OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Ronorebls C&o. 8. 60x
State Health orri0sr
Taxm state Boar&.or Health
Auqtln (a) Terse
munloation and quote
property mentioned by you 144
a0ntr01 r0r di8pasal and13rthe
666, v. A. a. 9.
rty belonging to ths atate, f4-
ere it i8 loeeted, under the aon-
trol of eny departsent, 001&a4ion, board, or
other 4tete eganoy, with the emeptlon of rtate
eleemoaynary institutions, ooUage4, end in-
Ptitutions of higher learning, when It 4hall
beoome unrft- r0r um, or oh411 b4 no longer
needed, shall be pleoedIunder the juriedfotion
or the Board or Control, and the Board or con-
trol shall 8~11 suoh pro erty artor advertleing
ft not less than r0km (9 P day43 fn 4 newspaper
in ths oounty whers$n:tho: propemty 14 siturted.
Honorable GM. 71. COx, 9. B
Wovldsd, however, that ii no newspaper la
published in ths ooanty whersin the property la
altueted, notlas of aeld sale setting out the
time end plaoe or sale and the property to b4
sold shall be poatsd ,ln thrae (3) pub114
915045, one beia$ in the oourt bmae In the
oouoty wpersin the property. is aitusted. pro-
vided, howaier, tbet ii the value or such per-
anal property la 1088 than one snared (#loO.Oo)
Dollars and not aufrloient 80 justtry the ooat
or edvsrt%afunent in a4wapapera as 4utlin0a above,
the Boata 0r aontrol may sell auoh prop6Ay in any
manner that It deems ror the boat’lntarea~or the
state. The money fmi the 54le of SUah property,
1685 the sxpenae~or edvertlaln~ the sale, shall
~b4 deposited in the StateTreasury to the ore&it
or the General Revenue Rand. And provided further,
... that any property plaoed ia the he&la or the Board
0r aontrol, 44 ~utllned her&in, may tm tranarrerred
by the Bqard or Control to any aepar+mt, oontalsaiOu~
~%~a* or 'state a&onoy ln need 0r saw, and the
debit end oraalt shall be made cn the basis that
auoh property oan be purohaaed in the mrkat at the
Mni4 or the transfer, if a aarkat eriata, and If not,
et its aotual or lntrlnslo value 45 set by the
Board 0r aontrol. The Bosrd or Control shall
. make a written report to the OolqptrOUsr after
eaoh aele. The report shall lnolude tbr ror-
low* ltesnar
-1. H-e or the .newapapsr and the d4ti'sOf
ehvertlae~4nt 0r not104 0r aaleg or it poatod,
the d4te ma pleas 0r postlug.
-8. mob artiole reoelved.
"3. The prioe for whloh aaoh artlole was sold*
Rd. The uaw and address or the person to who=
eaoh artiole was sold.
"'This rsport shall be signed by the Board Of
Control and 4 member of the department, a~iaa~~~
board Or state aeenoy having oontrol Oi the Property
berora 8414.**
Honorable Ceo. w. 00x, p. 8
YOU requ45t our opinion 48 to whether or not It Ia
legally possible ior the Texas State Hsslth Department to
urohaae and a for used automotive lqulp8lsnt turned ~IJby
-42 St~‘~Wtv&ent. The statute quoted above pro-
vi&u for two methods ~by whleh the Board ot Control 144~ dfs-
pa50 Or aueh proputy. ,I8 oella one method a aaale* and tha
other, a atr4nareP. It fr our 09iPlon tham the tranaier or
luob progerty, aa prorldbd in aala Artlole, am4unta to a sale,
in that the reoelving Stat* degartiaent aoquirea the title to
and the poaaeaalon of the property, and the velue thereor aa
set by,'t,&eBoard of aontrol la~dobltca agaInat the aspart-
wnt*a currrnt approprlatlon. The ~ansral Fan& wald reoelve
or4dif in aeid amount, in that the partloular approprlartion
agalnat the Qsaeral Fund aould be reduoed aocordingly.
*A transfer ln en aot or trenaaotlon by wh$oh
property oi one person 15 by him vested In anothar.
This, without the use or some quallryiag word, fe
the 1 eggs1mean- of the term. Peawe v..Hawkins,
62 T4x. 434, 439, oitln& Abb. Dlot.8 Bour. Mot.)
sebat. DioLw
?iorda ,and Phra8ea. Vol. 42, pa@ 892.
The Leglalstur~, in providing toi a *transit@ ors uoh
property from one State department to another, end providing rar
the oredlte and debits, evidently did ao for the purpose of
elImlnatlng 4 double tranaaotlon and the added erpenae and tlae
involved in~411 thoa4 aaaea thet might arim wh4re one State de-
partment plsoea In'the Board of Control oertein property that
It no longer nwda and another State department rsqueata the
Bosrd or Control to purotuma ror it, property of the afunekind and
ohareotsr. Is th4 ao-oalled *transfer* a45 not proviasa r0r,
the Board In auoh oaaoa, would have to edvertlse the property for
aale, hold the aale, plao4 tha title In the purabaaer, r4oelve the
purohaso prloe, report the sale to the Colsptroller, end have the
purohaae prloe less the expanse oi sdvertialng the sale dsposlted
In the Stste Treasury to the oredit of the Cenerel Vund. The
Soar& Or Control would then have to So up~a the open 3parket and
puroham the aan@ or like propBty for the Stat4 dep4ft94nt d4-
airing same. This would amount to a ~541464 exp%ndlture Of both
tine and money.
.you are therefore advised that In the event the prop’
erty t0 be transferred la suoh propsrep 45 4an b4 lee41lY Pur-
o&se& by the State Board of Health under the A99roprl~tlQn AOt*
and the State Nerd of Eecllth has an unexpended bslanoe in the
Xmorablo Oeo;. W, 00x, p. 4
qmoiflo 8pproprlstb@ whloh a\rthorlmr the purohase of auoh'
property, equal to or greater than the value of suoh property
a8 8et brthe Btste Board of Control, .that the Texas State
Board o? Health-may esqnlre from the Board of Control the
aotomotl%e equipment by hr*in& the Board of Control trmmhr
euoh property to,it airprovided ~by raid Artiole~~dBdr T&e
rrpeoifia appropriatloa authoriising the purohaee of suah prop-
erty would then be debited with the value thereof, as uet by
the Board OS Control, and the Camera]. Tund would then suto-
matloallp reoelve credit in 8 llke amount,.
Trusting that the above fully anmers your inquiry,
we are
Very truly yours
Assistant