OFFICE OF TNE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF ‘I’-
Qourot%llucn AUBnN
A7ummwmmtau
Honorable George H. Shepgard
Comptroller o? Pub110 Aooountr
Austin, Texas
Dear Slrr
OpInIon No. O-3830
Re: Transier 0r funds In Old Age
AssIOtanoe FmdZ-
We are in reoelpt or your recent opinion request
relative to ,the txnsrer of certain funds irc;n the State’ Old
Age Aaslstanoe Fund to the Federal Old Age Assistsnae Fund,
rshlch the State Department of Fublic Welfare has requested
you to nake.
There are berore us twc letters from the Depart-
ment oi Publio Welfare, one dated July 26, 1941, the other
dated August 15, 19&l, from which xe understand the iaots
to be as tallows:
Sine6 July 1, 1936, the Federal and State Govern-
ments have heen oooperating in making payments ior old age
aasistanoe on an equal basis, I. e., the Federal Government
has matched State payments to pensioners dollar iOr dollar.
The-aUnIstration Of the ?edbrrdl Soolal SOOUrlty Act IO
vested In the Soolal Seourlty Board whloh has made various
rules and regulations and Is oharged with the duty oi deter-
mining that the Federal monies are expended or dlsttlbuted
in aooordanoe with the Federal Soolal Seourfty Aot. Eaoh
quarter the Federal Oovernment has forwarded It6 pro rata
part of the penalon money to the State Agenoy, based upon
estlaates, and the State agenoy eaoh month has made the aotual
dIsbursemoMs tc Individuals after determinine their ellulbIlIt~
.aud needs. From time to time the soolal Seo&ty Board Kas
made audits of the payments to various reoiplents, and at pre-
sent audits have been oompleted ooverlng the periods 1936, 1937,
1938, 1939, and 1940.
Honorable Caorga R. Sheppard, page 2
At the completiBn of each audit period the Social
Security Board took exceptions to various payments by the
State agency and presented aartaln schedules ot Vlscal and
allglbllity axoapt ions*. After alaarance material had bean
submitted by the State agency in justlticatlon ot the payments,
and appeal perfected to the Social Security Board, said Board
rlnally disallowed and refused to aoncur In payments made to
certain reclpiente from July 1, 1936, to D?oember 31, 1939, In
tha total arm or $23 662.87. In the latter or July 26, 194l,
mentioned above, It 1s stated that *the amounts heretofore
shown as adjustments have bean Oarefulg checked and this
agency la In agreement with the Sooial Gaourity Board that the
Federal Old Age AaaIstanca Fund should be reimbursed due to
the adjustments as shown ior the various periods In accordance
with the audits submitted by the Federal Auditors.”
The State Department of Fubllo Vialfare has tharatora
requested you to transfer #23,662.87 tron the State Old Age
Assistance ?Ud to the Federal Old~Age Assistance Fund In
setl~fnctlon of this clslm by the Social Security BoaQd. You
request our advice as to whether you are authorized to make
this tranarer.
The Public :‘1alfare Aat,. enacted by the 46th Legla-
lature oreated the “State Departmeht of Fubllc Gelfaran,
which among other things wss organized to administer asalstanaa
to tee needy aged, The duties of t5e Texas Old Age Aaslstanoa
Cammlaslon, together with its funds, ware trenstarred to such
nawlg created Dapartnen5. This act was amended by the WPubllo
walrare Act or 1941*, 17th Leglalqtura, a+ractIve July 2, 194l
md in general continued the same sdalnistratlve arganization
as that provided by the Act of 1939.
Under Section I of the “Fubli& ‘:‘altare Act of 191,1w,
the Ptate Departcent of Public :7elf’are is charged with the
admlniatratlon of the walrara activltlas of the State as pro-
vided therein, and it la provided that II shall WadmInIater
aaaiatanoa to the needy aged.” Seotion 6 oi aaid Aot daalgnataa
the State Department as the State agenoy to oooperata with ths
Federal Government In the administration oi the provision8 of
the Federal Soolal Security Aot, Including the payment of asslstan~
to the needy aged.
