Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFICE OF THE AI-I-ORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN Honorable I?. L. Washburn County Auditor Harrle county Houston, Texas Dear Sirs n of the county 8 which are lthln the Acta ure, page 759, led a8 Sections Juvenile Board duly appointed "In a list aubmlttsd to me for approvals vere the salaries of three assistant probation . Honorable H. L. Washburn, Page 2 . for under a subdivision of Seotion 19, Chspter 465, as amended. .The aeoond two positions, as depsrtment heads, are not provided by Artlole ~3902 in the emount of salary requested, but are so provided by Chapter 465, as amended. Yfhe question arises in detemlnlhg the oorreot a&arias which may be paid to.aaaiatsnta to the ohief probstlon oirioar In Hsrrls County. la Artlole 3902, as it now exists., the yardatiok by which asld salaries are to be measured? Or, may the provisions of Chapter 465, relating to deputies and aaslatsnta, be Used as the basis or determining salaries to be paid to pro- bstion offioera? n* * *’. We have a similar situation with reapeot to Artiole 669Qb, Vernon* a.Anuotated Ten-is Statutes, Page 120, Pocket Part, conoerning the salaries of county trarrio orrlaera. As will be observed from Seotion 2, the’salarlea of suoh deputies ahall be the asam as those rixed in Artiole~3902. Thla aot was gassed at the.~Regular Session of the Torty-fourth Legislature, 1985, at Page 711. *In approving r0r paywent wsrrsnts Issued for the salaries OS assistants to the juvenile offloer ana highway him0 orficera, am I to be governed aa to the maximum by the provisions of Artiole 3902, or by the provisions of Chapter 465 as contended by the ,. ..*,,~~..~I’I..,~;~ offlolala presenting such pay rolls and wsrranta for my approval?” Artiole 5142a, Yectlon 1, Vernon*a Annotated Civil Statutes, provides: “Seotion 1. Provided that in oountiea having a population 0r more than three hundred and fifty thoussnd (350,000) ‘inhabitants aoooraing to the last preaeding or any future Federal Census the County Juvenile Board shall appoint a juvenile offloer for a term of two (2) years at a salary not to exceed X’ive Thousand Dollars ($5,000) per aunum, to be fixed by the County Juvenile Board aubjeot to the approval of the Commlasionera Court to be paid monthly by the county, whose extra duties will’be to make lnvesti- gations for the Comlaaiouera Court on applioationa for oharlty or admiaaion into- detention homes or or- phan homes created by such counties. Suoh juvenile orfioer may seleot assistant juvenile officers aub- jue3t~. .,. .,i : --., ~:- ~~ ~C ,..~, ,. . ., .~” ..._~ , Honorable H. L. Washburn, Page 3 aubjeot to the spproval of auoh Baard, the number of auoh assistants to be determined by the Juvenile Board aubjeot to the approval of the Conunlaalonera court. The salaries of auoh assistants shall be the asme as that fixed in Article 3902 of the Revised Civil Statutea.of Texss, of 1925, and as amended for sasistsnta to other offloials, exbept that the head of a department need,not have before served for any psrtloulsr period’ of tlma; efflolen~y‘belng oallea for in auoh counties. Suoh juvenile ofrloera may be allowed expenses not to exceed Two Hunarea Dollars ($200) a year each.” Article 3912e, Seotion 19, Subdivision (h), Vernon*8 Annotated Clvll Statutes, in pert, provides: R(h) Whenever any district or county. off her, or precinot offioer when such officer Is oompensatea on (I salary basis, with the exception of district attorneys and oriminsl dlstriat attorneys, shall re- qulre the aervioea of, deputies assistants, and em- ployees In the performsnoe of his’~dutlea he shall ap- ply to tha Coaaniaaionera* Court for authority to.ap- point auoh deputies, assistants, and employees, stst- ing by sworn application the number needed, the poal- tion to be