu for cortaln county offiglals nho had thuro- toforb bcsn raquirod to pay their ovin prornlws. .Suoh purpose is expressad in txe c&ptiO5 thoraoi’ as’ fO+fS:~ .. %I? ACT clnondin~ Article 5999, Revi sdil ‘. Civil Statutes OS T@xas, 1925 . . . to pro- vide test pro;tinm on official bonda for . county treasurers . . . and their deputies, . shall be paid fro3 oountp funda . . .” Such amendment went.into effeot ninety &p after July’s, You cite suoh amandnent as authority 1941. for the counties “to refund’. bond prc!niuma to such officials for tha remainder of the year, after said law went into offectqf and state that you hnvo made such rafunds, Sor that period of tlmo dating from the effective dato of the act through Deoem- her 21, 1941. You now ask iP?tho’;‘cotity has authority to refund tho bond prczxiuzs to the. v~riOU8”o~ficfals for that period of time from January 1, 194l, to;,the effective $ito of the amondatory act. .‘ 1. . ” Paragraph (b) of SectTon 2 of the amendatory act provides: “Each officer named in this act . . %; and including the Cost of surety bonds for his deputies, providad that GQonoos incurrod for ‘premiras on officials’ bonds. for tho county troasuror , oounty cuditor, county road 00x&3- ‘sj.onars,.county school ouporintondant, and tho /’ .. I . . . Donorablo 3. Y. Cuh&@m,.Pa~e-3 .hidQ and an&xl lnspoctor, including the cost of surety bonds Sor any daputies of any such offioers, my bo also indludod, and such 8X- pQns0s to bo pasacd on, predeterninod and al+:;, lowed in fha tine and mount, as nsarly as .'* possible, by the Comiissioners Court onto Qaoh month, for the ensuing month, . . .'I ‘A careful oonslderation of.the act ae a whole clearly in&bxites Q total lack of authority on the part of the county to mke a refund to the county troafmer, or to soy OthQr Officer nswd thoroln, for that portion of his bond pruiuzs covering tho porfod of tine fron Sammy. 1, 1941, to tho Qffectixe date of the Rot, Sinca such'yuostion is not biforo us, it is to bo dxprossly undorntood that we are not.passin!: upon the au- thority of the Comisoionoro t Court to authorlzo a refund to tha Qmmoratod officials of that portion of thoir bond prmiws COVQri~ th0 pQ3ZiOd Of t&O frCZL the QffQCtiVQ dat0 of the act through DcCQXbQr.31, 31941. Yours vory truly' ATTORh?ZYGE?ERAL OYTEXAS Lloyd.hmstrong Assistant