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The Attorney General of Texas
April 14, 1980
MARK WHITE
Attorney General
Honorable Selden N. Snedeker Opinion No. NW-169
Criminal District Attorney
Cameron County Courthouse Re: Whether Cameron County
Brownsville, Texas 78520 may transfer funds within the 1979
county budget after the 1979 fiscal
year to pay a claim for county
membership dues incurred during
the fiscal year.
Dear Mr. Snedeker:
You state that Cameron County incurred an obligation for dues in a
local area development organization prior to the end of the 1979 fiscal year
on September 30, 1979. We assume, without deciding, that this constitutes a
proper expenditure of public funds. See Attorney General Opinion H-397
(1974). The invoice for the dues wasyceived after September 30, 1979.
Upon receipt of the invoice, the 1979 Cameron County budget contained
insufficient funds In its “dues and subscriptions” budget item to pay the
invoice. However, sufficient unexpended 1979 budget funds are available for
transfer from another 1979 budget item. You have requested our opinion on
three questions. First, must the payment of the membership dues constitute
an emergency expenditure to allow a budget amendment? Second, can the
1979 budget be amended after September 30, l979? Third, must the budget
amendment be requested prior to January 1,1980?
Your first question concerns the provisions of article 689a, V.T.C.S.,
particularly article 689a-11 and article 689a-20, concerning budget
amendments. An Rl Paso Court of Civil Appeals decision, affirmed by the
Texas Supreme Court, defined the applicability of the emergency
requirements of article 689&l& V.T.C.S.
The quoted portion of Art. 689a-ll and Art.
689a-20 Seems to be the only provisions relating to
amendment of the budget. Art. 689~11 is very
specific as to when the county budget may be
amended and the steps to be taken to make the
amendment. It is thought that the restriction as to
amendment applies only when new or additional
expenditures not provided for in the original budget
are sought to be added by amendment. . . .
,p. 538
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Honorable Selden N. Snedeker - Page Two (NW-16 9 1
(Emphasis added). Rains v. Mercantile National Bank of Dallas, 188 S.W.2d 798 (Tex. Civ.
4~. - El Paso l945), affirmed, 191S.W.2d 850 (19461.
Following this interpretation, Attorney General Opinion C-499 (1965) outlined the
procedures for transferring funds within the budget.
(Wlhere all of the budgeted funds for a particular line item have
been expended, but there is a surplus in other line item accounts in
the department budget, and the Commissioners’ Court reallocates
the funds, transferring funds from the surplus line item account to
the depleted line item account, this would require an amendment to
the budget as contemplated by Section 20 of Article 689a. Also, it
is our opinion that funds may be transferred from the budget of one
department to the bu%et of another. However, Constitutional
funds may not be transferred in contravention of Section 9 of
Article VIII of the Texas Constitution. The transferring of the
funds in both instances above Q not require new expenditures not
included in the original budget, therefore, the provisions of Section
11of Article 689a are not applicable.
It is our opinion that the correct procedure in transferring the
funds in the above two situations would be to amend the budget.
However, this would not require the existence of an emergency as
contemplated by Section 11 of Article 689a. An order of the
Commissioners’ Court showing how the funds were reallocated and
show@ that the budget was amended would, in our opinion, suffice
to affect the amendment of the budget under the above situations.
Therefore, in reply to your first question, a finding of an emergency Is not required
before funds may be transferred by a budget amendment to increase the budget item for
“dues and subscriptions” to allow payment of the membership &es.
Your second question concerns whether the 1979 budget can be amended after
September 30, 1979. You have indicated that, pursuant to article 1644a, V.T.C.S.,
Cameron County has adopted a fiscal year beginning on October 1 of each year. You have
further indicated that the obligation for membership dues was incurred prior to the end of
the fiscal year with the invoice being received after the end of the fiscal year. The
Beaumont Court of Civil Appeals in Morrison v. Kohler, 207 S.W.2d 951 (Tex. Civ. App. -
Beaumont 1947, writ ref’d n.r.e.), discussed the question of amending the budget to provide
for obligations previously incurred.
We find nothing in the budget law requiring the budget be amended
at the time or before an obligation not included in the budget could
be legally assumed. We feel that it would be altogether too strict a
construction to place upon the provisions of the budget laws
governing counties to require that the budget should be amended at
p. 539
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Honorable Selden N. Snedeker - Page Three (NN-169)
the time the obligation was incurred. On the contrary we believe
that the Commissioners’ Court in amend@ any budget to cover any
item of expense not already covered in the original budget should
be controlled by the facts and circumstances as existed at the time
the obligation was incurred or assumed.
In Rains a, the court also stated that “[ulnder Art. 689a-20, subject to the
limitatton.f o Art. 689k-11, a county budget can be amended at any time.” Id. 188 S.W.2d at
803. Therefore the 1979 budget may be amended after September 30, lg9, to transfer
unexpended funds for payment of claims charged to the 1979 fiscal year.
Your third question, concerning whether the budget amendment request must be
ma& prior to January 1, 1980, is covered in our answer to your second question. The
budget may be amended at any time to transfer unexpended funds to existing budget
items.
SUMMARY
Cameron County may transfer funds within the 1979 county budget
after the 1979 fiscal year to pay an obligation incurred during the
fiscal year.
MARK WHITE
Attorney General of Texas
JOHN W. FAINTER, JR.
First Assistant Attorney General
TED L. HARTLEY
Executive Assistant Attorney General
Prepared by Jim Allison
Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
C. Robert Heath, Chairman
Jim Allison
Walter Davis
Susan Garrison
Rick Gilpin
P- 540