August 23, 1989
Honorable Steve Fischer Opinion NO. JM-1088
District and County Attorney
Willacy County Courthouse Re: Whether a particular
Raymondville, Texas 78500 district judge is a member
of a county juvenile board
Mr. Eleazar Garcia, Jr. (RQ-1756)
Willacy County Auditor
First Floor, Courthouse
Raymondville, Texas 78580
Dear Messrs. Fischer and Garcia:
You ask about the composition and compensation for
members of the Willacy County Juvenile Board.
Article 5139MMMM, V.T.C.S., 1 provides in pertinent
part:
Sec. 1. There is established a juvenile
board in each of the counties of Brooks,
Kenedy, Kleberg, and Willacy.
Composition
Sec. 2. The iuvenile board for each
countv consists of the iudaes of the countv
B& district courts havina iurisdiction
in that countv. Each iuvenile board must
contain not less than three or more than five
members. If necessary, the judges of the
county and district courts having jurisdic-
tion in that county may appoint citizen
1. Senate Bill 1104, Acts 1989, 71st Leg., effective
September 1, 1989, recodified article 5139MMMM in a non-
substantive revision and as of the effective date of the act
article 5139MMMM is carried forward as section 152.2511 of
the Human Resources Code.
p. 5692
Honorable Steve Fischer
Mr. Eleazar Garcia, Jr.
Page 2 (JM-1088)
members to serve on the board without salary
to satisfy the requirement prescribed by this
section. The chairman of each juvenile board
determines the number of citizen members to
be appointed to that juvenile board.
Chairman
Sec. 3. The chairman of each juvenile
board is the county court judge in that
county.
. . . .
Sec. 5. (a) A judge's service on the
juvenile board is an additional duty of
office.
(b) Each county shall reimburse the
members of the board in that county for the
members, actual and necessary expenses
incurred in the performance of their duties.
(c) The judges on each juvenile board
shall receive an annual salary set by the
commissioners court of that county in an
amount of not more than $6,000, payable in
-ern;loythly installments out of the general
any other available fund of that
county. The compensation authorized by this
subsection is in addition to all other com-
pensation provided or allowed by law for a
judge. (Emphasis added.)
Article 5139WWMW was enacted in 1983 to be effective on
August 29, 1983. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., ch. 705, at 4389.
On the effective date of article 5139MWWW in 1983, the
district courts having jurisdiction in Willacy County were
the 103rd, 107th, 138th and 197th Judicial District Courts.
However, the same legislature in a separate bill adding
section 3.152 to article 199a, V.T.C.S., created the 357th
Judicial District composed of Cameron and Willacy Counties,
effective January 1, 1985. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., ch. 889,
5 4, at 4959. Section 3.152 was repealed in 1985 and its
provisions codified as section 24.503 of the Government
Code. Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 480, 5 1, at 1785;
see also Gov't Code s5 24.205, 24.207, 24.240, 24.376
p. 5693
Honorable Steve Fischer
Mr. Eleazar Garcia, Jr.
Page 3 (JM-1088)
(providing for the inclusion of Willacy County in the 103rd,
107th, 138th, and 197th judicial districts respectively).
But for the act creating the 357th Judicial District,
effective January 1, 1985, the judges of the four district
courts previously having jurisdiction in the county, along
with the county judge, would have comprised the Juvenile
Board of Willacy County. With the creation of the 357th
Judicial District there are five judges of district courts
having jurisdiction in Willacy County. If all judges of the
district court having jurisdiction in the county along with
the county court judge served, the county juvenile board
would be comprised of six members. While article 5139WMWE
states that the board for each county consists of the judges
of the county and district courts having jurisdiction in the
county, the statute also provides that the board "must
contain not less than three or more than five members.UV
Thus, a conflict arose with the addition of the 357th
Judicial District to those having jurisdiction in Willacy
County. That provision was finally acted on by the legisla-
ture on the same day the legislature adopted article
5139MMMM -- May 27, 1983. We think it is apparent that
there was a failure in the legislative process to conform
the provisions of article 5139MMWM to those of the separate
act creating the additional judicial district, the 357th,
having jurisdiction in Willacy County. The provision of
section..2 of article 5139MWMW that the board Vonsists of
the judges of the county and district courts having juris-
diction in the county" indicates on its face, we think, that
all such judges should serve on the board. Article 5139MMMM
provides no mechanism for selecting which of "the judges of
the county and district courts having jurisdiction in that
county" should serve on the board if such number of judges
exceeds five. We think that the retention of the provision
in article 5139WWMM that the membership of the board might
be no more than five was an oversight.
It is a rule of statutory construction that in case of
a conflict between a general provision and a specific
provision, the latter controls to the extent of such
conflict since the specific provision is deemed to more
clearly evidence the legislative interest. See aenerallv 67
Tex. Jur.3d Statutes § 126, and authorities cited there. We
think that the provision of section 2 of article 5139MWMW
that each juvenile board constituted under that article
"must contain not less than three or more than five members"
is the more general provision, applying as it does to all
p. 5694
Honorable Steve Fischer
Mr. Eleazar Garcia, Jr.
Page 4 (JM-1088)
four of the county juvenile boards provided for in that
article. Therefore, it is controlled in this instance of
conflict by the specific provisions, now found in the
Government Code, for five judicial districts having
jurisdiction in Willacy County and the other provision of
section 2 of article 5139WWWW that the '*board . . . consists
of the judges of the county and district courts having
jurisdiction in that county." Thus, it is our opinion that
the Willacy County Juvenile Board now consists of six
members: the county judge and the district judges for the
five judicial districts which include the county, the 103rd,
107th, 138th, 197th and 357th judicial districts. Pursuant
to section 5 of article 5139WWWW each of those six judges on
the Willacy County Juvenile Board is entitled to the
compensation provided for in that section.
SUMMARY
The Juvenile Board of Willacy County con-
sists of six members: the district judges
for the 103rd, 107th, 138th, 197th and 357th
judicial districts and the county judge. All
six members of the board are entitled to the
compensation provided for in section 5 of
article 5139WWWW.
JIM MATTOX
Attorney General of Texas
MARY KELLER
First Assistant Attorney General
Lou MCCREARY
Executive Assistant Attorney General
JUDGE ZOLLIE STEAKLEY
Special Assistant Attorney General
RICK GILPIN
Chairman, Opinion Committee
Prepared by William Walker
Assistant Attorney General
p. 5695