OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
I5ononblr augustin Colafa, Chsfrman
Comilttee on State &fairs
tiouzr oi ;cpr*s*ntativr8
n\U)tin, Terar
flnd8 and dr-
olarac tht
a publio oalardty
lu c b na tu r e l# to
untie8 to take rtopr to pro-
lta thr oanrequenarr of a re-
Ihat for a period or fir0 (51
ywasr, be&&g 81th tb tuablr year 194a.
thrrr 18 hereby donated and granted bt tho
state or Texas to eaoh rappoctiie county bf
thfr State, one-half of the State 86 talorea
taxen oollaoted for general rc~enuc purFwe8
upon t& property and from the psrsonr la rash
rerraotlrt= countr, ssoept those heretofore do-
nated or apyrapriatsd, inaluaing sd raloru
taxes OE ths rolling stock bslonglng to rsil-
road oonp5n2*s, tilch shall bs lsosrtainsd and
apportions& as non proridsd bt law. Ths tusr
hereby Conatsd and grsntsd shsll bs lsttsd ti
lssrsmd and collsotsd a# now protid81I br law,
arcopt thot ths ~asssor and Collaotor oi T~sa
In saoh rsepsotirs oocnty shall fmard his
reports to tho Ccqtrollsr oi Fubllo Aoownts 88
Frovlded by law and &all gay over to tbr 'Tma@-
ursr of ths oountf all moneys oollsotsd bx hla
at ths sod of esoh uonth and durin& tbs psriod
oorsrod by thb donution, eraapt such acxounts
aa are allowed by lau r0r a*,s*saing and oolleot-
ing the saps, and shall Sciruerd a duplioats
copy of ths rsoslpts sit-en him by ths County
Treasursr tor raid money to ths Ccmptrollsr.
“sec. 5; :~Othin8 la tills Ast 8hall CuiIsnd,
alter, imdiiy, or repssl any doaatioa, grant or
remisston o? tar** h*r*tofor* fade.
“SX. 4. ‘;he tax88 donatsd an4 gmatsd by
tbfs AC: and oollsotsd in sash rsrpsotits coun-
tr 80~11 be used by tbs Count7 Commls8loncrr'
Court or said ootintr for the iol.lalng purpo8osr
(a) loxwing the ad reloresi tax rats far aouaty
purposes; (b) OCWtrcCtiII& ihOd OoatrOi works
and iupove~ents in sirid oouaty) (0) ior imprors-
rants ta prsvsnt soil sroslon and for roll ooa-
senatlon purpossr~ (d) ior irrigation and dmin-
a88 projeots~ (e) cooe*rtatlon and ntllfzatlon
o r nator; ( f l ror projeots sp o nr o r sd b y l c o u n-
tr In cooperation with ths l%daal Works Frogrsa8
administration or its auec888ors g) for general
rsllsi and obarltabls purpo888~ 11 h ror ps ylng
ths lntsrsrt and 8fnkfng iund on ~JI OUtStUding
Loaded lndebtednrsr 0r tA8 county; r i) ror assirt-
ix@ in the developeot of narigation.
*Sea. 5. -20 C~~SSIO~~~S' CCU~ lm rw-
thsr authorizsd, out ci any of ths taxes henln
.
donated and granted to their res~ootlvs oountlsa,
to oontraot with tim Govs~sing board or any River
L ruthurl ty or .:atsr X&prorsmsat Cls triot, whlob
aey laolu68 til or say part oi ruoh oaunty, to
psrforu oonatruotion works for such Firer Aut!ar-
lty at ‘+etsr Ieprovsnsnt Dirtriot, or to rot &ride
any ?art, or all, ct the taxes harsh donated
and granted to such oaunty, for the ua oi saoh
2Irsr riuthotity or Yatar Improramnt Dietriot la
retiring its bondod fndsDtaQasss, or ior the use
of such ?Irer Authority or itatsr Improrsmsat Dlr-
trlot In carrying out any other purposs or pur-
poser ior nhioh such Xver Authority or Xater Im-
prore~a8 Dirtriot aas craatsd.
"Sso. 6. Ii any asOtlon, subssctlon, pua-
graph, ClaUBS, ssntsnoe, or word of thla Act or
tha lpplioatioa thcrsof to any parson or olrsu~m-
stsnos is hsld Intilid, suoh holding ahell not
airsot the valldlty of t!m renainlng proviaionr
of tarn Aot; and this LagIslatms hersby daolmss
that It wdld have pcsssd suoh rsmalning portions
doepit. suoh 1nra.lIdity.
"ESO. I. ‘The f aot that sash county in Texas
has suiterea nourrlnq tlrOU~~t@ and flOod* oaua-
lng loss of lire, earlour damage to anb dsrtruo-
tlon o? property and dsep aad uid88pread s?titsring
end dlatrsesr, oonstltuting a pabllo oelaity lo
eaoh auob county; end ths iaot that aid from thr
State Is nsceasery to enable moh oountfes to
yrersnt and to ninImla8 the son**quenoe* of m-
ourmncs of rush oalamltfss, srsats aa smsrgsnoy
and an imperatlvs gubllo nsos8sity dmmding that
tha Constitutional Xule requiring b111a to be
reed oa three ssrsral daya In saoh F?cuss br sw-
psndsa, and ths *MS ls hsrsbg *uspendsd, and
this bt shell ta k srfsot
e lr;d b in for08 trol
md after lts~paaaags, and it la no snaoted.”
