Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1944 )

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN onov=m SLLLLIl3 -------zz l,TD”“.” 0.*m111. ?,~ Honorable Burnell~Waldrep Cou@y;A,ttorney, Red River,County Clarksville,. ,, Texas. .' Dear SSr: Attention: Mr. B. C. Jones, Assistant Opinion No. O-5887 Rez‘ Validity of.an order~of the County Commissioners' Court changing the boundary lines between two county commissio.ner~sprecincts and related matters. Your le.tterof February i6; I$&, requesting the opinion of this department on the questionstated therein reads, in part, as followsi "I wish to request an opin~ionfrom your of- fice on the validity of the.following order adopted by the Red River County Commissioners Court at its regular December Term,'I%3, without any previous notice having been given and without being petitioned to adopt such order.' .Furthermore,Highway 37 men- tioned in said ~.qk,y has.not been completed to Red River, but ,the surveying has.been.,done. "The STATE OF Tp1XA.S: "~'CUBNTYOF RED HIVFR: "On this the'l3th'day of December 1943, the CornmissionerS Court cf Red River County,~Texas, met in Regular Session with the following members of the court present: Marion~A.,Lawson, County Judge, H. D. Dugger, Commissioner Precinct 1; Frank Rorris, Commissioner Precinct 2; 9. H. Sargent; Commissioner Precinct 3; and J. J. Emry, Commissioner Precinct 4. Among other p~rocoedingsthe following order was'adopted by the court with all'cc~mmissionersvoting AYE: " 'AN ORDER "'IT IS H&REBY CIRDIGUD,ADJTJDGEDATiDDECREED BY THE COIU4ISSICNERSCOLRT``OFRED RIVER COUNTY, TEXAS, Wnorable Durne~I iialcirep, page 2 “*That the boundary 111~ between t’ied hivar County Co &ssloacra Precinct No. 3 aad Commlsoionorfe” Precinct No. 3 beginning at the Intersection of tha Texas & hcif lo Hallway trucks end JJlghway37 in the City of Clurkovllle, Texas, thenoe northerly to Hod Hlver as the boundary has heretofore boon eetab-’ lished is abolished, ahd tho boundary ohall here- ’ after be rcestubliehed and defln?d as follows~ W*Rl~GIr;N%IFC at the lntereeption of the Toxos 8cPacific hallwey tracks and lilghvfuy37 in the City of Clurksvllle, Texas, thence in a northerly dlreeflon following the osuter-line of Texes State JJighway37 to had niver. ., “I,. s . ) s(Signsd)XlurionA. Iawoon “County Judge.‘” snxe orders pr:esednt tSe Deoember Tens ohang- ing the line between two oo4mloefonor*s preofncte valid? &lustsuoh proposed cbnge bs advertised in any way or notice g$ven?” In the case of Turner VU Allen, 254 5. W. 630, ii!, ia atated, among other things,: *By seotlon 18, art. 3 of the Constitution of this state, tho oo~miaaionors* oourt ‘ia veeted with authority to ahan&e and reeetabliah “from tims to time’ county oommissionero~ precincts *for the cdnvsnlence of the pooplc.’ It is olear from thle provision of .the Constitution that tha county oom- missloners~ oourt iA Tcxau la,given the purrerand autlkrlty to ohaoge and ro-estnbllsh oounty’commlo- sioners’ preoincto at any tirnothey niaydcom it to be for the convenlonco of the pooplc to do so, and, when nuoh authority and poviorso conferred is exer- ilisadby thut court, its action 13 not void. Tha action nay ba reviewed or corrected, when orroneously or wrongfully ox improperly exer,o:lood, by a proper proceeding for tnit purpose, but “ouch a&ion, though it umounta to a Cross abuse of tbo court’s disoretion, and ~.thou&hit, in effeot, cangtituten a logal fraud upon persons who :nnybe affected by the court’s ac- tion, 13 not void, nnd a-~nnotbe ‘attnclrcd o,r Smpoachod collaterally. * :I*~” Honorable ;JurneliWa,ldrep,:)aEc3 hleo EBB the osoes of &boss v. $oodi, 162 S. VI.3; kard VU ‘Dond,10 5. k’. (2d) 590, and Lewis,ot ul v. Harris, et al, 40 8,.w. (26) 730. In the &ne~ of Lewis, et al v. IIarrie,et .x11,, nupra, it is said: niltl applied to different altuetiode, the phrAl30~oo@venienoe of the people,*‘he used in,the ConstituF%on, 5my htve different meanings, but in our opi&mlt cannot properly be construed a3 lm- posing upon.EI ootnais8loncrs~oourt the absolutg duty oi re&;crangingthe boundaries or commleeionere’t preoihote, from time to tkne, 80 as to ucoord to each preoinot repreaeot.ationupon-and power .oi oon- trol :0r the.coam.isgionere’oourt in .proportlon~to their reepeotive populations, voting strengthsi and taxable valuutlons. * *,*'I~ Artiole 2349, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, provideo: *The court shell reglllre tile oounty olerlc to keep suitable book3 in which shall be reoorded the proceediu,'sof each term of the court; which record shall be read and signed artar each term by Skiaoounty 'judge,or the raamberpre3idingqand at- tested by the clerk. The clerk ahall al30 record -all authorized prooeedin:;:sof the oourt between term; and such record ohnll be read and si,qnedon the first day or the tart5next after such prooeed- ings ocourred.‘l It is noted that the order of the Co:nmlosioncre* Court under consl.derationis ai@;nodby the County Judge, and ror the purpones of. this opinion, we a33um that the same wa3 attested by the olerk. In view of the foreg,oi:rg authorities, you ar3 Honorable Durncll ;tulJrop,p,,k