Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1942 )

OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF ‘TEXAS
Honorable Waltw? Kurahtaon
County httorney
HaakeLl County
Eaakell, Texas
IMar Sir:
loh minutes were
4 by hia probe-
pay uid ClorJc
arniorr, aaifl ttorv-
pemfomr4 after
tha County Gle& to make rush
inff ex?
thl6 4+pertment.
The applfaable rtetutsr defining th$ dutlo6 of
the County Clerk in relation to tbs Cam&asfonsre* Court
are krtiolrs 1940, Z345 end 2349, Vernon*a Anmtated Clril
Gtatutss, which (tre a6 Wllonar
Honorable Falter ``urchiaon, rege 8
*Artlola lQ4G. Thor shell be er-officio
clerks of the ocm&iselonere oclirt."
"Artlole zs4b. The county 0101% shell be
ex-officio Clark of the oOmmlaAIonera court; m&
he shell attend upon eich term of acrid commla-
8iOnere OOUrtt preserve end keep all books, papers,
records an6 erfecta belon&g thereto, issue ill
notIae6, urlta end prooear neoeaum tar the prcp-
ar axeoutlon of the powma end dutlea of the ecua-
misalonera oourt and perform all auoh other &tier
ea may be preacdbed by lew.*
“AlWcle zi349. The oourt ahell require the
county plbrk to keep AUitAbh book8 in whioh A!!mll
be reoordrd the prooee4lnga of ecroh term Of the
oouti; which reoord shell ba reeO and rIgned artor
s~oh term by the county Ju&e, or the &oazbAr pm-
sldl6& and attemte$ by the clerk. The olork ahall
also record all aWhorlA& proceedings of the
court between t%naa; And auah reoord ahall be
read And Bigue& On the iirAt'dAy Or the tam nati
after such proceedlags oeaurr&a.*
30 do not: ballwe these POVfBiOQA or the law or
protialona
a ny o th e r th6f r a ha*@ 6lcm able to find were
Intended to require bb alerk, or to: perelf the ocamiaaloJi-
ers* oourt to iequlre the eou&y atirk, as A pert of the
lOgA datba Or hia OrriOSi t0 OUT8 tha dareotb OT make up
r0r the derlclcnolrs br one who may have FZWOded him ln
hi0 office.
W6 bAa0 this oplnlon upon the &ooisIcn or the su-
preme Court of Texas. in Wiillla Y. Jouea, 11 Ter. 804. This
ia A @ARCarhem%n the UiAtrht Clerlt Or &ni@ee GOUQtJ,
TBxea, in 1854 wad hla~predeoesaor ia Office for work par-
romea by hlai In ~,#&lrrg UE to date reoords whlah such pm-
tmeseor had negU~+.ly r6ihd aad: amitted to enter, au4
which the Dietriot Clerk bringi& the Auit had Yoluntarilt
entered roporly and b, u&t down to dote. The Supreme
Court heE& thet he ao ur a not reooter fcbr tha meeon @en
by Judge Lipso-b as roiionsr
Honorable Welter )fwohi6on. Fa&e 3
filllthough his decieion WAN rendered e long ttie ego
we hue found no oaoe And no act 0r the L~ioieture overruling
it And, Although the dOOiaIpn woe rendered In a cam in-
YOi ring the Dlatrlot Clerk we think that In the ebsenoc or AII
opinion 0r the court or or A AtAtUtO to the oontrery the -0
would be the aeae in cam of A Oounty Clerk.
It Is Well AettJed law In the.Stqte of TexAa that
the ooxrElseIoner%’ court Is A court or ltiited juriaaictfon
and derives lta paore only by ezpresa prorielona 0r the Con-
OtitUtiOn en@ the atetUte8 or from neoeseary hpliOAtiOn found
within the oon%tItutIonal end statutory provisI&e. Ihe Con-
stitution drtlole 7, Section 1.8, $IreA the ommI%sIoner%’
court jur~adlotlon over all county bualnera., 4. 1243x-t
0r seib
SeotIon 18, 0r Mtlcle V, Conetltution of Terse, is aet out
ea r0ii0m:
by this Colutltutlon end the ~AWAof the StAte,
or a6 MY be hereAttOr preaoribed.*
we hate many deolrrlonr 0r the aourts or Tnraa a+
ployiug the phrase *oouuty bualnebcw ea used In thla oonatl-
tutlouel provlelon end there oplnlcna hors given many varlourr
defluItloua or the tern as it related to the partloular emttera
and raota then bsrorc them tar edjudloetlon. Bao+or, we do
not yet hare, end perhapo ILOYW ehell h*Ye, any oouiplete or
all-lnoluslve aerinition that 00ula be aaid to clearly Aet
out the bounderiee or the area of aotlon or the oommlAaIonorA*
oourt, end of whioh It 03uld be .aeId regardfag any oonoofrAble
uituatIo~&ft%w$ch such court might be cdlled upon to take
AOtiO&I: , or, this IA not, *oounty bualnese’ .”
