. .
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable Oaorge EL Shoppub
Comptrollerof Ppbllo Amounts
Auotln, Tamis
Dear sir1
Your nquut sor r*oolvo4 an4
oardully oonsi6erw4 by th 0 quot. rma your
raquost a8 tollma
. . .. ..:_
au a80 th8 W&O-
t for flw w&or8
nrlloo Ta8 not
the rroont ruling by the 3lprow
88t 0~ini0a b;r th0 m0rnmy aa-
0 8rnl.n mubu8 lo mllltuy 8ulloo
a r to
8 r a o *ln
th e
lluy an4 mllugo do. thu, Of
the total ottu*llm aulmra, tour h+o not yatre-
polrto4forth8 tlrrttlm. Thoque~fionw~aul4
like elarlfio4 %8 thlw
"Arm the Sour mubu8 who hare not atton
lllglbls to rooolro admy from the flrat day OS
;’
Honorable Coorge ii. ‘>heppard,Page 2
12, 1943, or should OllC
the sueslon, i.e., .Janu?iry
re?ueat be dated CR of the day they r@8ter pre-
Bent?
*The Honorable John Ii.Lyle reported F'ebNnry
11 and took the Oath of Offioe. The other members
In military nervloe, eroept iour, were sworn in at
the beginning of the ss88Lon.
". . . ."
Seotiona 4. 5. 8 and 2J+of Artlole III of ocirState
cOMtltUtiOn, MC! 86 f6iiOW81
"S40. 4. The member8 of the House~of Ropre-
84llt6tiVO88hall be Oho8en br the q u8liih lhOtOr8,
d
sld their term of oitloa 8h811 be two year8 rrom
th6 day OS their 4lOOtlOn..
“‘800. 5. Th4 Leglelature shall meet ev4ry two
year8 at wroh time a8 may be provided by law and
at other @me8 when eonran& by the Oovernor. ';Jhen
oonlened in r4guhr &88ioa, the flr8t thirty day8
thered 8hal1 be 4.rot.4 to tha introduotion of
bills'8nd resolotione, aotlng upon mergenoy appro-
prletlon8, pa88ing upon t&e oonflmatlon of the
reoe88 8ppolntees of the Owsrnor and 8uoh emor-
genoy matter8 a8 nuy be 8ubnltte4 by the Governor
in speolal measagaa to the Le&elature; provided
t&at dnrlne the suooee4lng thirty 4aps or the rsgu-
1U 8e8dOn Or tb b&8ltltlW3 th8 VUfiOa8 OOR-
Rittaes of eeah House e&ill hold hearlag to eon-
814W 8ll bin8 an4 ZVl8OlUtiOll8 an4 othu nmtter8
thM pOnbilI@laed 8Uoh OMXf$enOy lpatkr8 88 Qq ti
mabmltted by the Cwarnor; provided further that
dming the rollowlng sixty day8 the Legl8latare
8h811 aOt Upon 8Ilab bill8 and X’MOlUtiOli8 a8 my
b4 then p4nding and upon suah emrgwoy oPtter8 aa
a8y be 8Ubmltte4 by the tlwemor in speoial ReI-
8ages to the Legi818tUref provided however, either
Eou8e maf otherwiea datorsdw it8 order Of busimsss
‘by u1 a3Slrnetlve vote OS four-Siftha of its member-
ahlp.~
“Sea. 8. Eaoh Boucle 8hdll be the judge of the
qualifioatlons an4 6lootion of it8 own member8; but
oonteoted eleotion8 ahall be drtermined in suoh man-
ner as shall be provided by law."
“See. 24. kmbera of the h&28ttire till
reoolve from the publio Troa8ury a per diem of
not exoeodiug 513.00 pr day fc& the fir& 120'
dwn of oath seeelon and after that not cxoeedlng
t5.00 per Cay for the rwainber of the eeesion.
