Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

I 430 OFFICE OF THE AnhNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN Boardor Dirootora Tana Collsgr of Arts k Induatri~ Ilin~;mill.r, Texae xmar Slrat allege of A&# and under ths iaotn GorsrnorO*Danlelundertook l&fir4for the DUrpOSO Oi rred sxietsa on Juns 65, g lsttsr of appointmentto -ia\Psen---~--- "I 89 to&x appointingthe r0ii0ring 00 Member8 or tt433306rd.0r Bwmtr 0r Tsxam col.lrgeor Art8 and Imlu$trie# at r%wevlllr, ror six year termq $0 srplrr Jun6 20, 1947r -1 Bert3 or Direotors,Texss Colls~eof Arts diIndustries,pags t .. OYorrl.8Robe&, Victor18 H. S. Wltts, CorpusChrfsti Cal, Mrs. J, E, King, San Antonio _ 'Tleassissue the above oommlsslonsat i your earliest opportunIt7, "Slnoenly yours, /s&l/ W. Leo OQsnlel Oersrnorof TOZBS.~ Subsequently,on J\rlyZ9, 1941, this dapartmanthala In opinionNo. O-3384 that the terms of members or this Board oomnmnoad and terminated as OS September1 whereroreno vaoan- ales would sxlst on the Beard a8 of June 84. No other action with regard to the matter was taken by CovernorOQDaniel. On Au.gmt 4, 1941, Governor O%~nlsl assumedtit.8 ofrlos of United states Senator,therebyvaoatlngthe orfior or Covernoran4 LieutenantGovernor Coke Stevensonbecame Governoror Taxas. ve are advised that the lniormalrsoordsor the I Seorstaryor state lndloatsathat t4m tsm~ 0r 0rrl00 ot the threr dlr6otorslnrolraderplrrdon Jtms 25, 194l, and that :. CorernorOQanlelw~s so lnfonaeb; The bovamor u&art&ok to appointnr. Roberts,Mr. mitt =a lm. xlng to six-yesr tmns ending June Sb; 1947. ObvlOUrlyfor a six-yearterm to end June 25, 1947, it must oonunsnos on June 85, 1941. The Gotsrner~s letter 0r ap ointmentdsmonstrat~san intent to tillvaoanols8Whloh ha irun& 6xlstWl on J&H 25, IOU, at whloh time he wss OOV6rnWe It nauld oppose the express languageof the appointmentlstter~-to~sathat he purpcssb ~~rr~lll~~nolr8 on the Boardwhloh woup d arise on Septem- , . ~~oonsequenoe,we (Lonot belirve that ths faots warrantthe oonoluslonthat Governor OQanlel lntendeato mke ths a pointmentsinvolvedas of Sepbmber 1, if the f 5 should be iOr any reason 1nafiectlVeas Of appointmen June Zb. Yoreover,It 1s doubtfulif an appointmentexpressly rslatsd.toa purportedvacanoyon a prior date would oon- rtituts as a matter 0r law, a mid appointixntto a prospeo$lteaotual Vaoanoy on a later date, .I,. +i Jo Board Oi Dlrsotors,TOW! Colle&eor Arte & Industries,m~s 3 4.32 Ii, however,the appofntnontsunder :avlenbs re- ~~varded as lntsndsdfor, an4 stisotivsas of, September1 it is cur opinion that they would none the lass br Inefrectfts. Upon the questionof prospectivea polntnents, es surs to occur lrorc appolntmmts in advancs to fill vccaqoi! subssquentlyin publlo olrloea, them Is u#anlnlty or apin- Ion among the o:urts that suoh eppolntmnts are Invalidii the tann ai the ofilce fillad OSMOt be& until tho tom of the agpolntln~ymer an4 the power to apaolnt.havsax- gdred. It was deolnrodby tha Sugrom Court of Alabarra la Oberbaue v. State, 173 Ala. 4E3, 55 So. 8C8, 9028 *&e have oarefullyoxrrnlned the cuthorl- ties on this pro~osltlon,and, as th:!reIs co ~~tcrlalo;~dllota-::ong thsz, It Is zot naow- sary to hnre roproduoetb:rslr Ian@%-a or rea- eonlnl, Tncp clearly 5ert.15 the lnw to the 0rr00t that the appointingsower or,:.nnot fora- atoll.the ri ~.hts nn4 ?roro:$ntivnsof Its mm aucowwor by a-.pointln~ auooeasom to 0friOflm whose otrloielterms sXplr0oontsm;~oranooua- ly with or altar the sx?imt.ionof the tern of the n?poIntlng,?bwsr; but whore, by law or porsonslaotion, the ol'fioe to t:efilledby appointmentvxnt bsooma vnoant by the ex- PiratIonof the lnouabezd'stann or by his withdrawalduring the tmn oi the epi‘oint- llr~;wwem,a prom~eotlveappol:it?.ant thnre- to, if not forbiddenby law, zsy be zade at ;l;~qmlant sermon before the aotilr.1 erpira- Xsohsn on imbllo Off1085 an4 Ofrlosrs, ! !$I Throop on Publlo Offloers, I 92; 28 k. . 2, ;Pnay.Lnw, 347 29 CYO. 1373; SlititOX ml, *&rrls v. 3ullivan 01 Ohio St. 79, 90 N. 5. 146, Et L. R. A. IN. 3.) 