t
Honorable George H. Shappa$d, page 3
Saotlona 26 and 27 bt the lot of 19&l read a8
rollowa t
*sea. 26. All asslatanoa payments rovldad for
under the tams oi thla Aot ahall ba pa Bd by vouohara
or warrants drawn by theState Comptroller on the proper
aooounts of a *State Department of Dub110 Welrara Fund*;
ror the purpose of parnittlng the State Comptrollerto
properly draw and Issue auoh vouohars or warrants, the
StateDapartment of Pub110 Welrara shall furnish the Comp-
twollar with a list of or roll oi those entitled to asalat-
anoa iron time to time, together with the amount to whloh
each raolplant la entitled. When auah vowhan or warrants
have barn drawn they shall be delivered to the haoutlva
Director of the State Dapartnent of Fubllo Welfare, who
in turn shall suparvlaa the delivery of same to the parsons
entitled thereto.
aSac. 27. (1) For tha Ruwposes of oarrylng out the
provlalona of this Act, the Old Age Asslatanoa Fund, the
3lind Assistance Fund, and the Children Aaalstanoe Fund,
aa provided for in HoLae Bill No. 8, Aota of tine Forty-
seventh Legislature, Regular Seaaion are hereby made
separate aooounts of the ‘State Department of Publlo
Welfare Fund* as oraated by this aot. Provided, that
all moneys In the saparate aooounts at tia State Dapart-
mentor Pub110 Welfare Bund shall be expanded only for
the purposes of oarrylng out the provlalons of this Act,
and for the purposes for which said separate acoounta
were created or appropriated.
e(2) The State Treasurer 18 hereby daalgnatad
aa the opstodlan of any and all money whloh may be ra-
oelvad by th? State of Texas (whloh the State Dapartmant
of public Welfare la authorized to admlnlater), from any
appr>prlatlons nreda by the Congress U the United States,
ror the purpose of cooperating with the several provlmlons
’ of the Federal Social Security Aot, and all money raoaItad
from any other source; and the State Treasurer la ha?aby
authorized to reoelve auoh money, pay It Into the propar,
fund or the proper aooount of the Caneral Fund of the
State Treasury, provide for the proper ouatody thereof, ~\,
and to make dlsbursaments therefrom upon the order of tha
State Department and upon warrant of the State Comptroller
of Public Aocounta.’ !a,
Honorable Cecrga B. Sheppard, page 4
Tha Padoral money mentioned in 27(Z), quoted above
la deposited with the State TraaaureS by vlrtua or an Rot or
Congress. Sad. &2 U.S.C.A. ( ) O)Ol., 393. The Stats monies
in the=sparata aooouuta designated as the Old Age Aaalatanoa
Fund of the State ~apartmant of Pub110 %aliara Fund era
derived iron tsxea levidd and oolleotad bp tha Stats or
Texas and allooatad to this apaolal fund In the State Treasury
or by appropriation by the Laglalatura iron another fund ln
the treasury. For example, sea House Bill No.8, Aota l,7th
Legislature, Regular Session. We assume the "State Old
Age Aaaoolatlon Fund* snd tha RFederal Old Age Aaaistanoa Fund-,
whloh are not mantlonad In the lagIslatl~a act, are separate
aooounta In the Old Age Aaalatanoa Fund propr, whloh you have
set up to iaollltata the kaaplng Of adequate records and a
proper aooountlng between the Federal and State Governments
In their oontrlbutlona to such fund.
It la stated In the letter of August lgth, aooompany-
Ing the request that the quarterly payments had6 by the Soolal
Saourlty Board are only a tentative basis, are not final
payments to the State, and are aubjeot to review by the Federal
authoritlaa. For the purpose of this oainlon we ~111 eaa&‘oe
the correctness of t?ia atstenent and ~111 aaauze further thati
such runda are deposited in trust *tit& tie State agency to be
distributed as directed by the Sootal Security Board, that the
exceptions of said Board ror the pa8lods audited were well taken,
and that the Federal CoverlLaent has a.vslld claim torrelmburse-
ment . We express no opinion with reference to these matters,
however.
hrtlola VIII, Seotlon 6, of the Texas Constitution
rexda in part as iollowsr
wNo money shall be drqwn rromthe Treasury but In
purauanoe of spaclrlo appropriations made by law; nor
shall any appropriation of money be made #or a longer
term than two years, .l,. .I)
The Board has not requested that you draw a werrant
payable to the Federal -Oovernme.nt and thua wlthdraw this money
from the treasury ln pamant of the olala, but Instead has
requested that the Federal Govarnaaatqa aooount in the Old A&a
Aaalatanoa Fund be oradltad with the ano,-nt of the olalm and
oharged against the State aooount in aatlaiaotlon of such
ola4.m. Any dlf~arsnoa between the above twc situations would
.
Honorable George ?I.’ Sheppard, page 5
srem to be one of form and not of substanoe. Thw whole basis
and purpose of this proposed transfer of funds Is it)