%I atidltionto t&e par dislL Lhe xierPber8of
eaoh House Shs11 ba mttltled tn miloege in &a*
to alidreturnlnq from the 8eat of governmtmt,
whloe milaage shall not lx o eo $2.50
d for every
25 ~!llea,the filstanoeto ba oomputed by the
noarost and most direot route of travel, froraa
tablo of 618tanOe propared by the Cmptroller to
eaoh oounty 8eat no1 or hereafter to be estab-
lished; no a.mbsr to be eatithd to mileage for
any extra eeasioonthat nay be oallad rlthln one
day after the adjournment of a raqalar ox oalled
8088lon.*
Seotlon 1 of Artiole XVI of our State Constitution
pX-oVid.8:
%eOtlM 1. OffiOirl 08th
Weabero O? t&o Le&il.stum, e~~4 811 Offl-
oer8, befor* they enter um~the 4uflo8 of their
offices, shqll kko the foll.owlng Oath or Afflrme-
tionr
do~sol&y 8waar (or 6fflrm .I*
that ~'%I~ falthfdy examto the duties
- - of tlm
offloe or of the State or Texa8, 8110
will to the best of my ability pre8uv8, protoot,
snb defend the Oonatltutlan and laws of the United
statea a114of this Strto; aud X furthermom roleanly
swear (or 8ff'ii-m). thnt I have not dir~otly nor in-
dlreotly paid, offared, or prosbad to w, watrl-
buted, nor proalmd w oontrlbate 8ny money, or
taltible thing, or promioed any pub110 OffiOe or
employment, na a reward for the &ding OT withhold-
ing a vote 8t the eleotiotlat whloh I wae lleOte,b .
So help ae God.'-
Artiol@a 5422-3-4-54& Vsrnan’8 Annotated Texti
civil %UtUte8, read a8 fO11ow81
"Artlolo 5&22. 5505. 3271 'NW of meeting
“The Fortieth Leglelature shall aesemble to
hold its blonnlnl aeaeion on the eaoond Tuaedaf
Honorable George ii. iheppard,1-e l,
in January, A. D. 1927, at 12 o'olook m., and
&all mot blon.nlallythorutter on the mmo day
and hour until othorwlse prorldod by law. Coast.
art. 3, aeo. 5.
LTho80 porrono rooolvlng oertlrioatee of
lleotion to the %neto and ROUBO of Fiopreoonta-
tlves Of the Loglrlaturo, ma4 thoeo SenatoT0
uhoao term of ofrioo &all not hato temlmted,
and nona othera, s&l1 bo 6oupetent to orgaulre
the SeMt* and HOUSO or Xepremintatltoo. Aets
1876, pa 311; 6. L. vol. 8, P. ~7.
“Art. 5h2L. 5507-8-16 Who shsll DrWbidt3
-For the purpose 0r 6tlch 0rganlPation the
SoorataryoS8tatonh~UproaiUo atuohnoarrlng
u8alon of the La&laturo. should thorn bo no
soorekry 0r stat&* or In ease he bo abeant or un-
able to atfond, tko Attortuy Goa8ral &all attend
(md periorm thq datios preaorlbod. He ohaU attend
at tiu tlm Ma p&o0 bibolunatea ror th0 aret*
oftha Logi8laturr andahallap int a ole*rho
8hall hare bea 0hl.i olo* of t E xoU8. thr pro-
oo&ng 808slon If ho be present, to take a minute
of the pmoe&*.
vho aloe, unaor the fllrootion0rtb sooro-
tary of stat+ Bhaul
'1. aall al1 tbr kountlo~ la alphabmtiaal
ordor. sh o uld
ntur nr o fllootloa in uly aouaty
Sor mabora oi the Legialaton not bo mado to the
orfloe.of seomtary oi State, ha ahall rroterthe-
1088 call suoh oouuty.
-2. mell t&e oountler are oalld ana ttu
mombore oloot *gpear and proud tholr ero~ential~,
aaldni8tor to emh the ossloi~l oath.
*Art. 5~26, 5512. 3278 Crodontlal8
*Any pereon appearing at 8al4 oall and prr
eantfng the propor evldonoo of his llootlon ohall
!. ,,.>
‘i_. ,
IionoreblsGeorge H. Shopped, Pqe 5
ba sddttsd or quellilod in the sems memer es thou&
the return of his slsofioo he4 been u&e to t&o ofiio.
of Saorotery of Steto. P. D. 5438.”
Qonstnti~ 8ootion 1 of Artlols XVI of tho Stats
Constitution, prior to the prosont ssmulmont, esd in 1881,
the Bupreaa Oourt or Toxu, In the osse or State 1. Oooke,
54 Tax. 4.82,held that undsr said seetlon of tho Constitution
it wu e~ldent that thoro was l dlstlnstlon b&w-wan tha rl&t
to en oi$lqo.aM tho right to eutu upon the duties of en offloo,
lnesmmh 88 8r;ia soetloa or the con8titotian required the t8klng
of tho ooastltutloneloeth borers the p uso n lntltlod to the
oifloo ontod upoz~the 6utl.s OS the ortloo.
Tha oas* of &loo f. state, 150 8. u. (26) 1039, oon-
strulxiut%ootlon1 of Artlols XVI of our Stat0 Constitution as
it now lrdsts, hold ill tho aots or a speolal judge, who took
an 06th not in oonforaity with the oath sot out in sei& seotion
0r th4 aosstltutlf+,wars rold, ss4 oltod msny luthoritlos.
