Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1947 )

R-739
YXE .A-rro~m~ GENERAL
OF TEXAS
PRICE DANIEL
ATTORNEYGENERAL
September 1.8, 1947
Hon. C. D. Wright Opinion No. V-382
County Attorney
Brlsooe County Re: Appointment of an as-
Silverton, Texas slstant to an Ex-of-
flolo County Superln-
tendent under Articles
2701 and 3888, V.C.S.
a8 amended by S. B.
252, 50th Legislature.
Dear Sir:
We refer to your letter of recent date where-
in you request an opinion from this office on whether
under 9. B. 252, Acts 1947, 50th Legislature, Regular
Session, amending Articles 2701 and 3888, it Is manda-
tory or permissive for a County School Board to name or
appoint an,asslstant to the County Judge - Ex-offlolo
County Superintendent.
Article 2701, as amended by s. B. 252, pro-
vides in part as follows:
"In each county having no School Super-
intendent, the County Judge shall be Ex-
officio County Superintendent and shall
perform all the duties required of the
County Superintendent . . . The County
Board shall name or appoint an assistant
to the Ex-offlolo County Superintendent
. 0 . the salary of the assistant Ex-of-
flolo Superintendent of Public Instruo-
tlon . . . shall be from and after Sep-
tember 1, 1947, paid from the State and
County Available School Fund."
Article 3888, as amended by S. B. 252, pro-
vides in part as follows:
!I. . . The Ex-offlolo Assistant Super-
intendent of Public Instruction shall re-
ceive for his services such salary not to
exceed Fifteen Hundred ($1500) Dollars a
, _-
Hon. C. D. Wright - Page 2 V-382
year as the County Board of School Trustees
of the respective County may provide,”
Seotion 5, the emergency clause In S, B. 252
provides in part:
“The faot that there Is no definite
ppovlslon at present for the appointment
and PemunePatlon of an assistant to the Ex-
offlclo County Superintendent e 0 9 creates
an emergency e . o ”
In the oonstructlon of statutes, the wopd
“mapn may be used to mean “shall” or the word “shall”
may be construed to mean ‘may” according to the lnten-
tfon expressed fn the statute; they must be glven the
meanihg which will b8st express leglsltitive Intent.
National Sure&g Corporation vs. Ladd, 115 9. W. (26)
600, 602; Schlemmer vs. Board of Trustees of Limestone
County, 59 S. W. (26) 264; Hess & Skfnner Engineering
Co. vao Turney, 203 9. W. 593, 595.
Artiole 2701, as amended, provides that a
County Judge - Ex-offiolo County Superintsndent shall
perform s the duties required of a Oountg School Su-
perlatedlent.
There is no legislative intent evidenced in
the statute amended to oreate the office of an Asslst-
ant Ex-offloio County Superintendent of Public Instruo-
tion, nor to vest such an assistant with an presoribed
powera or dut 18s * Indeed, under,Artlole 38 fi8, aa amend-
ed, the salary of suoh a named or appointed assl.stant
may vary anywhere from one dollar or less up to fifteen
hundred dollara a year, whatever tne county sohool board
w provide,
Said statutes aa amendad olrerly authorlee ?,kb
County School BoarCl to came or appoint an aeslstant
derlgnatbd th8r8ln aa “Ex-off1010 Assistant Superlntend-
ent of Publia Instruction” and to provide for his serv-
leer 8 salary not to 8xo88d Fifteen Hundred Dollars a
year. 08rtainly, the Oountg Sohool Board in the exer-
air8 of Its dlrorstlonary authority In providing a sal-
ary for such an e8slatant oould 8ffeotlvdly thwart an
attempt to force It to appoint such an assistant. In
short, we do not find an lntsndmant wfthln Uald stst-
utee to Impose upon the oountiee thereby affected an
assistant Ex-offloio Oounty Superintendent, if the Coun-
ty Sob001 Board acting In oooperstloa with the County
Han, C. D. Wrfght - Page 3 v-382
Judge shall determine that such an assistant Is not
needed 0
Furth8IQlOr8, this construction of the said
amended statutes is consonant with the authorftg of
the County Sohool Board to name or appofnt an aesfat-
ant or assistants to all other elective or appointfve
county superintendents In this State``i Article flQ0
a8 amended by Aots'1947, 50th Leglblature, R. S.,~R. B.
375, and Alitlole 2688, V,C.S. It would seem ~%nreason-
able to give a mandatory Interpretation to the statute
authorlzfllg the naming of an assistant to aa ex-of-
f lcfo county superintendent, absent of a clear intend-
ment fn the statute to that effect, when the authority
to name or appofnt an assistant to all other electfve
OP appofntlve county 8Up8rintend8nta In this State Is
p8I'%iS81V8.
It Is our opinion, therefore, that under Ar-
ticles 2702 and 3888,~V.c.Si as ambhded by S. B.'252,
Aots 1947, 50th Legislature, Regular Session, Chapter
305;lt 1s p8Flplsslve rather than mandatory ?or a Coun-
ty Sohool Board to name or appoint ad Assistant to the
County Judge - Ex-oif’iolo County Superfntendent 0
SUMMARY
‘~
-‘~ .’ -Under Artltiles 2702 and.3888, V.C.S.,
ae ameiidda by S.'B'.'252, Acts 1947, 50th
Legislature, Regular Session, It Is per-
ml~slve rather than mandatory for a Coun-
ty Sohool Board to name or appoint an As-
sistant to the County Judge - Ex-offloio
County Superintendent 0
very tray youm
APPROVED
: ‘ATTORREYQRNERALOF TEMS
A’LTORRRY
GRRERAL Chester E. Ollleon
Asalatant
CEOmm@zwbnjt