Honorable James S. Bates, Chairman Opinion No. M-1066
Legislative Property Tax Committee
105 West Riverside Drive Re: Construction of Senate
Austin, Texas 78704 Bill 414, Acts 62nd Leg.,
R.S., 1971, Ch. 221, p.
1063, codified in Vernon's
Dear Senator Bates: as Article 7100.
Your request for an opinion reads in part as follows:
..
. . .
"The Comptroller's office has questioned
whether the Committee is authorized to employ
attorneys and to purchase or rent a law library
to be'used by the Committee's staff in doing the
codification research. As we understand it, the
objection is based on provisions of Article V,
Section 47, of the General Appropriation Act
passed by the 62nd Legislature in 1971, which
require approval of the Attorney General for em-
ployment of attorneys and purchase of law books.
II
. . .
"We do not believe that the Legislative
Property Tax Committee is subject to limitations
imposed on appropriations made in the General Ap-
propriation Act. Please advise whether this is
correct. Thank you."
Senate Bill 414, Acts 62nd Legislature, R.S. 1971, Ch. 221,
P. 1063, amends Article 7100, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925.
Section 1 of Article 7100, as amended, creates the Legislative Property
Tax Committee. Section 4 provides:
"Sec. 4. In addition to the fees authorized
by Article 7331, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas,
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. .
Hon. James S. Bates, page 2 (M-1066)
1925, as amended, each County Tax Assessor-
Collector shall collect and remit to the
Comptroller, as directed, a special fee of
One Dollar ($1) for each delinquent tax
receipt, redemption certificate, judgment
receipt, or any of them, processed by the
County Tax Office, and also for each receipt
issued for taxes paid under provisions of
Articles 7207, 7208, 7209 and 7346 through
7349, inclusive, of the Revised Civil Statutes
of Texas, 1925, or any of them, the proceeds
of this additional fee to be deposited in the
State Treasury as a special fund for the use
of the Property.Tax Committee herein created.
"The payment of this additional fee shall
be a condition precedent to the valid issuance
of each such receipt or certificate, and the
collection and handling of this special fee
shall be as directed by the comptroller, with
remittances to be made monthly or more frequently
as directed. All moneys deposited in this special
fund shall be and the same are hereby appropriated
to the use of the Property Tax Committee in carry-
ing out the tasks assigned under this Act, the
funds thus appropriated to be disbursed upon
written orders of the Committee, with an annual
accounting by the Committee to be filed with the
State Auditor. This appropriation is made for a
two- ear
9
shall be renewed automatically 'for an additional
two-year period beginning June 1, 1973, unless
the 63rd Legislature shall direct otherwise."_,-,
.(Emphasis added).
Section 6 of Article VIII of the Constitution of Texas
specifically provides th,at no appropriation of money shall be made
for a longer term than two years. Therefore, the appropriation con-
tained in the underlined portion of Section 4 of Article 7100, Vernon's
Civil Statutes, above quoted, will expire two years from the effective
date of Senate Bill 414.
The appropriation contained in Section 4 of the special fund
is appropriated "to the use of the Property Tax Committee in carrying
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Hon. James S. Bates, page 3 (M-1066)
out the tasks assigned under this Act." Such appropriated funds are
to be disbursed "upon written orders of the Committee."
It is our opinion that the appropriation contained in
Section 4 above quoted is a special appropriation of a special fund
in the Treasury and the riders to the General Appropriations Bill
for the current fiscal year are not applicable to this appropriation.
The pre-existing law for this appropriation is Article 7100, Vernon's
Civil Statutes, as amended by Senate Bill 414.
Section 2 of Article 7100, Vernon's Civil Statutes, provides
in part:
I,
. . .
'(b) To make a comprehensive study~ of the
ad valorem tax laws of Texas, past and present,
found in constitutional provisions, statutes,
charters, ordinances, Rules of Civil Procedure,
court decisions, opinions of the Attorney General
and orders and regulations of the Comptroller and
to prepare and submit to the Legislature and the
Supreme Court of Texas a Property Tax Code of laws
which shall be uniform as to all Tax Units in the
State insofar as possible.
I,
. . .
"(f) The Committee shall have power and au-
thority to expend its funds, hereina~fter provided,
to employ and compensate all necessary consultants,
investigators and other personnel, to contract for
materials and services as required and to pay travel,
telephone and other official expenses approved by
the Committee."
In view of the above quoted provisions and in view of the
fact that a lump sum appropriation was made to the Committee for the
purpose of carrying out the tasks assigned the Committee, it is our
opinion that the Committee is authorized to employ attorneys and to
purchase or rent a law library to be used by the Committee's staff in
doing codification research.
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Hon. James S. Bates, page 4 (M-1064)
SUMMARY
Article 7100, Vernon's Civil Statutes, as amended
by Senate Bill 414, Acts 62nd Legislature, R.S. 1971,
Ch. 221, page 1063, authorizes the Legislative Property
Tax Committee to employ attorneys and to purchase or
rent a law library to be used by the Committee's staff
in doing codification research.
very,JjUy
yours
I,
j
Prepared by John Reeves
Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
Kerns Taylor, Chairman
W. E. Allen, Co-Chairman
Malcolm Quick
Max Hamilton
Rex White
Marietta Payne
SAMUEL D. MCDANIEL
Staff Legal Assistant
ALFRED WALKER
Executive Assistant
NOLA WHITE
First Assistant
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