It 18 oleer that ln order for one to booom entitle4
to r eo a lrth o e*per dlu* sb o ~eroromd to, th o llelnat muat
do somothlng mro then morsly booomo uitit1.6 to the oifloe of
rqnwentatlre la the .Tuu L&alature. 80 must ~0 rurthor
and In feat booou a moabor OS the Taxes E&u80 of Bopresaate-
titu. This hs.oen os.l do by taking ths oonstitutlosel oath
or oltloe. ulales 54% uul S42 pro+ldlng a method ior ed-
mlnlstuln6 the oonstitutlcaeloet% to membus of the Eouso,
wo think uo no tlxolusiro but marely bireotory stetutos, en6
that iaesawh as tha Iiousoaor 0utlo.n 8 of Artiob XII of
oru-bfete Ootutitution 18 *the $a&* or the queliiimtiaas end
dostlons at its mmbars*, tha Eouno oould looept tho qrulitiaa-
tion end oeth taking ot e mombar et ULJ tlmo durlry the mossion
tid in w smsast losoptebla to the Ilouso of Repnsontatir.8.
In the osu of 8peus t. 8hsppud, 150 8. w. (26) 769,
Tans* 8uprem Court oonmtruob Sootion 21,OS Artlob SIX oi OUT
Steta Constitution, en4 hold,emsg othu things,thet tho rluht
of l umber oi the Le&islsture to raoeira the pr dim StlPdated
in the ssstlon was not dopessled upon eotuml lttondsnse 011tho
sessions of the k&leturi, and all that 18 roqulnd 18 that the
Loglsleturs be in session esd thet#o oleiuat be a memberthero-
Oi.
Eonorable Qeorge H. Shopperd, Pego 6
Ws Intarprot this doolsIon to moen thet all thet la reqtirod
in cedar to lntltlo a olefrant to his *per diem* es a member
of the Loglsleturo la that tho Loglslaturs bo in suslon and
thet tho olelranf be l asabor for the porlod of tine for
whloh ho olelms the meld *per 41s~.
Oploion HO. O-5039 Of this dopertmsnt, sddnsssd to
you, writton by Attorney Ganerel Yenn, holds spsolfIosll~ thet
msmbors or the Lsglsleturo rho ue oorPlisslone4offloors or
lnllotod mon in the Army, Nevy ezidJLerInoCorps, ers lntltlsd
to tholr selsq uurrults a-06 tho state.
It being PdlewSul for lny nonor to be paid out of
the 8tete Troesury exoopt by luthorIt~ of sn eot of the Lsgls-
laturo lpproprletIng the bus, end A.rtlol*III, Sootion 51,
of the Qonstltutlon of nab hevlng prorldod:
"The Lsgl*leturs shell here no power to make any
grent o r luthorlxs the reklng or any gamut or pub110
aoner to eny indiriaui, usooletlon or Indlr1du.e~
. . . . . whatsoorer. . . . .w
it obviously follmm thet l ottlson cannot bo pal4 eny “par
dloaw u l memb er o f the LoixlsletursSor uy day or days prior
to the the ho buue l mm&u thsroof.
In snswer to your questions you em thorofore ldvlsod
es r0iiotr:
Ropmentetlro rJ10 who tw the oonstltutlomaloeth
OS stiloe on February 11, 1945, la sntitlod to bo peld his "par
diem* Sor fobraery ll, 1943, end la lddltlon thordo sll *par
dlee rbioh my uoruo for e&l d+ys ths Lsgisleturo la in ssssion
during hlo teuure of meld ofTlea slnoo FobmarT 11, 1943.
Ii tho rou rho ero entltlod to tho offloe but who hero
not yet bosoms ~smbozs OS the Lsglsleturo pro0004 to booomo msm-
berm by teklag ths oonstltutlonrl 06th of oifioe, thon durin6 tho
prssoat sosslon sueh mbors will bo lntltlod to the full ?mr
dima* Sor sll dw the Lsg$Islmtursor rhloh thw hsto booomo nsm-
hors la la sosslon o n end lrtor the dey on whloh they teko ths
required oonstitutlonel 06th OS ofilos.
Honoreblo Oaorge H. Shepperd, Pege 7
The msmbors who took the oonstltutlonel 06th of
0rrioo et the boginning 0s the sos*Ion but rho hem bin00
not lttondod the sosslon era lntltkd to bo paid their *par
UloaP for ill the tlms tha LagIsleturo or whIoh they era
umrbors la in session.
Yours tory truly
,,,. ~..
.r-
caPB:AMm ,<.
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