Tt ray be Mtely aald, however, that the ooem.iA-
eloners * OOUe IS the gc+erXXi~ body Or the COUBtY With JUtiS-
diction that touohee in ~omo reapeot almo%t every reawre or
the county’fi buaIneAs, %e% Ehl.inger 0. Clark, 8 S. X. (Sd!
6661 and the court has full and geneml ohvee of the bu%ine%A
or the Cmty, Gusset v. ~ueoee County ESS 8. % 687. Aad
the taw woounty bualncas c ahoula be &en A bzoad ad liberal
oonatruotion A0 ae not to defrat the W.rpo%%a Of the law.
clem y. all.as County Emis VAro IslAnd t%vOO sfet., 875
F. 0:. 137-148.
l3onorable %lter Eurehiaon, Page 4
y:e have been unable to find any authority aptdrf-
aally aUthOritlIl$ the C&iiQ1S81Onam* Court to eaploy any
person to index the rolnutee or the CaElal8aione~s~ GoUrt
other than the County Clerk hlrreli. %e think It 18 clear,
however, in view of the opinion of the Lupmme Court in
sill18 ‘v. Jones, uupra, that it is not the duty or the
present County Clerk to bring Ur to date the Indexso whlah
his predeoeseor felled to mske. We take the view that ir
it Is neoemsary ior the go06 of the ooudy, t,bt tJwm in-
Quo8 be brou+t up to date, and your latter lndioetes that
it Is neoeaeery, the buslnes8 of arranging ror thair being
brought up to date wwld be county businssr within the pur-
view of the cOnstItutIona provlslon hemlnabove set out.
You a r eldvi8e6 that It Is the oplalon of thlr
&eprrtment that the Ootamlssloner8~ Court could under the
powam and jurialiatlon at oounty buslnesr conferred by the
Constttut$on and the laws of thl8 State employ either the
County Olerk, pr0v1QeU the work ir done by the County clerk
at a t&e the regular dUtle8 0r hi8 0rri00 do not re ulre
his attention; or by-.-a third patron employed by tha 8 O&&S-
.sloners* Court for the r~soifio purpose or making those
inbxe8 by and with the consent of’the County Clerk. It is
our further opidon th8f, sinae a8 pointed out.ebOvo, the
bringlag up to date of theas 1566x0s fs not a part of the
duties l.qpseQ upon the Wuatp Clerk by law, swh o~mp6588-
tion as ha laight be aid for this extra work pauld not bo
ohargeable against hE10acoount as part 0r his fee8 0r 0rrs0e.
It should ba kept In alnQ that If the Con&ssloners’
Court eegloys so0e t&&r4 pereon to prrfoXB thi8 work the
per8on eo am loyed 8houl.d have tha approval of, and &he Can-
tisslonsmr e ourt in BO engaging hlrm, should have the eon-
sent of the County Clerk ror the maeon that the County Clerk
is the guardian and outatoblan of the reoords or hi8 offloe
and he is mepOn8ib&l ror the aam ana 8are-k6epiW or the
sam ~irmspeotfve of who nay be using th* or WTfom~iWt
mrk upon the&
It should hem be pointe% out that thi8 OPbiOn
1s pradioated upon the Jbot and the rindim3 that If is not
the Quty or the Oountiy Clerk to brinS to date inQsxes
to ma cotnei~fif``~-~* Court@e l~inute8 Yi lah his pmQeoos8or
w
rnile& to ~iak0 WQ dmuld be distinguisb3 rrapr easas where-
in ths cOtmy Clerk ia mquimd as part o? the dUth8 of
his ofmae q& to raew and replaos old SnQ worn mtootds
Honorable Walter 1^urahi8on, Fage 5
and indexeti. The8@ last dutie8 6m pleoed upon the County
Clerk by the atetutss and are part of the work ror which
his rest3 or 0rri0a are paid.
It 16 only beoause of our view under the faots
presented by you, that the rork here to be done is not the
duty or the County Clerk under the law that the feats hem
OPD be airtinguiahee rr05 the Oa88S or TPrmnt County v.
Ragem, 125 C. :3. 593 (Sup. Ct. 135 5. Vi. 1101, and Tarmnt
County v. Butler, 80 S. ?t. 666, in both ot nhloh oaliea it
wae held that the Coen?lnsfonem ’ Court had no Fewer to m-
ploy the County Clerk ant! to pop him a sum of money over
and above the mgular foes or ralary of hi8 ofilce for making
new and improved inQexe8 dnoe under the iaots in those
oase8 it wa8 the m@l8r logal duty oi the County Clerk to
n&co the Indexes in que8tion.
Your8 very truly
Robert P. Cherry
MSi8tUIt
I;