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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable Claud violf
County Auditor
Howard County
Big Spring, Texas
Dear Sir'
Your reque 1st
cerefully considered 1 by
your request as foil .ows
Dav their Porti& ohthe Drhmldn on said super- -
department, rend&red Xardh
Texas, was not authorized
States Government Food Stamp Plan.
id opinion the 47th Legislature of
No. 201, which reads in part as
"ti IT- CTH) Y TIB IXGISWTURZ OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
wSection 1. That Article 2351 of the Revised
Civil Statutes of Texas of 1925 be amended so as
to add a new section thereto to be known as htl-
cle 2351-17, which shall read as follows to wit:
Honorable Claud Wolf, page 2
.,. . ,, . .
__-_
. c:yi.: .-, , .,_ ._
.YL’
“‘17:‘a. ’.Thb;~Commissloae~s-Cdhrt:of each
Couhty of--thls‘State', in:-aaditlan'T.ti '~the'poirers
alreadg-.oonfe~rqd’r66 ~Jt’;by-law,- is-:hereby empower-
ed :to,- oreatr’~a’:revolvlhg fund :or funds -and’to~ make
appropriat%ois-thereto out of-the-genera+ revenue
of ‘.auch: odunty , “irlza-..suc6:‘~revolving rtia: shall.,be
used by suhh oounty”only_ln :6odperationwdth the
UnItedStates -Department of':AgrI?tilture :tb’aid- and
assist- ln.carrying~out the purpos~s’:hndlpro~isions
of anAct .of ~:Oongress of -the XInitea States pertain-
ing to the distribution of convnoditles,to persons
in needlef_ap-?jst.aqce;.,,under’:the_dlr.e.~tign~.~of the I
upi4ea_..s_tatea~Department.
.~il.Agr-~qpTtpye;‘.pr09
idea,
h,y.evKr J-~ ~-that
__,.___.the _.-_ coMty--~S-~a_ll,l?~v~~~~~~~dL~t.::all
- - .~.
times -either the : mon~,~.aplpr~~,pr~~~~.~._.~-sqDb_FePolv-
iiiil f~a~~~~~~a~--:t_he_s_qu_iqaIeg4~.#rtilbof.:.inl *
stamps: i.ssu,ed by the United States Department of
Agrioiiiture under the Food and/or Cotton Stamp Plan,
which Stamps.,.are
---.- convertible. into. cash at-.any time.
:.. c ..,-,.~ ~‘;t.i.: ., ; T
: I.~;‘!!b: i.-~~:su&co~t& of:.this States ,&,&L,.
ing -the pdwers herein .granted c aii-issuing ~~.offlder
shalLbe -,appointed ..tci ,carry, out’: the:$rdvisik~~:of
thfs:Act:and toradminister .the:funds ‘herein”‘eppr,o-~
priated. ~:SutihIlssulng. officer %hall:“-be ‘a ~oitlzen -df
the-5ta~te~:ofr3exari~~dnd-8pp0fntect~~bJ1-'t~e~Cbunty Jdage
of.i.subh County subject to “the :a$j)roPal ‘of, the ‘C~mmiS-
sioners Court thereo?. #e shall be required to fur-
nish a xood ind;‘~~uff.loient :%&%% ty:bond -.ti +udh amount
and.npon&chiterMt and $‘6ii~ltions%~~‘~maybe required
by.-the.rlldnhnl~sTonerlP’Cquff ~%%nd ~%hd~Jin$tddStates .,De--
p&Mea6 I& t&gfc:cultur@~. :-. Sue;h-~istilpiig :‘ offioer shall
rda&ivti cd,,sala‘rJi; to be -p&r& au* :if:?td +&r&l funa
or. :tiy. other :.funa .‘-: ; :: L..?::; in-.;
~_ ~_._~c.y~T.;fiz <.,“ ;,c,:j ‘. ,./~. : .;.~“y:.
, .- ,,-
Yonorable Claud Wolf, page 3
“‘C. Provided however, the polsers herein
ranted0 such counties may be exerbised by two
! 2) or more counties in conjunction with each
other and In cooperation with the United States
Department of Agriculture. And when such powers
sre executed by two .(2) or more counties jointly,
the County Judges of such counties shall appoint
the issuing officer, fix such appointee’s bond
and do all other things necessary to cooperate
with the United States Department of Agriculture
In the same and like manner es is herein granted
to any one county of this State.
"*a. Provided that Such Commissioners
Courts of suoh counties may cooperate with any
incorporated city or town within such county.or
counties on such conditions and requirements as
may be promulgeted by such Commissioners Court
or courts.
“‘e. Whenever any county herein authorized
to crs such a revolving fund ceases to parti-
cipate therein the issuing officer appointed under
the provisions hereof shall, forthwith reduce all
stamps to their equivalent in money and return
such moneys then on hand to the fund from which
same was originally appropriated ana render a full
account of his administration thereof the the Corn:
missioners Court of Courts as the case may be.’
“Sec. 2. If any section, subsection, or
clause of this Act Is, for any reason, held to be
unoonstitutional, such decision shall not affect
the velidity of any of the remaining portions of
this Act, and it is hereby declared that this Aot
would nevertheless have been passed without such
section, subsection, or clause so declared unoon-
st itut ional.
,
“Sec. 3, The fact that an Act of Congress of
the United States has appropriated money for the
Department of Agriculture of the United States
providing for the aispositinn of surplus cozznodl-
ties by the surplus marketing administration in the
Department of A&culture of the United States, and
said administration is now distributing surplus com-
modities through the Food and/or Cotton Stamp plan
. .--
Honorable Cleud Wolf, page 4
or System, which is yery beneficial to persons
in need of assistance and the fact tbi3t said Act
requires the cooperstion of oountles orb municl-
palltles a8Slring.tO participate In the benefits
of ssid Act, and the further fact that there Is
now some doubt as to the legal authority of the
Commissioners Court to appropriate funds for the .
purpose of aiding end carrying out the provisions
of said Act and in view of the further fact that
persons In various counties of Texas are In dire
need of assistance that might be extended to
them under the provisions of said Act, Creet8
an emergeqoy and sn imperative public necessity,
that the Constitutional Rule requiring bills to
be read on three several days, be end the same
Is hereby suspended and that this Act shall take
effect and be in force from and after its passage
and approval by the Governor of this State, and
it is. 80 enacted.” (Underscoring ours)
The above act was signed by the Governor on April
15th, 1941, and filed with the Secretary of State on .Aprll 16th,
1941,. and became immediately effective.
You are respectively advised that it is the opinion
of this department that your question should be answered in
the affirmative and it is so answered.
Very truly yours
WJF: db @TORN?ZYGiINlRALOF TEAS
Approved Apr 28, 1941 By ;Is/ Wm. J. FsMing
Assistant
/s/ Grover Sellers
First Assistant
Attorney General Appro.ved : Opinion Commit tee
BY B?B Chsirman
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Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion
Combined Opinion