325
. > OFFICE OF THE A-ITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
?
Q @~m*LDc. MANN
hw*“*.” 0.*.-&L
Honorable E. L. Hlnson, Jr.
county riuditor, Polk county
Livingston, Texan
Dear Sir:
43, r4qusatingtls opin-
ion of this depertae d question reada, in
part, a8 follows:
oran8 County Ssrvlco
48th Legielnturo, it
Bill 368 of aald Legle-
an Oplnlon on the SolloW-
ounty Treasurer
of Polk County be
orricer and oon-
a County Service
offlaa Of County Treaeurer and
4 be the County 6ervfce Offlimr aa
created under the Acts of the 48th Legieleture?w
Houee Bill No. 968, dot6 of the 40th Lsgialkture, 1943,
reaba, in part, ae tollown:
"~eotion 1. When the oom~~loeionere' court
of the county shall determine that a Veterane County
Service Officer is a public neoeeslty in the dlspatah
&horsble X. i. HIneon, Jr., aage 2
of the county bueincaa, it eh.111 by a majority
vote at the f’uil mstubershlp thereof, create a d
establish a Veterans county Service Office. ‘fhe
ooro~ieaioners~ oourt shaall ap;)oInt suoh Veterans
to suoh dervice Oiflae and ewh nasletant Veterans
to ouch Service OtfIoe a(1 ehall be deemd neoeeeorp
by the ooudy oofsm18aionera1 court. Suoh Vaterana
County Aervlce Officer and/or Iisaiataat Veterana
County Servlae Officer &all reoeive a aalarf not
to exoeed one huadred ($,lOO) dollar8 per month ior /
the principal orficer nor more than r iitf (@Xl)---
Qllars per math, f lred by the OownIssfomrre* Oourt,
to be paid in equally monthly Inmtallmnte out of the
general funds of the oounty and all salaries, travel
and other expeusss of such office shall be paid on
order of ths oomniaeIoaere* oourt.
The &t further prescribea the qualiffoationa Cf
aueh Veterans County Service 0rr:osr ar;d/Or Aesistant Veterano
County ;iervlce Officer, the dutlea of such offioera, the term
oi off l.oa, etc.
Literally construing the language In Section 1 of
the &t, it Is apparent that the ~o.:m?ieslonere~ oourt Ie au-
timsIzed to create and establleh a Veterana Countr bernbe Of-
f’ice when the oounty conuals~ionera* court determiner, that a
Vetirans County Servlo-e Offloer is a puhlio neoeeslty in the
dispatah of county busineaa. Generally speaking, aom offices
are areated by the Constitution and other8 by the statutea.
It is a settled prinolple also thst an offtoe oo~mm Into exlst-
once only when created In the preaoribed manner, aad oontinues
only so long ~8 the law to whloh it owes existence re;lPlins in
force; when that law 1s abrogated the offloe Ipso facto oeasee
to exist, unlosa perpetuated by virtue of som other enactment.
(City of San id3eonfo v. Couitreas, 169 S. Y:. 917, 179 S. iti. 515,
lZZJ 3. ii. 194; Bennett 0. CIt 268 S. Y. 785; Tex.
37) 1nt r v. ~omm.lselons~
&t ,“~‘~a~~~d%he~ County, 146 S. it. m70, the Suprent
32’7
Court of this State has said:
“The creation of an ofSice is peculinrly
a le&lntlve satter.”
The question whether tkB oommiesionerr* Oomt creiites
the ofilce or nkther the Legislature haa.orsated tfr, oSfice and
the Aot merely Surnisi~a a method by whioh appointmnt to the OS-
lice is rsnde, 18 not bdore ~8. IS the Ltgi slature bar not created
the osrlce but authorize6 the oomlosioners* oourt to oreate eald
oSSloe, then a eerloue quretlon ea to the oonatltutionalitf OS
the mt is raised. Thsrerore, we express no opinion as to the
validity OS aaid ikttr
Ypeclflcally anawerlng your question, lt 16 our
oplnlon thut in view OS Section 40, etiole 16 OS the Ytate
Conetltutlon prohibiting tha holdtag or rxerclalng, at tha
same time, Bore th&n one olvil oSSice OS emolunsnt, the county
treamrer cannot legally hoti the oSSlce OS County Treasurer
and tbs ofiice OS Votarane County Service OfSicer at the uame
time.
Vary truly your8