Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

_... .~ r.-’364 ;- ..’ OFFICE OF THE A-ITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN .: ‘ -3~ ..,, $‘. ,. ‘.., . ; :’ ‘y..!, .~ f, :. . . &hiOYauS QiiBUd6 ii. ~lm110S, Page 3 SUOII Boer4;'the L6gIalat\tre.or ~oourfor whloh sooh person ao.appa&t¶.ug or rotIng siay.be,a~ment- b6x, rrhen th4 88iarp; f@OB, OF OOtip4IIS%ti0JI Or sua& appolnt66 la t6 be paid tar, 4lr6otly or lnUir60tly, outof'or tnua publio funds or-fees ofi6ftlos of any kind or oharaotar +h8~~604~4~.~ ItI@ 016ar fr& the &ota su?itmlttod. that &. J6a6ph. B. &f~67tUl$‘1Qc. RobertS', UaRlnloy~\-6r&both In th6 -ploy of the %kWm State.,RmplOym6ntS6r*fO6 .se~ral gears prior to. 8ho appoiatmoa~ of Robert M. 1Lowey na@ m6mb6r of the mraa Unemploym6nt C,oiupxasation OoBmLisaion, .. ,.~:. 'Pb4~&,10y&f th4 !k,csS&&&'&O~nt 236r,&,6; In6lu4ag Hr. ~Joa6ph Ri,bXEInl6yan4 Mr. Robert y. HdgInliy, hold.thaIr poaitlona under a merit apstos~kno~. aa:%i6rit system OS +Yi'c@31, +aq$gfj6i4nt".The or4at~~6n:ofthis Me&It‘ iyatem was reongnIz~4 by the 47th Csgialatu+.s~~:RogularSOS- eloa. In the D6$artr&ntal ApproprIstIon~Dll~&;;Baae beIn 6. B. I&. 423, at pa&e l,@g..;~Wequote ther6from:rl;s,~~ollawat *Rmpl&tont~ ~errloe DIvIsion ,' *( oi~t: br t+hn4mi rb3~anu4 ma,) .. .’ : i. *To.be.uaa4 .tomatab Be4orel~B'ligciir~&luoato4 to tha.State'oi Tore6 turdar-tho'POa~~~~~yse~::Aat, _ for the payreent,ofaelariea and other na6aasary exp4n5ea ..inconneotlon with the operatlonand'maIn- teaanae Of. a Stat6 system of amploym6nt oifIoe&I tierfee ,to be~pald 66oordIng to th6.~0lasaitIaatIans oi the SaoIai Za6urity Board to,4mDloy66a seXsate and rated: undex the psrsonnel phn isi eifrot betmbn the 8001~1 Beouriby Boer6 an% the Stat6 Agenay. The merit system adapted by the,Texas Unemployment Compeneation.Commission Ie In oonformIty with the rsgulatlona promr$beb by tibe Boo101 S6ourIty Board. The~admlnlatratlw oi aaid eyaten Is plaoeb in the hands of a merit oounail whIoh 18 06Mp0844 of thres momb4ru. Generally ageaking, the merit aaunoll determIne the elI&bllItg of p4rfson4 for joba wfth the 6c~~mI6aIonand has the final cay In determining whether an employ66 may be dismIssed. vithout going into the details Or the merit eystem, it Is auffioieat to say that under said system, both, Mr. Joseph B. A&X&ley an4 Mr. Robert Z~,MoKlnleg, ha4 earned the rlgh% or Drivlla~gato hql6 thqiz rcrsprotlregoeitlone in the EmploJrmentSellioa, by’%‘668on oi tWing sraplinations and eeni- ority .qr servioe.~,., 16r.w:berore xr. ~ab6x-tIt?.Hoginl~y ltisap- points4 to bhe Cozdsalon. .When we b&b A&l618 432, smpra, w6 rind the gist .&..the otfense to..+ the appointing. voting for or eon- finaingt~e appbtntment to aw offioe or position, 0r any pereon~r6l6tetl rfthin 6 oertaln degree to the person a0 ap- polntlngi voting for or oonflrmingthe appointment. We rind no faOtB whetaoerer to oupport .thopropo- sition that ths.Texaa Uxwuqloynwl& Oanpmwat$onGdsdon appointed oi oonfhueb the eppoiatmnt'of Mr. 'JoeephB. H6Klalq or Xr. Wobert.J. 2ieKinXeyon, ox eubsequent to,LOotober 31, 19.941, the date,of the appoistment of Xr. Robw+;Xa, LWln.le~ to the Ooamls8itinr IV %s our.opinion iin6you are So advLk,ebth4t under the eri&Lag faot8 the ~te~tiOn-~S Sri. J~~e$i'B.d&Kinley and Lfr.,'RobertJi bi&i.llbpin the -8ap1O~‘.Of’ iihe'Teas Unem- ployment Oranpe*ation OOnmllraLonwill no~.violate the nepotism' law of thlo State, saEpa+rig Artlole 43 *x.e~pre. '~ .; .i ., r. Iii.'sverytruly