570
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable R. A. MoElrath
County Auditor
Cooke county
Ga5.nesville, Texas
Dear Sirr
that the oountr
and keep a
er? And related.
repusstlng em
0phi011 0r thla Dq ions as are herein
stated
we as r0ii0n8:
mm%
-By\ady or introduotlon, ~111~ say that the aubi-
tore of Cooke County have not keptta aahool ladger 8inoe
about 1927. Evidently the keeping or euoh a ledger was
abandoned about the t$me the opinion of the AttOrnOy
General, book 62, page 337, was released, whloh opinion
saya, * . . . school tirraire or 8~ county, adminietratlve
and financial, are under the supervielon of the State
and not the county . . .*
Honorable R. A. MfcElrsth, Rape 2
"I am teklng the liberty of discussing the pro-
position further, somewhat in detail, in the hope that
you may be able to sac just what an auditor is up
against when he tries to keep the school ledger as
provided for in article 1652 with the lImIted inform-
atloh available for keeping such a ledg.er. I am not
attempting tG argue or to discuss the matter as a
lawyer would disauss it, but rather from the standpoint
of untl whose duty it is tc put the law lneo effeative
operation and doea not know, in view of the oonflict-
lng olrcumatanoes, how to go about it.
':The term 'ledger' as USedin said article 1052 Is
evidently meant to be an ordinary ledger such as Is used
in business, aa it calls for an 'accurate account 0r
all funds received and disbursed.*
*A ledger in any business is a book, or books, ln-
tended to reflect the flnanoial status of the business,
and is set up and maintained by passing through the of-
fice of the kee?er::of such a ledger a oomplete report
of receipts and dis~rscrmenta of every kind, lnoluding
purchases, sales, and other items essential to the con-
duct of the business, thus enabling the keeper or such
ledger to make the proper entries and sk,ow the status
of all acoounts.
"The ledger of the county aa a business oonoern is
provided for in article 1607 and is known as a 'Finance
Ledgorc. It reflects the state of county finances, and
must be kept by the county auditor for the use and bene-
fit 0r the commlssionere~ court. Information neoesssry
fcr the installing and maintainiw of this ledger Is
provided for in part by article 1617 which provides ttmt
overy county official thrcxlgh whose hands pass any county
funds, except the county superintendent, shall make a
full re;Jort'of all monies oollected and present receipts
sad vouohers showing what disposition had been made of
such mcnles; said report to be made to the commissioners*
court at each regular term. These reports, receipts,
vouchers, etc.., all of which must pass through the audl-
tar's off-ice, provides the auditor with all the data
necegsary to instell and maintain a dapendablo ledger
that reflects the flnancall status of each office lndivid-
ually and in its relationship to the general finanoo Of
Honorable R. A. McElrath, Page 3
the county. In addition to these reports rroa the
varioue ofriciale, a list or all funds deposited with
the county treasurer to the credit of any county fund
is submitted to the auditor with a duplicate reoeipt
of each deposit. Also all olalms allowed by the com-
zlssloners* oourt, which claims represent all county
disbursements, must pass through the auditor’s office.
Thur he is furnished with a complete report of all
receipts end disbursements or all county rude.
“The sat-up with refnrenoe to installing end
maintaining a school ledger la entirely dlffarant. No
report 1s required to be made to the county auditor by
the county suparintendant or school truataes, or any
other school official, or for the submibsion of reoaipts,
vouchers, ate., se Is required or other orrloiala. Vhen
there is a par oapbta apportionment of stata fund8 made
by the State Superintendent of Public Instruotlon to be
placed to the credit of the available echool rund of
the County, the money is sent direct to the oounty de-
pository who reports the reoalpt of such money to the
county aupsrintendent together with the amount of such
deposit. Likawiaa, aollaationa of special school taxes
are deposited by the tax collector in ths aame manner.
In neither case is the State Superintendent, the oounty
superintendent, the county tax oolleotor, or the county
depository required by law to report these reoalgts to
the oounty auditor.
