OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
SROVERSELLERS
~,tTORNLI GLNLRAL
Ronorqbla myne satterrield, commI8eIoner
tIromm’r pma1on colAlrrIon
P. 0* .aof..lose
Auatia, hxnr
mar sir:
m hare reoelr oommunlortlon, quoted
a8 iollo*r;
0, Vernon~a Revised
provides that be-
anted to a par-
slier end Retlre-
t hare a oertlficete
y~l~lm”, duly nota-
it nit then ruoh I o*rtIiI-
looted by the Bond. Your
s the above Interpretation.
IL" a5 definedIn the Act. Most or our
et are called *City Health Offlcersw
ere to look after the general health
f the cities acid whose duties do not
to examine city employees nor to attend
such employeee when sick or Injured. ie 2x enc.los-
ing a section of a city chsiter which creates the
office cf “$lty Eealth P”9sl~,~a~~u~~d,‘~~‘,b~:,‘t~f”,‘,E”,d
to ea City Aealth Officer.
‘hiring us your opinion as to whether such physician
would be ocnsidared the 'City Physician” as is pro-
vided in Section 9 of the Act.
50
Hcmorabla Bayno satterriald - page 2
*Va 8180 Hera a lltuatlon whara the Health
Offioar or City Phpioian is and bsr baan Sor
88vSrSl nwntha, alok and unable to parform his
datlea IS luoh and no *aotIng olty phyalolan
or health orrioar~ ha8 beon appointed to aarva
dur ing luoh oitloar’a Illnaaa. would It ba wlth-
in tha power of tha Board to lrauma that, under
auoh oondltlona, thara was no 8uoh oiiloer and
prooaad to looapt Suoh a oartIiIoata Srom a phyal-
elan whloh thay Amayohooaa?’
Arti 4424, V. A. 0. S., prorldaa 88 fo~owa:
*w OtiiOS Of Oitl php8iOiaS IS SbOiiShSd,
and in8taad thr oiiloa OS olty bralth offloor is
cnrtod. aa offloa OS olty haalth offloar shall
ba filled by @ oompatant phyaiolan, 186811y qualiriad
to praotloa madIaIna within, this Stats, of raputabla
profaaaIonal standing.. 1d.l
Artlola 4425, V.A. 0. S., prorida8 as Sollowa:
“Tha governing body of aaoh Inoorporatad olty
and town within this Stats ah811 alrot a ~ualIfIad
parron r0r the 0rri00 0r oity health orrioar by a
mjorlty of the rotas of tha goreming body, 8rOapt
in oitiaa which may be OpSrStad undar a charter pro-
viding for a diiiarant method or selecting city
phyalclans, in which event the orriO 0r city imalth
officer shall be filled as Is noti filled by the city
phyaiofan, but in no instance shall the office of
oity health officer bs abolished. The olty health
ofrioer, after appointment, shall t&e end subscribe
to the ofricial oath, and shall rile 0 oopy 0r suoh
oath and a copy of his appointment with the Texas
state Board 0r H:elth, end shall not be deemed to
be legally .;zalifi.ed until said copies shall have been
a0 filed.*
50
Honorable Bayna SattarfIald - peea S
ArtIolS 4430, V. A. OeS., prorldaa as iollowar
Tc~oh oltr haalth ofilorr shall perform luih
dutlor as nrr bo nqoirod of him bt aSnSra1 law
lSd oltf ordinaoooa with rogord to tb uonoral
hO8lth and ranltatIon Of tOWnO and OItIO8, and
porforn 8UOh other duties as Oh811 bo 18~811~ ra-
culrod of him by th, YJOT, gotomLn& body or the
ordIaan0oa Of his Oltf or WJWI. HO 8hSll dlaoharga
and perform luoh duties a8 ma7 be praaorlbrd for
hIa under the dIraotIon8, rula8, rr~ulatlonr and
raquirSmSnt8 of the Btata Board of Realth and the
prorldent tharoof. Ra rhSl1 h rSq0lr.l to old
and 88818) the Stato Ward oi Bsalth in SlJ. mttorrr
of qaarrntlna, rlt~l and mortaary rktlrtloar, io-
lp eo tlodiaaaaan, pralentlon rad luppraa8Ion and
8anItatlon wlthln his jurladIotionr ES 8hSll at
all times report to tha atata Board of lkalth in
auoh manor and form as 8Sld board err prororI k,
thr praaanoo 0s all oontaglour, lnfeotlour and
daagaroua lpldotio d~aaaara within his ~urIadIotIon,
and shall make luoh other and turthor reports In
auoh manner and form and St luoh thS8 as raid
stat. board shall d&sot, tOughIn 811 8uoh matters
as may br proper for arid bolt6 to dkoot, and ha
shall old asld stats board at 011 tiva in the an-
roroam8nt of proper rules, ra~ulatIona and raqulra-
manta in th alnioroamant of all aanItary laws, war-
antlna ragulatIona and ,+Ital ltatlatlo8 oolleotion,
and perform such other duties as 8sid State board
shall dIraot.W
of YoNaeea v. state,
In the 0888 180 s. ‘8. (2) 164,
the Court of Criminal
Appeal8 of Taxss held, inter alla, that
in View Of Art. 4425, Ve A. C. S., all incorporated cities and
towns must have a health officer whose duties era prasorlbed
by law.
