.i
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN P
QausGYur \
Man‘-
, ’
Honorable Barry iinor, Chpirman,
State ltoardof Control
Austin, Tesas
-Dear Dr. Knox)
ncivarious other papers and let-
,,
ll'hiti
work was begun during:th, fiscal
year endlnt~August 31, 1940, antithe'State
noard of Control, as the authorized sponsor
or this w. P. A. projeot, ordorod tho trans-
fer of tho sum of $13,246 from tho Iiormille
Stab tinnnturium'ssupport and molntonance
appropriationfor the year ,?ndir.ghug. 31,
Lion.Harry Lnox - pga 2
1940, to that institutionls appropriation
ror general repairs and imprwements.
This amount represented the Sponeor*s
share in payment for this projeot, which
the Federal Qoverument has agreed to
ma%h vith $13,400~ the estimated total
oost of the project Is $26,666.
'The Federal Government furnishes all
common labor .for this prejeat from its
1. P. A. nolle, but this Board is required
to furnish a Sponsor's Superintendent,rhlch
it has done. The rork has neoeasarily extend-
ed beyond tho fiscal year endlng Aug. 31,
1940, and -is etlll in progress. Thererore,
this Board has submitted to the State Comp-
troller 8 payroll, 8 COW of vhioh is en-
olosed hererpith,requesting payment of the
Sponsor*e Superintendent'ssalary for the
month of Septonbcr, 1940, out of the Ilerr-
rille State Sanatorium*sappropriationfor
general repairs and imprwoments for the
fiscal year ending Aug. 31, 1940, since the
work was agreed upon and begun by the Board
of Control and the Federal Gwernmont in the
last fiscal year, and a oertain sum erasear-
msrkeiiand set aside out of appropriations
ror that year to proride full payment for
the sponsor's share of the prbjeot.. The
Oomptrollervsoffice has refused to apprwe
payment 0r this payroll out of last yonr~s
appropriationfor that purpose.
aIn ties or the ro4ts abwe presented,
aud in view of the lmportanoe of this ques-
tion In connection with possible future
building projects which oannot be aompletod
within the term of oue fiscal year, your
valued opinion IS reepeotfully requested on
tho fOllOWing quostionst
'1. Can tho salary of the Spon80r1s
Superintendentand other neoeseary rorkmen
on thiisw. P. A, projeot for work done in
the present fiscal yoar on said projoot be
paid out of an appropriation for the precod-
. -
Hon. Barry iinos- p8ge 3
ing fiscal year, whoro tho project was
agroed up@n, begun, md money set aside
in paynxvnttherofor in said proceding
fiscal year?
'2. In general, whera the Board of
Control enters into a oonstruction or
slmllar projoots, purchnsing its own
materials 8nd hirlng It8 own workmem for
the project, the time for completion.of
which will of necessity extend beyond the
term of the fiscal ye8r in which an appro-
priation is set aside in full payment for
such project, can the workmen on such pro-
ject be paid for work done in a subse-
quent tiscal year out 0r a preceding
year's appropriationwhich has been so
earmarked?*
ye are of the oplnlon your questions should
be answered in the negative.
These answers are controlled by the follow-
ing considerationsand opinions of this dey8rtmontt
Under Seotion 0, of Article VIII of the Ccn-
stitution, no appropriationof money my be ruzdeby the
Legislature for 8 longer torn than two years. Uorc-
over, the biennial appropriationsby tho Lcgislaturo
are in truth onuual a?prq3rintionsfor the term of two
years, and the balance of sums appropriatedfor a given
fiscal year revert to the Stat0 at ths end Of that fis-
cal year, in the absence of 8 specific re-nppropriation.
It is the policy and nonnin,gof the 1~ that
the appropriationis to be ospsn:l~.?:iUYi.?J~ the year for
which It was made.
It does not follow, howovor, thnt an appro-
yriati.onfor use during the scconc1fiscal yc3r