Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

HE AY-~-~RNEY GENERAL OFTEXAS December 16, ,1957 Honorable W. W. Kilgore Opinion No. WW-315 County Attorney Victoria County Re : Whether or not the County Victoria, Texas Clerk is required to publish an exhibit showing the aggregate amount paid out of funds, the amount of indebt- edness, etc, as required by Article 1609 of Vernon's Dear Mr. Kilgore: Annotated Civil Statutes. You have requested our opinion on the duty of the County Clerk to publish the Annual Financial Report under the provisions of Article 1609, Vernon's Civil Statutes, where said county has a County Auditor. Article 1675, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as fol- lows : 'Where the provisions of this subdivision impose upon the auditor like duties as are re- quired of the county clerk, the provisions of this law shall prevail, and to such extent only is the county clerk relieved of his dutieson From this article, it seems clear that where the Legislature imposed duties upon the county auditor which coincide with the duties of the county clerk, the county clerk is relieved of his duties to the extent of any overlap, Among the duties of the county auditor, Article 1663, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as follows: "He shall keep an account with each person named in the preceding articies and In doing so he shall relieve the county clerk of keeping the finance ledger. His books shall show the de- tailed items of the indebtedness against.all of said officers and the manner of dfschargfng same. He shall require all persons who shall have re- ceived any moneys belonging to the county, or having the disposition or management of any prop- erty of the county to render statements to him.= Honorable W. W. Kilgore, page 2 (WW-315) Article 1665, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as follows: "The County Auditor shall make monthly and annual reports to the Commissioners Court and District Judge or District Judges of his county setting forth all the facts of interest and showing the aggregate amounts received and dis- bursed out of each fund, the condition of each account on the books, the amounts of county, district and school funds on deposit in the County Depository showing further the amount of bonded and other indebtedness of the county, to- gether with such other information and sugges- tions as he may deem proper or that said Commis- sioners Court or District Judge or District Judges may require. Said annual report shall be made to include all transactions during the year ending December 31st of each year and shall be completed and filed at a regular or special term of the Commissioners Court in the following April and copies of such reports shall be filed with the District Judge or District.Judges of said county, Each time an annual audit is delivered to the Commissioners Court and the District Judge or District Judges, as the case may be, the County Auditor shall send a report to the bonding com- pany of each district, county or precinct officer showing the condition of that particular office. f3azended Acts 19559 54th Leg,, pO 1117s ch. 414, D Among the duties imposed upon the County Clerk, the fol- lowing Articles are applicable. Article 1607, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as follows; "Each commissioners court shall procure a well-bound ledger and index, to be known as the finance ledger, and shall cause to be entered therein a full and orderly statement of the con- dition of the county finances. The county Clerk shall open and keep in said book an account with each officer of the county, district or State, who may be authorized or required by law to receive or collect all money or other property for the use 'of, or belonging to the county, and shall state at the top of each page of said account the name of such officer and his office, The clerk shall keep such other accounts as may be necessary to carry out Honorable W. W. Kilgore, page 3 (ww-315) the purposes of this title, and shall conveniently index each. And items shall be entered daily un- der their respective heads. All reports and vouch- ers shall be filed with said clerk and carefully preserved, and briefly noted in the proper account upon the ledger. Said finance ledger shall be at all times subject to the inspection of the public." Article 1608, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as fol- lows: "Said clerk shall balance each account so kept, and make a sworn tabular statement at each regular term of the commissioners' court for the three months preceding the mo,nthwhen such court meets in regular session, to be presented to said court during the second day of its term specify- ing therein the names of the creditors &f said county and the items of indebtedness, with their respective dates of accrual and also the names of persons to whom moneys have'been paid, with the amounts paid each, the names of persons from whom moneys have been received, with the date of re- ceipt and for what account received, during the quarter for which such statement is prepared; said statement shall also seoarately show the amount to the credit or debit of each fund," Article 1609, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as fol- lows: "Immediately after the first regular term of said court in each year said.clerk shall publish once in some weekly newspaper published in his county, or if there be no paper pubiished therein, then by posting four copies of such exhibit, one in each commissioners precinct, one of which shall be at the court house door the other three at pub- lic places in such precinces, an exhibit showing the aggregate amount paid out of each fund for the four preceding quarters, and the balance to the credit or debit of each fund; also the amount of indebtedness of said county, with their respective dates of accrual, and to whom and for what due; also the amount to the debit or credit of each officer or other persons with whom an account is kept, The cost for publishing the same shall be paid by order of said court out of the general fund of the county." - - Honorable W. W. Kilgore, page 4 (WW-315) It is our opinion that Article 1663, above, clearly places upon the county auditor the duty to keep the finance ledger of the county and to that extent relieves the county clerk of his duty to keep the ledger under Article 160'7. Further, it is our opinion that Article 1665 above imposes the duty on the county auditor to make monthly and annual reports to the Commissioners 1 Court and District Judge or Judges of his county, which relieves the county clerk of the duty imposed upon him by Article 1608 above. However, no duty is imposed by the statutes upon the county auditor, which coincides with the duty of the county clerk under Article 1609 above. Further, it appears that un- der the provisions of Article 1609 there is no requirement that the county clerk certify to the correctness of the finan- cial exhibit. It is, therefore, our opinion under the above statute that the duty to publish the annual financial exhibit under the provisions of Article 1609, Vernon's Civil Statutes, is still the responsibility of the county clerk, However his duty is only to see that an annual financial report be pug- lishea, containing the information set out in Article 1609, which in effect is the same as the annual report required of the county auditor, SUMMARY The county clerk is required to publish an ex- hibit, showing the aggregate amount paid out of funds, the amount of indebtedness, et cetera, as required by Article 1609, Vernonls Civil Statutes, which requirement may be satisfiedby publiehing::a:-copy of the county auditorss annual financial report to the Commissioners' Court and District Judges, Very truly yours, WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas GC:wam:wb Assistant Honorable W. W, Kilgore, page 5 cww-315) APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman John H. Minton, Jr. Mrs. Marietta McGregor Payne B. H. Timmins Jr. Fred Werkenthin REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: James N. Ludlum