Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

The Attorney General of Texas November 14, 1984 JIM MATTOX Attorney Generel Supreme Court Building Mr. Donald J. Kerr Opinion No. JM-233 P. 0. Box 12548 Executive Director Austin. TX. 7871% 2540 Texas National Guard Armory Board Re: Whether the Texas National 512147s2501 P. 0. Box 5218 Guard Armory Board may exchange Telex 9104874-1357 TeI4copier 5121475.0288 Austin. Texas 70763 certain property Dear Nr. Kerr: 714 Jackson. Suit4 700 Dallas. TX. 75202.4506 You ask whether the Texas National Guard Armory Board may 2141742.8944 exchange ._ - state-ovr.ed property for a different property equally suitable for Armory Board purposes and vith an established value equal 4824 Albena~Ave.. Suite 160 to or greater thar. that of the state-owned property which would be El Pa40, TX. 799052793 exchanged. We conc:l.ude that the Texas National Guard Armory Board is 915/5353u)4 authorized to excha,nge such property. !1 T*xrs. Suit0 700 Title 97A. V.Y.C.S., containa the statutory provisions governing nouston. TX. 77002.3111 the Texas National Guard Armory Board. The Armory Board is a state 713/223-5w6 agency created by article 5931-1 of that title. Included in the Armory Board’s spe::Lfic powers is the ~power to “exchange or sell as hereinafter provided” property acquired by the Armory Board end 808 Bmadw8y. Salle 312 Lubbock. TX. 79401-3479 ptoperty on vhkh the buildings have been constructed. Subdivisions 8061747.5238 (6) and (7) of artkle 59314.(a) authorize the board: (6) t,c acquire, by gift or purchase, for use 4309 N. Terdh. Suite B McAllen. TX. 78501.16R5 as bui1dj.a.g sites or for any other purposes deemed 5121682.4547 by said Board to be necessary in connection with or for Ihe use of units of the Texas National Guard, property of any and every description, 200 thin Plaza, Suite 400 whether wal. personal or mixed, including, but San Antonio. TX. 78205-2797 512l225-4191 without limitation on the foregoing, leasehold estates in real urouertv. and hold. maintain. sublease, convey,. and _ exchange or sell ai A” Equal OpportunityI hereinaf+ provided, such property. . . . Atlirmative Action Elnpbove- (7) 1:o COnStNCt buildings on any of its real. property, whether held in fee simple or otherwise. and to furnish and equip the same and to hold, manage ark! maintain all of said property . . . and to lease and sublease, convey and exchange, or sell as hereinafter provided, in whole or in part, all of 11:; property. . . . (Emphasis added). p. 1047 Mr. Donald J. Kerr - Page 2 (JM-233) Subject to constituti~~nal limitations, the disposition of state-ovned land is a matter over which the legislature has exclusive control. Tha power of an ag;e:ncy of the state to convey state property may be exercised only under the legislature’s authorization. See Lorino v. Crawford Packing Co.. 175 S.W.Zd 410, 414 (Tex. 1943); Conley V. Daughters of the?lepublic, 156 S.W. 197, 200 (Tex. 1913); Attorney General Opinions J&149 (1984); MU-62 (1979); C-207 (1964); V-787 (1949); V-320 (1947). The legislature did not: expressly specify in Title 97A the manner in which the Armory Board may exercise its authority to exchange state-owned property except that article 5931-10 provides that [a]ny sale or deed made pursuant to the terms of this Act shall rsseme unto the State of Texas a one-sixteenth mireral interest free of cost of production. . . . We believe that a deed of state-owned property by the Armory Board to effect an exchange of property is a “deed made pursuant to the terms of this Act.” We are n>‘f aware of any general statutes which prescribe procedures or l:.n~itatlcns applicable to the exchange of Armory Board property. But see V.T.C.S. art. 5421c-12 (sale or exchange of land by politi~~~subdivision). "The word ‘exchange’ has a well-defined meaning and should be construed and given the usu.l:L and generally accepted meaning.” Hoovel v. State, 69 S.W.2d 104. 10;s (Tax. Grim. App. - 1934). An exchange is .the “act of giving or taking one thing in return for another regarded as a n lquivaient .” Unitei States v. Paine, 31 F.Supp. 898, 900 (D. Mass. - 1940); Black51 Lav Dictionary 505 (5th ed. 1979); Webster’s New International Dictionary 889 (2d ed. 1947). Hence. we conclude that, subject to the mineral reservation in article 5931-10, the legislature authorized the Armory Board to exchange state-owned property for a different property equally suitable for Armory Board purposes and with an estnbl,lshed value at least as great as that of the state-owned property whil:h would be exchanged. SUMMARY The Texas National Guard Armory Board may exchange state-oirned property for a different property with an established value at least as great as that of the state-owned property which would be exchanged. JIM MA T T 0 X Attorney General of Texas Mr. Donald J. Kerr - Page 3 (JM-233) TOMGREEN First Assistant Attorney General DAVID B. RICHARDS Executive Assistant Attorney General RICK GILPIN Chairman, Opinion Committee Prepared by Nancy Sutton Assistant Attorney General APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE Rick Gilpin. Chairman Colin Carl Susan Garrison Tony Guillory Jim Moellinger Jennifer Riggs Nancy Sutton p. 1049