Seotlona 9 and 15 of Art. 6243a, V. A. 0. S., pro-
vide as iollorr 8
veo. 9. No per8on rhall be retired either
for total or teaporery di8ability, except a8 hereln
provided, nor receive any allo-mnce from ssid Fund,
unless and until there shall have been filed ?.Ith
50
Ronorabla Bayne SattarfIold - paas 4
the Board 0s Truataea, oartlf ioataa 0s his dlr-
ability or llegibility signed and sworn to by
.raid parson Snd/Or by the olty or town phyaIoIan,
If there ba one, or If none, than by any phyaIcIan
aalaotad by the Board of Truataaa. said Board of
Tru8tea8, In Its dlsimtlon, mar require other or
addItIonal lrldanoa of dlaabilIty bafora ordering
auoh ratlramant or payment lfo r a a a ld.*
n*+ * *
Wac. 15. The Board of Truataaa, In Ifs dia-
oration, at any time, mry Oauaa any parson retired
for dIaabIlIty, under the prorIaIona of this Aot
to appear and undergo a madloal examInatIon by the
olty phy8IoIan or any other phyaIoIan appointed or
8alaotad by the Bosrd of Tru8taaa for the purpose,
and the result of luoh eunbatlop and report tharaor
by raid phJaIoIan shall ba oonaIdorad by said Board
of ~uataaa In determining whather the relief in raid
0888 shall be oontlnuad inorrarad (if 1888 than the
maxImum provided haraln~, daOfaa8ad, or dI8oontInoad.
Should any parson racaIrIng ralIaf under the pro-
rIaIona 0s this Aot, after duo notice from 8aId Board
of Truatoaa, to appear and be ro-•xamInad, unless ax-
ouasd by said Board, fall to appear or refuse to aub-
mit to ra-examination, said Board of Truetaos Is author-
ized In It8 dIaoratlcn, to reduce or antiral~ diroon-
tinua such ralIaf.
It has been deoldod that a statute or protlaion should
not be given a COn8truOtiOn rendsring it futile, or useless, rrhen
the language csn be otherwise eonstrued. The reason of the rule
is that the Legislature is not to be credited with doing or In-
tendine a useless or rain thing, nor with reculrlng a futile,
Impossible or uselesa thin8 to be done. 39 Tex. Jur. pp. 222,
223. Also ace of the prlmsry and eettled rules of oonstructlon
is that words in common use, when oontelned ln a eta tute, will
be read acoordlne to their natural, ordinary and popular zean-
Ing, unless a contrary intention is clearly apparent from the
oontext ( or cnlese there is aoxe neCaa8ity, in a psrtiCu1.W
oaae, for adopting a different construotlon. 39 Tex. Jur.
pp. 197, 198.
Honorable Bayno ~ttarflald - page 5
As there Is now no 8-h otfIaar as thtt of *City
ph~aloian * and t&era wa8 no luo h0rri08r when tha protl-
giOB8 oontalmd in SSOtiOaS 0 aad lb oi Art. W%So, V.A.C.S.,
wars anaotod to hold tl8t tha Logialatura &the
$%‘~f tha ton *Qity ~hyaIoimW In add aotlona’O l
and 15
of Art. bL4So V.A.O&, lup r a maaat an otfioar no longer
in lxiatanoa h this stats muid ba lreditla the La 18latura
g4a~do~~~ a uaalaaa thing and raquIrIn,g an fr poaalb 9 a thin&
.
‘dla ballan the tam *City PhyaIoIana was used la
him by (Ianaral law and the gorrrnlng body or the ordinanoea
af his olty or town.
In th8 lltuatlon praaantad by you, 1.4.) whan auoh
offIoar Is unable to parform hIa duties & of’fI88, It would
be without t&m power oi the Board of Tru8taaa to aalaot m-
other phy8iOit~h to oortiiy to t&a8applIoant*a dlaablllty or
lllgl blllty . Our Opinion Yo. O-5514, rafarrad to br you,
holds, In lubatanoa that If the airy ha a olty phyalolen
the aaoompaayIng l fhda lu vltr btaa a m y h im, but If lu a i
oltp has no olty phyaioIan then aril doctor lal~otad by tha
Board my naka the lffldar~t, VI do not balfevo the taot
that 8~2 olt p aloian is sick and unable to arfoan this
duty has the 1ag3 effect of plaoIn& such olty Pn the atetus
no city hysiclan or oity health officer 88 oon-
%$G% In Sac. B 0s Art. 62438, supra.
Furtl%3rrmora, It IS the opinion of this department
thiit the off ioer referred io In the secti.,n of a c:ty charter
enclosed with your in lulr{ Cityas 6 ,;gr; ~~~~~,~,“g;i~ip~~;1,‘8,ii,
la; a4cijact 0 f+aLutory
J+.i.-4, su>ra, hnd, a~ .SI.C~A,ia the orfioer ee;\nt
in :ectI A3 u umi 15 0s dt, 6ii43e, supra.
Honorable &ayne Sattarfield - pg8 6
Yours very truly
ATI’ORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS
BY
Rob8rt L. Irttlmore, Jr.
Assirtant