You will rsoall tht a similar bill uas parsed by
tbs ?orty-sixth Lsglrleture, that IS Ssn8t8 Bill 30. 2.24,
ntich was held to be unconatltutIonal by the Della6 Court
of ilril ~~psals in the case of k’o’hnbs, at al v. hllar
county, et al, 136 S. k:. (al) 995, The Suw-ams Court role*4
e wtit cl error kn a wrltt6n Opinion. Ullee County v,
t'occmbr, 140 2. '(. (2d) 1109. The Court at Ciril APQ.38
held that eeld 2. 3. 824 rlolat@U SoOtIOn 9 of ~rtlelo 8,
se0ti0fi i 0r idid a, hotion 1 or wti0i0 3, s00ti0n
18 of -rtlole 5, an4 Sootion 3s 3, of the Steto
or et1010
conati tutloll. .380, that It wa# violative ot &lob 0
.eotlon 6, of our Conrtltution Fn two mqmota, rlnt (ij
a8 an apprQpriatiO8 It war no? *OpOo:rio* u thweia n-
quirod, and (2) it was EP appropriation tot longor than
two yaem,
-:a believe the Court a? Civil Appeals rar oorteot
in aach of lte holdln68. ~+ Supmm Court, la it8 opinion,
bald that the Aot r1olat.d tint part oi wtlolr 8, Sootion
6, of the Constitution, limiting apprapriatlonr to two yrrm.
Aa to the other Polntl), thht court da -WI OX ma4 m 0pitb
ion on ths other constItutional quartions into P~4, a8 It 18
Got ncoeasery ?or u6 to 40 00.
‘%a Aat thu8 held imatia 0olltalaed l eta tek a nt
that “these coudtler ---hare, from tlm to time, been vi6fte4
with publio celealtloe oi one kind ot another.” l!hr 8upm6m
COUti S0j0OtOd the OOkIt03tiOLI EL& by Dilla COW&t tbt thr
&it oould be auatainrd aa a grant under tha oalmltg olausa
of Artlclo 5, Ceotlon 51, oi #a Conatltutlon, in thla lmguagrt
“It will ba noted tht tha rborr-quatad
emmgenay alauae oontalM ttU Statement1 ** l +
and for the further ttsot thqt thaw aountler
not having hemtofore raoeired 8uoh donationa
ano sppropriatlona hare, rmpl tice to time,
bean vlslted,ti~t$ pub110 oaleinitlrr oi,o~ar*$nd
or Mother, omata an ezargenay
It aee~ to be oontenQa4 by plalntiiia in e&or
+Let the above-quoted pOI%QSk0i tN6 bt OM
be treated 88 a 1eglrlatlVs find- that a MO-
lrelty rxlatr in a11 OoUlltle8 Mu*fltad b# t&la
r;mnt or appropriation ior 'rid lo oaa66 oi pub-
lla oalarelty.' a6 provided for In Sootion 51 d
*rtialo III OS our state CoMtlt~Ltlon, e?lpra*
10 our ~lnbs, the :.t‘oye attupt to cake a find-
1~: or ';ukilio calamity falls far abort Of
zeetinq the re~uiramantr Of t.h* CO~tttUtiOMl
p~ulsipn just nrntlonad. X0 attempt 18 ccad* t0
~:occrcl:Le .iu:us:ins felaya, !:hairt26n, i’ere
.A S
dsflae the klnc? or charaotar cf ‘gubllo oaluzlt~.*
In hot, It is lxpmsaly stated that auoh oalae~i-
ties are 'OM klnc! OL another,' Zuoh find- Is
50 general, vagts, and indetlnlte a6 to emouat
to nothlrig. -Lo glra rfirot to suoh findin(l would
‘3 to nakr a travesty cr that part oi Sootion 51
of Artlclo III or our Constitution which &l~a
the L6gialsture to grant aa ‘in 06666 of pubiio
odemltg. *’
2m only errort made in the present bill to correot
the tloaa in the old Aot la rspmarntaa by E*otloar 1 ma
7 or this :.. )~'. 30. 5. It 16 our opinloa thet t!m oonatl-
t~tioncd objeotlons to the bill h8re not been ramovod, ?h6
deoleratlon in the pm6ent bill "t?At in rroont yuara re-
ourring droughta and floods hare ooourmd In -etarr county
In Texas, oauaing 1066 of life ena auitaa to and deattruotion
of property to the utmnt of millions o? dollars ud ooo~alo~
fng deep and ri~eapre~d surfsring and ~16tre86 caoag th6 In-
habitsat or each of suoh oountlra; thet ruoh taotr oonstltuto
thr ooourmno~ of a publis oilamity to aaoh of aaid oountlaa-
is just M senor6l, -e&u6 rni laderfnlte, to 6U prrotlaml
. purposes, as the statement In th6 other hat so oonde~sd by
the ~~uprez~~Court.
310 oalsmlty ~16~66 in iitlala 3, Srotion 81, o?
the Conrtltutlon, wan not intended to provldm a rrhfole for
the tiole66le tre3zier of sonsy rram one oonstitutioaal fund
to anothar. Tt vas written into the Conatltutloa to arable
:he Staie es 6 rxle to oxtend mllsf to thoaa parts of its
ames wfiloh rro= tims to time might bs ltrlokea with auoh
aalaEltous vlait~t?ons aa rim, flood, tenpast an6 dirraaa.
X? the declarations in this blJS we true lab oonmtltuto a
pub110 oalamlty, then the whole St6te, reoh 6nd every county
in it, has boon ln 6 oondltion of pub110 oalaraity rinoa beior6
the Conrtltutlon was wrltt6a. tioptlng tlm word6 o? Judge
Crltt, 'TO dv6 afr6Ot t0 SUCh l r india g UOtdd k t0 mlk @
a trevoaty of that part of Sootion 51 of Artioh 111 o? our
Constitution whloh allow6 the Legislaturs to errant sld la
066e6 0r public calamity."
Pours iery truly