OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Major I,. ‘.;. Sakes
General Kanager
Texas Prison Systam
Huntsville, Texae
Dear Slr: exe0 Prlaom
pinion request of
July 6, 1945, whlc
ielature, provlbe8
mare or leaa; be-
he bill, and rollowing
it develops that the tzaat of
alns only 535 aarea.
specified ln~ the above mentlonned blll?w
Major D. W. ~Stakeo, pago 2
The law about whioh you ingulra rerdr a8 fdllownr
R. . . .
wection 1. The Toxa8 Prison Board 18 hesoby
authorized to 8011 and OOntay to th8 Gil, of mt8rillo,
Texar, a oartain 61x hundred and thirty I 6301 iarea of
yan;grWalker County, Texas, bounded and desorib8d a8
"All ot air hundred and thirty (630) aoro8 of land,
mom or 1086, out or aaQ a part ot the Warren Birdsall
Orlglnel League Survey, AbrOlMot Ro. 6, in Walbbr Qourtty,
Tox.88, with th prort8ionthat iald land shall ba usad.
by the City oi ~tUlt8Tf110, T8W8, for the pUrpO88 oi e
t8blishlng a municripal airport or a por%it% thareo?, and
being altao out of a oer%ala one tholuand, four huadrad
8d on8 (l&01) aore tzaot in 8aid Lequo aad being 8x80
out of the northwo8t ooraor OS that 08rSala $raob oi land
whloh Is owned by the Stat0 of T8wa aad kn0wn 88 th8
Wynne Farm, 8sId 81X hundred and thirty (630) IOr be-
ing bounded on the wQ8t by the WO8t line of #id Wm.
r8’afill, on tha north by the north lfne Of 88id W
and on the south by BL-8, ~#Iw8~ 73 ad 8StSil dF-= A%&ear*
86 that 8 line drawn parailel with the we8% line of the
%ynne Farm nil1 e1~0108e 81X hoadrod and thirty ( 630)
aOre8.
“.Teo. 2. The property her&3 mentioned 8nd dewrib&
#hell be Bold 8t prirste S81e fOr 08Jlb at 8 priO8 lihloh
the Prleon Boerd shall dean iair and adequate, vhlah prloo,
however, shall not be for le88 than '&valve Thousand, Six
Hundred Dollar8 ($12,600). The 8aidi Priecn Board 18 hers-
by authorized end ampowered to nmks the 8ele, and when
euoh 8810 ie made the Cheirzuan or Vice-Chalman ahall, In
the name of the Texas Prison Board, exeoute and deliver
to said City of Runtaville, Texas, a deed of aonruyanae
to wld property attertod bs the S8Qretary of the ,Board
and with its ofilclal eeal impressed thereon, whiah deed
shall vest all the rl[:hts and title ot the Board and the
Yajor D. w. Staka8, psge 3
State or Texas to the samo in said City; provided,
however, that said doed shall reserve to the State
a one-sixteenth (l/16) rree royalty of all minoral
in said land, exoapt that 88 to Sulphur and other
mineral aubstanoes from whloh Sulphur may be do-
rlrad or pruduaed the rree royalty rasarrrd to the’
State ahall be one-eighth (l/8).
"Sea. 3. The faat that the T8xse Prlaun Baard
18 now without authority to make suoh sale and that
land in it8 present condition is of little ~88 to
the Texas Prleon Board, and the Strte wiJ.1 begin to
get the use of the money a8 soon as the sala ir mad8, :.
snd that It fe oantemplated th8t the City of Iiunt8rllla
will improve 8ald property a8 a pub110 81rport for raid
Olty and the 8ame, when opened, will be OS matrrial
benefit to the Prlaon Boa-d and 8aid airport will b8
available for u8e by the Sam Houston Sttste T8aoh8r8
College, loooted rt Huntrrllle, in uoniieotlon with
the teaohing of Aeronautioe, areataa an em8rgenay and
an impsrativ8 publlu nsu8sllity damonding the au8p8n-
sion of the Uonstltutionel Rule requiring bills to bo
read on three reorral day8 in esoh Hou88, be end the
8am8 is hareby suspend&d, and that thin Aot ahall be '~
In ioroe and effeot rrom and arter it8 pea8ag0, and
it 18 SO emoted."
This 18 House Bill NO. 558, Ch. 242, AOt8 49th Lagis., :
Regular Session, 1945, page 378, Art. 61668, note, V.A.C.!?,
I We have examined the original.oi 8. B. No. 558 la the
Sscretary or Stats*8 Oifioe and find that it was amended.ln Ocun-
mittes so as to provide for e puruhaae price of Twelve Thousand
Six Hundred Dollar8 (#12,600.00), in lieu of Nins Thousand Five
%undred’Dollsrs ($9,500.00), 88 originally written. House Bill
No. 646, Ch. 244, Aota 49th L&s., Regular Se8slon, page 380,
desorlbee B. B. 558 a8 providing for a minimum oonslderatlon of
$9,fiOO.O0 for 630 eorea. Vi8 do net Slnd enythlng in the bill
88 originally written or as finally enaoted whloh ahcnv8 that the
minimum price at whloh the lend ouuld be sold w86 arrived 8b oa
en acrsaga basis. The destmiptlon of the traot es oonteined
in 3eotion 1 of the Aot oopied above loostea tha Zest line of
the traot by referenoe to aoreags, but this is di8oriptire
mraly of the area wbi.oh the statute authorizes the Prism
Board to oonory and not of the price to bs paid. The rtatuto
authorize8 the Board to sell all or any part oi the 630 aore
traot to the City or Eunt8vills ior ~12,600.00 but we do not
think the statute authorizes the sale of a fmallar area than
630 acmes at the rate of $20.00 per ame.
It is OUT opinion that in order to oomply with the
authority grsntsd by statute, the Prison Board mat rooeire
not less than $12,600.00 for the property whioh it oonvoyr.
The Prison bard ilr not oompellad to as11 and convey any
property to the City of BuntsvSlle.
Trusting that ths toregoing answer8 your inquiry,
we *re
Yours very truly,,
ATTORNEY OEKERAL OF TEXAS
Fagan Mokaon
A8aintant.
FD:rt