Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

R-189 EY GENERAL Hon. William W. Hensley opl&n wo. V-106 Criminal District Attorney Bexar County lb: Authority of Conunir- San Antonio,5, Texas 6101Yr8t Court of Bex& County to.sup- erviee and ooatrol a oo’wiby. Jatsnile betsntidn'km for boys. Dear Mr. Hensley: Pour recent request for ad.opSnionor tht9 Depaktment reads substantiallyaa folllrrr uDoe,ethe Commlssioner8* Court of Bexar County have the power to, supervise and control the Bsxar County boy6 home, a county juvenile detention home for boys?” The eetablishPas&i el’ a a8f8JItiOA home la (L county of this State la authorized under the prorirsiona ,, of Article ,,. 5138 of the Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, the pertinent part OS whioh is aa follows: 8;t,;, Lj “All counties in this State may err- tabliah detention homes and pArenta sohools fob dependent and delinquent juveailas, ft &@l be lawful for the C~onuaissioners* Court to appropriate from the General hvld of the county such sum as may be’neoeesary to establish, equip and maintain such d&en- tion homes and parental schools as may be necessary to care for the dependent and ds- linquept children of the county O e a* .. ‘If a rightis conferred or ob2Agatfon~f~~ on a Commissioners~ - Court) it has the implied authorfty’; to exercise ‘a broad disoretion to accomplish the pprrgoges intended. It will be seen from the provisions of ~ArticEe 5138, supra , th.at the Legislature intended to confer the authority upon counties of this State to establish, equip and !naintain detention homes and parental homes to o&m for the dependent and delinquent children of said aounty. - L , In an opinion, numbered O-6125, rendered by this Depart- ment on February 26, 1946 s it waa held: 7!he Comlsslonerst Court of Bexar County has the legal.authority to enter Into a contraot with a group of private, ., individuals, or with a charitable oorpor- ation whereby the faolllties and Srounds ..( of the Bexar County Sohool for Boys can be used by such groups of private indlvid- uals or corporations to receive and pro- vice far all delinquent and depenr?:ent boys committed to such institution by the coun- ty and distriot courts of Bexar County, Texas. : We understand that suoh property which you desire to use was aoquired and used for the purpose and aims as oon- ferred upon all oounties by Article 5138, V.A.C.S., i.c-3,establish, equip and maln- tain detention homes and parental sohools as may be necessary to care for the delin- quent and dependent children of the county. We know of no reason why suoh property could not, be used by an organization as you propose in order to carry out and ac- complish the original purposes Intended,” Article V, section 18 of the Constitution of the State of Texas reads in part as follows: ” 0 LI a The County commlssloners 80 chosen, with the County Judge, as presid- fin off icor) shall compose the County Com- L~j.nsioners’ Court ) vj:;Ich shall exercise suc!i :>owers and jurisdiction over all ooun- ty business, as is conferred by this Con- stitution an? the laws of the :3tate, or as may be hereafter p~ea0r2W,~~ The jurlsdlotlon of CommlssionersP Courts is limited to striotly “county buslnesss”and the Lsgialatws has no authority to enlarge their powers or jWi8aiOtiOBe The term “county businesse should be given a broad and :;w;; construction so as not, to defeat the purpose8 or And it is held that the UonunQsslonersl Cons%8 have lm&ed authority~ to do what may be neoeaaa Zm t&a exerofse of the duties or powers oonferredupon B ‘Eam. Hon. William N. Hensley - Page 3' (V-106) (11 Ter. Jur. 564, El Paso County v. Llam, 106 9. W. (2d) 395; and Glehn T. Dallas Count Bole D* Are Ia- land Levee Distriot, 282 S.,W. 339.7 It would seem that the Conmissioners' Court, in aocomplishingthe purposes intended by the Lsgislature,would be luthori84d to amama control and management of the detention home as an integral part of county business. A board of County Commissioners'ordlnati- ily exorcises the corporatepowers of the county. It is in,an snlargedsenss the repressntativeand guard- ian of the oouaty, haviag the aa8agam4nt and ooatrol of its preperty and finauial 1&4mrrtr, and hati- original aha exclusire jurl8diotioaamr all mat%488 pertalniqg to county affairs. (15. C. J. p. 41S$,l' The Supreme Court of the State of kQ88surl in Stat4 4x ml Buoksr et al 'c.MoElroy et al, 274 S. W. 749 in rendering an opialon on an analbgeus qurr- tion, stated as follows: 0 . In the lan@mge of the ,organ- ic law, such oourt shall l*w4 jurlsdio010~ to tranisaotall oounty br)ia888. Othaur busla888 may be added to it8 juriadirtl48 by law, but ao law oan take iron it that which the Constitutionerprr88ly giros; i.e;, that it shall tramaot all county buelness. . e" n It Is olsar that the rostrel asd ma&;&t of ths8. t&a8 oouaty is- stltutions-8.1 part and parool of ths county businbm, ud j8rirdllrtim we? this burinorr ha,8boon 1-d illtk4 84un- ty oourt by the Oon8tStatlrr~and ~8 mm4 statnto aould di818d~o tkls JurbUstim. The 8tatuto8 wkicb w&derstQk to led&8 081- trol sf th884irrtituti888 with Wh8 par814 board of the ooutt~r are ViOlatim bf Wo* tion 36 or Arti 6 of our OmrMtu*lm, and are thanfbro void.,e eN Inasmah as the Coa8titati88alprwii&b#m 8i ths two statbe relating to county buslass a84 riri&ar, it is belisvbd that in the State of Taxas the Cmrsion- ore' Court ie the constitutionalfolua for all county business mlating to juvenile detention home8, and there- f&m it is the opinion of,this Department that~the Cm- ai88ionor6'Coiirtof,~xa.rCounty is authorlzed.tooon- trol.and supervise the~Bexar County Boys' Hum, The connis8uiner8~ ,court‘OfBenu, County his the authority,to.controland superViseoh jnvwnile home for boJIaertab- liehad by 8aid county. (Art. 5138, lLC.8.; 1LTex. Juro.564; ~'lsL,F=aso Cowaty v. ma@, 106 S.~Wi (26) 295; alenmv. Dallae COunty Beis ~Dv~,&o'Island Is+88 Die;, 282 S; W. ~339,;A@.' V,:Seotloxi1S;~Oonstit~tfon, ,Stat8bf Tbmb; and Stat9 ei rrl B~olnr et al T. Yol!lroy.et al, 274 9. W. 749)* Yours mry truly ',: ~&CTORNEYGRNRRAL OF TirxlS~ BY Bum@1 Waldrep,d,@ BW:jmo:wb Assistant