514, ou.4riots; Stnts sx rd. Mltnay v. Van Buskirk,40 1;.J. IA%W, 463; State ex rsl. Child% v. O'Leary,64 t.'dM. EC7, 66 11, viii.264. And this ws hold to be the law," In aceor& nro tha Non York C~SRS of 2eoAdev+ Fitz- N, y. 269, 73 f:.::.53, fml Town0 v. Fortor,1% ...~mlfl, 180 kgps1bts IiivisIon 717, l..l3 ::.Y. Su>, 72s. In the first oaae the Court of Appeal?Bpidl Board OS Direotors,Tsxaa,Colle:!e ‘ofArts & Industrlas,Pago 4 *. . , An appointmentto officein antf- olpationof a vaoancythereinis good only in oaee the offloor aeakia the eppointmnt lr still in offlccwhen the vecanoy occurs.” To tho sam ofteotem the Ohio oases of Stats T. Caen, 98 Ohio State 277, 117 1:.E. 238, and State v. Sulll- ran 81 Ohio Btete 76, 30 FJ.X. 145. In the first oesa mentloned, it yyesdoclared~ ”. . . It hem generallybeen held that the appointingpower bar lull authorityto antlol- pet0 vecanoieain its ep olt&nsnts. This legal prinol al, however, la 1!mlted in that suoh veeanole as, whetter by reslgnatlonor en,plra- tion of terzn,mmt ocaur during ths life of the agpolntlnggowar, The letter oannotsaddle upon its uuoosssorsappointerrwhore ottlolal terns are to begin thereafter. , . .” The rule ww sxprsssedas followsby the Suprem Court of Maine in Pattangallv, Oilman,115 MB. 344, 98 Atl. 93bl ma . . The authorltiasare &enlmouely - in favor of the propositionthat, if tho term or the appointingpower extehd8 beyond the point of tAna when ths veoanoy arises,a prospeotlveappointmentmey be made! and conversely that Lf the tam of the appoint- ing power d06s not extend unti1.eveoancy arises in the eppointive offior,no appolnt- mnrtnt, prospeotlveor otherwise,may be mede by that appointingpower. The reason1s slrnpls.The appointingp&&r oanriot fore- stall the rlghts and prerogativesof his own auooessor by appointingsuaoessorsto office beginningafter his yovrarto appoint ha8 itselfexpired.” See also Ivy v, Lusk 11 Le. Ann. 4861 State V. blerhen,45 N. J. Law 1891 Peoph v, Ward, 107 Gel. 836, 40 Pea, 5381 48 Corpus Uurls, 1 64, p. 9% 434 r -1 Eoard of Dlrrotora, Texer Ooll8gr of Art8 B Indurtrler,Faga 8 ., The untlerlylngrea8ons for these pronouncement8 by the oourtr epply with r8peolel force to tha matter et hand. Governor O'Dani81 had ennounoed for end hi& been eleoted to the orflos of United Stats8 Senator. Upon errrum- lng this offloe h8 would eutomatloellyveoete the offioe Of Governor and Lisutsnent Gov8rnor Stevenson would beoom8 hi8 8uooe88or. Thereupon, Governor OQanlel~8 appointing power muld expire, Xhen tM8 muid ooour via8a matter to br dsclded by him alone. So long e8 ha ohoes to remein e8 Oovernor it we8 his right to mak8 eppolntmenta to fill veoenoler In publio offloe whloh had arisen, and to make prosp8otivr appointments to fill vaoenole8 whloh would aria8 while he continued to oooupp tho office of dovernor end we8 po88rssed of the appointing power. During this time, how8ver he wea, in our opinion, without the power to make entloipato appolntnentsto fill vacanoles whioh would erlee after h7:8 appointing power bad termbated. Thr paver to fill veoenoles erlrlng after h8 left the Gover- nor*8 offio8 18 the prerogative of Oovsrnor %8von8on, hi8 aucoosaor, and oould not br forestalled by any eot ot Governor OlDeniol, whether under e mlatake of faot or other- wlae. Aotuelly the fact8 oonrlnoingly lndloate that Governor O%enlel was mer8ly undertaking to fill oBoeno upon the Board which he oongldered had already arisen. Doubtleaa he would have made no attempt to fill the thre8 meobsrehlps on the Board of the College had he known et the time that the offioes would not beoome wcent until September I.. In any event, it lo the oplnlon of thls,de- partment that tho aotlon of Corernor OWeni in na!alng Mr. Roberts, Mr. Butt and Mr8. King to the Board of Dlreo- tore of the Tmxe8 Collsgo of Arta & Indu8trie8,under the faots whloh we have reviewed, 18 of no fore6 and rffsot end thnt the three menberahipr on the Board whloh will beooms vacant on September 1, 194l ece 8ubject to being filled by appointment by Governor 4tevonuon. Very truly your8