THEAITORNEY GENERAL
OFTEXAS
Honorable John H. Winters
State Department of Public Welfare
Austin, Texas
Opinion No. WW-210
Re: Authorization of County Boards of
School Trustees to provide social
security coverage under Senate
~Bill No. 220, Acts of the 55th Leg-
I 1 islature, Regular Session, and re-
lated questions.
Dear Mr. Winters:
Your request for an Opinion dated July 11, 195’7,
propounds the following questions for our consideration:
1. What shall be the source of the employ-
ers’ matching contributions for county school
personnel whose salaries or compensation are
paid from either the county transportation fund
or the county administration fund?
2. What shall be the source of the employ-
ers’ matching contribution in connection with
cooperative teacher units authorized by Section
1, subdivision (3) C of Article 2922-13 of Ver-
non’s Civil Statutes?
The foregoing questions relate to the construction
of Senate Bill No. 220, Acts of the 55th Legislature, Regular
Session. Section 3 of said Bill provides in part as follows:
“The a . . employer I s matching contributions,
required by Federal regulations, shall be paid into
the fund from which each person is paid his salary,
s . . by,~~the state or subdivision, as the case may
be, which is required by law to pay the salary,
. . . of such person. In those cases, . . . where
the salary, . . . of a person comes from more than
one source, each of said sources shall pay its pro-
rata share of the employer’s matching contribution.
The administrative costs of the program shall be
.
Honorable John H. Winters, page 2 (WW-210)
pro-rated and paid In like manner. . . .I1
The Source of the moneys paid into the County Admin:
istration Fund is the State Available School Fund. arts. 2700,
2701, 3888 and 2827a, v.c.s. From this Fund the salaries of
various administrative personnel, Including the salaries of the
County Superintendent and his authorized assistants, are paid.
The Source of moneys paid Into the County Transporta-
tion Fund is the State Foundation School Fund. Art. 2922-15,
Sec. 2, V.C.S. From this Fund the salaries and compensation of
authorized personnel who maintain the county transportation
system are paid. We think it clear that Section 3 of Senate
Bill 220 requires that the State allocation of funds to both the
County ~dmlnistration Fund and the County Transportation Fund
be increased in an amount sufficient to cover the employers’
matching contribution for authorized employees whose salaries
and compensation are paid from either of said funds and who have
qualified for social security coverage pursuant to applicable
federal regulations.
With respect to cooperative teacher units, authorized
by Section 1, subdivision (3) C of Article 2922-13 of Vernon’s
Civil Statutes, the source of the funds necessary for the pay-
ment of the salaries or compensation of such personnel is the
participating School Districts. Each District contributes a
pro-rata share of the funds in accordance with a formula basis
prescribed by the foregoing statutory provision. We think it
immaterial that the original source of the funds contributed by
a school district for such purposes may in part have been the
Foundation School Fund of the State, for it is clear that the
immediate source is the funds of the School District Itself.
The State in such cases merely assists the local school dis-
tricts in meeting an obligation which belongs primarily to the
School District.
It is the local school districts, and not the State,
that make the pro-rata salary payments to the County Board of
School Trustees. We conclude, therefore, that pursuant to Sec-
tion 3 of Senate Bill 220, the participating school districts
should each contribute its pro-rata share of the employers’
matching contribution for cooperative personnel who have quall-
fled for social security coverage under applicable federal
regulations.
- --
Honorable John H. Winters, page 3 (ww-210)
SUMMARY
1. Section 3 of Senate Bill 220, requires
that the State allocation of funds to both the
County Administration Fund and the County Trans-
portation Fund be increased in an amount suffi-
cient to cover the employers matching contribu-
tion for authorized employees whose compensation
is paid from said allocations and who have quali-
fied for social security coverage under applica-
ble federal regulations.
2. The participating school districts
should each contribute its pro-rata share of the
employers' matching contribution for school co-
operative personnel who have qualified for social
security coverage under applicable federal regu-
lations.
Very truly yours,
WILL WILSON
Attorney General of Texas
Leonard PassmoLre -
LP:jl:wb Assistant
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
H. Grady Chandler, Chairman
J. C. Davis Jr.
Fred Werkenthin
Grundy Williams
REVIEWEDFOR THE ATTORNEYGENERAL
BY: Geo. P. Blackburn