OFFICEOFTHEACTORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS
AUSTIN
Eoncr&bleB. T. valten
county Auditor
8mith county
Tyler, Texar
Dear Sir:
Tour rrrqueat ro aen reaelvoa ana
osrcfully 6oniuiider.d
by t we quota tma your
xequQmt 88 f0llow6:
on, our CcuAty bar
to help bup work
mtiue0r, ana can-
JLot that is set up,
ro plot on which all
The WPA will rur
k the garden, as well ~IYtc
8, but each sahool m-t fu~?nirh
of the expanee and buy the itans
, fertilizer,*to., es set out above.
%inca the mahools are not in good finan-
cial oonditioa gcsnemlly, they bare (?skedthe
County for asai8~Ace.”
Honorable8. T. Waltere, Page 8
ArtlclO 2351, R. C. s., provideA:
"ICaohooamleeionera*oourt ~hallr
0. . .
"11. ?rOriflefor the Aupport of paupem
aAa such idiot8 ana itmddcr AA 0-0t be Ad-
mitted iAt0 the hmatic a8ylua, reAlde~8r of
thelr county, who are unable to nupport them-
AOlVO8. By the term re8iAent aa UBOQ herein,
la meant a pereon who haa boon a bolu tldr
inhabitantof the oountp not leAA tbAA rix
IDOAthSand Of the State AOt 1088 t&A AA@
Y-.
nlhsA tha ~05i8miOAeX'A CoUrtA WOI’O Ax-
preeely given the powor and duty to *prorIde
Sor the Aup ort of p~upelm * by noaewary ir-
plieatloo.ttopwAre alothe$ ribh the authority
to a0 all the iAOideAtX%ithing8 nwaraary to
provide for their ~tipporC. Stat a8 the power
to snot P oourthowe and jallsarrlaa with
lt authority to aoquiro a buildlag site.
Yoore f. Alred, 277 8. W. 787. AA~ juAt a8
the power of gnensl oontrol ofor sil roaQ6,
blgbmays, rerrlm em% briagecl,naouwrily
lmpliea authority to oo~~truot a dniruga
dltoh to protect Auoh r-8, brld@eA, an4 hi&i-
wayr fro23flood watera.:~
::lXl Pare County 1.
&lam, eupm. See al.so,Texrell v. apark8, 158
a. WY.619.
*Authorityto provldo food arnd olothlng
for ouch putrposerneoeesar%ly i~oluder tha
power to p08aeu, atore and greaarve the same
to that end. FUCthermore, it may be mire
~o~noalc~land doelrable to dlatrlbuts Auoh Aom-
modlties, rather than hate the rsaiplentaoone
or send for the same. Powor to provide ruah
food and oloth&a$ would lnalrda the powW TV
deliver it, aad authority to aaquiro the nm-
essary mean of dellvery muld foll,m.
HoWrable B. T. Vialterm,
Page 3
Wbec Commiesloners*Courtiswere burdsn-
ea with the duty or woviaing support for suoh
persocs, they #ore given the sound dlssretlon
of deternlnlagthose whom they were required to
provide for under the terms OS the statute.
By neoessary implloetloAthey aoqulred the power
to es@oy such help as might be neoessary to
properly alit out thoss entltlsd to mush rsller
aAd to investigateand asaertaln the extent ana
IUCOUAtOr thS AOOa.
"The mot that the Federal ~oternmeatpro-
vldea the somodltles does cot, in our O~IA~OA,
roAdor the authority of the Cfamml.sslon~rs~
Court of Hunt County any leas in the dlstribu-
tion thereof that would be true If the Gounty
iteelf wore fUrnishlAgsuah provisions,so far
as the state laws wre aswmer~ed.,
Wi goes without ~aylry that the dl6omtloA
resldiag la the Comlsslonern’ Courts in suah
atters must be soundly exorolsod. If the m-
alplents 0r suoh roll& am not so indigimt as
to fall wlthln ths terms or the statute, the
Cmmlssloners* Court n0ula bs uithoub sutborlty
t0 do any of the thing8 you faqUlm about. . . .a
Ws enolose herewith a copy OS said opinion tar your
1cforisatlon.
It 18 oAr opinion that ths Ooa!AisdoJlerA' court
wsultlhare authsrlty to expend sotmtp fuado ts assist la a
consunity garden as set out la your latter for the aouuty
hst lunoh profeot for ind&eAt ohlldmn ootmlngui8hin
the provisions or 6UbditiSiOA11 or Arti95 S 351 8. C. S.,
rwm. In other swrds, the county has no authority to make
oontrlbutloasfor the purporee stated in your inquiry for
th4:?
bcAsfiC of school ohildren genetally, but only those or
whose parents fall within ths o~es~fioatlon llaaaed in the
above quotitl.rja taken iron our opbilon enslosed herewith.
Very truly yours