THE ArroRNEy GENERAL
OF TEXAS
Ronorablw Y. L. Eoberson
county @Ammy
arinklwr county
Keridt, ~wxns
and r&ain fess
ES registrar8 ror
of Vital Statlstios,
on to their annual ,
ineto plaos the justices
on a salary basis the
he pea08 shall receive in
areto a11 roes, comllisslolis,
tar performing ;Parria+3
OS and ror aotlng an Registrar
s Botlrd of vital Statlstios and
-haa aotfw as ieofrioi0 Iiotarjr iablio.
“Gginion go. O-419, Attorney General of
Texas, we rind the rollowing:
Vhere justices of thwmaoe aot as local
registrars oi vital ststistlos, and are
Honorable H. L. Roberson, Page g
oou&nsated for the tiaoal year
on &IO be818 or lpes same&~by than
in the performa or their orrioial
duties, ruoh fee8 oolleoted as co-
gistrais of vital statirtiss u5der
Rul0 %a, ~rtlOle 44777, as m~~d06
by Aoto or 1929, Qlst LOS., 1st
C. 3;. Chapter 4, are to bo reported
and inoladed in the maximum oompen-
satfon allowed suoh otiiorrs. .’
.Vn your opinion 0419, you ara referring
to Justioes that am compensated on a fee
basis. In our oaso the Suetioes of the Pwaoe
are oompwnsated on the ntaximua salary basis
or ~s,400;00 per yam.
mRerer&g baok to &tioLe 39124, aaotioa
(o), Vernon's, It is the opinion of this otrics
that the Juatlos can retain his fees oollwot-
ed as registrars of vital rtatistfoa, over aM .
,above his &‘400.00 per year ~1s~. %hst is
the opinion of ‘your deppart?neattr”
Pli5klei County bar a population of 6,168 ‘inhabitants
aooordlne to the 1940 Federal Ce~eus. You rwrer to hrtlole
2*12e j Seotion .(a I,. Vornon~s Annotated Civil .Stbtutes. Ap-
parentlp you haye rerirwncs to paragraph (01 oi Section ‘19 oi
lirtiole 39124;.;V4rAoA’s Annotated Civil 3tatutes. This pro-
vision is only:-applfoable to o-ouatlss harlnq a populatloo In
exo4as or 190,000~ inhabitants aooor&lnJ to the last preoablng
--- Foderal Ceasu8;a. Tner(efore, this provision of.thm statute is
not applicabls:t6 .\FsinklerCounty a8 said oounty doss not have
a population i5 :0tos;ss, or 190,009 inhabitants. :
ieoti& 2,&~&&014’39l24, Vernbn’s ¬ated Civil
Statutea, is appllosble to oou~tlws having a popul8tloA Of
less than 20,OIJOinhabitants acoording to the latit praaedlog
Bederal Census and reads iA p’art as iollowtit
Vhe couiieeionsri~ Court of each o&tf
in t.ha~Stato of ToXas; at lts rirrt rrgulqr
m&#i.U&~~+,January or. each calendar year, shall,
byr;OrdOr'm&e Andyentered 15 the mioutss or.
said ‘~oug$i: dotsmine whather pree’lnet offioers
or suoh county, (oroept pub110 wefghsrr and
registrars or .~l+al 8tatistlos) shall b4 009-
pensated 05 a I%r&arr basis as provided for in
Xonorablo H., L. Robersan, Fapag43
this Aot; or whether thsp shall reowirr as
thrir ootipwnaation,~suoh tees of orrioe as
MJ be earned by them in the p4riom4504 of
the duties of their oiiioea, and it shall
bo the duty,of the. ?ountp olerk of eaoh
oountr to forward to the Comptrollsr or
Pub110 Aaoountr dr the State of Texas on or
berorr the 31st da$ or January a oertirled
copy or euoh order. . . .”
Seation 2s of Artiole 39120, supra, prooldsst
"x5 all OOUAti48 Of thftt s&&to OOAbi5-
ing a population or lass than 054 hundroll and
ninety thousand (190,000) inhabitants, aooord-
ing to tho last preoedlng Poderal Census,
wherein ths preoinot ottiorrs are oompwsated
un a salary basis under the pro?lsloas‘ or this
act such prwoinot orriosrr shall reoeiva, in
adtfoa to the salary fired by thr Commls-
eionerr Court, all r9e8, oommkasio~, or pay-
ments marrlago oeremonlws and
ror perrorasng
for aoting as ro@.strar ror thtt acard of
Vital Statlatios, aad ror aotlng as OreOrriOiO
notar puDll0. w
Seotion 1S or Artlole 39120, supra, providas.:in gnrtr
The hXa!Bh9iOAoM' Court in counties bar-
iA a pOpUhtiOA 0r less than twenty thousand
(20,000) inhabitants, aoooFding to the. last pre-
oeding Federal Census at the first regular
meeting 15 January or eaoh oalondar your, may
pass an order providing ror ooPrpensatlon or all
ooutttf and preolnot orricers on a salaa-7 basis.
. . .
Seotion 17 (a), Article SOl23 sitpra, rqads in part
ss rm0tf8t
Vhe term *Preoinot Ofrioers* as~uaed in
this Got asans justiowa or the paaor wnd eon-
stable u .
“(b) In oountlss whore it 8hal1 bavr boon
datemined t&t prooinot offloors rim11 br don-
_.
218
Honorable B. L. Roberaon, Page 4
pensatstt on an annual aalav basis it shall
be the duty of the Comnissioner8’ Court of
auoh county .to fix the salary allowed to suoh
orrfoerr. moh or said orriaerr #hall br
paid in money an wmual salary in twelve (16)
equal incrtallmata or not 20~8 than the total
6um earned aa oompsneation earned by him in
hia offMa qapaoity for the flsonl p%r
1935 and not more than the mrirnum amount rl-
loued suoh orfiosr under lawn existing Awp
uat24, 1935. , . ,”
Sustloos o? ihs paroe am rsqulred to aot ao r8-
&mars ror the B&ml or vital Statlatioa, in oertaln in-
strmoea, by Article 4477, Vfwnon’6 Armotatstl Civil Statuteo,
and amendamts thereto.
In vi6~ 0r the roreguing statute8 you era rerpsot-
fully advisdd th&t it iS th0 OQflliO!l Or this deQEUtrk&t that
where Just&oar OS the peaos..arr compsnaated owfin annual
saley basis, auoh justlose~df the psaoe are authorize6 to
oollsot and retain reer for noting as registrara for the
Board or Vital Statirtios, in addition to their eumual sala-
ries, whioh hem bemi,ilxed bf the Commi~ioner8 Court8 in
conpllanos dth the above mentioned statutes.
en.olo~lng a oopy oi our opinion Nor O-419
We are
and a ooppor so ppinion written by Honorablr J8me.rN, Neil,
Assistant Attor#ep O~naral, addposaed to Honorable Tom C.
King, Btats Auditor, oonmrnfng the qriestioa dlaoussod in
oljinlon NO. O-419, for pour fnrormation. ~.
Trustin that the roregoing fully~~anensn your in-
quiry, we are. .._
-
,.., .: :
Yours wiry truly
ATlDR?ZTMiERALOFTEXAS
ArQell williamr
As8iatant
AWaG