“The same general situation is trtie with raferenoe
to d1sburr:ement.s. I quote from opinion O-1063 to which
you refer which says ‘...%a are, therefore, of the
opinion that the administration and disburaemants of
school funds 18 under the control of the school bodies
and that this authority should not be limited by aupar-
vision of the county auditor and other county officiala
when such supervision has not bean specifically author-
ized...’ so far ss I am able to learn, there has been
no such ‘specific sup+trvision’ authorized in Cooke Coun-
ty.
“Comparing the provisions provided by law for keap-
lng the finance ledger with those for keeping the echo01
ledger, wa hsva the following:
“H-:CEIpT:::
Honorable R. A. McElrath, Page 4
aPlnance Ledger - Report.8 or reoelpte of all monlea
received by all oouuty officials handling
county moniee, except oounty rup4rlntendent.
Report of county treasurer with duplicates
of all deposits to county funds for all
purposes.
Y'ohoo? Ledger - No reports and no reaord of reoeiptr
or depoeite.
"DIZBUR5B.4ENTS:
"Finance Ledger - Reporte OS disbursements made by
all county officlala handling county roniea
togsther with reoelpta, vouchers, eto. Ex-
amining and paealng upon all claims preeent-
ed to the ~~mrnlaslonera' court, which claims
oover all dlaburaements made by aounty.
"School Lodger - No reports of aounty superintendent
or trustee6 to county auditor authorlzed.
Paaalng on school dlebureements by auditor
prohibited by law.
"1 not.4 that in your answer to question No. 9,
YOU -7, *The auditor has aooesr to and authority to
oxamine all booka, accounte, reesipts, vouchera, and
other reoorda of all oounty offlclals, and to examine
all vouahore &van by trustees of common aohool dfa-
triate...', and from this you oonclude that it la a
basis for inetalllng and maintaining a eahool ledger
and base your oonolueion upon ertiola 1653 which aapa
, . ..he shall havs continual aoaeae to and shall 4X-
amine all the booka, aooounte, roporte, vouchers, and
other records of any offloer, the orders of the Corn-
mieelonere' oourt relating to the flnanoes Of the
county, and all vouohera given by the Vtru4te41 Of
all common school districts of the county and shall
inquire Into the correctneea of same...'
“It appears to me that the above mentloned ar-
ticle to which you refer as authorizing the county
auditor to obtain the neceaeary information to In-
stall and maintain a school ledger Is in the main
only a blanket authority~ to auditors to examine (or
audit) the books of eti;ot,"z
an ;zg:;e;h$-
ever deemed advisable,
Honorable R. A. McRlrath, Pago 5
providing a aourc4 of information for setting up
end maintaining a school ledger. Furthermore, th4
referenae to the examination of vouohera given by
trustees or common school diatriots ia not erfectlvo,
since in the opinion of the Attorney Gbrmral, book
62, Peg-e 331, to which previous reference haa beon
made, it is hold that * . ..school affairs of a county,
adminiatratlve and financial, are under the mpervi-
slon of the etbte and not the oounty...'
-In your answer to question4 4 and 5 to wit *Is
the aounty school superintendent of Cook4 County ro-
qulred to keep the ledger mentioned In artiolo 1652,
or Its equivalent?* and, '15 the school depo@ltory
bank of Cooke County required to k44p the ledger men-
tioned In article 1652 or ita equivalent?*, 4aoh quee-
tlon we4 anawared in the negative. Pleaee permit the
f ollowlng observa tlon: If the school ledger mentioned
in article 1052, or a similar ledger, were not kept by
both the depository bank and the oounty sup4rintsndent,
and were kept by the county auditor, all of which would
bo in line with your construction of the law, then
neither the dopoeitory bank nor the oounty 4uperintendent
could give any infonmtfon whatever as to the flnanoes of
any school district In the county until the aud%tor*r led-
ger had been consulted, and thia in the fac4 of the faot
that, every item of reoelpts and diebureemQnts pertaining
to school funds paae through the depository bank and the
orrioe of the county superintendent In the regular order
of buelnoss, while none of them pas4 through the ofrlos
of the oounty auditor. A8 a matter of feat, both the
depomltory bank and the county superintendent muet keep,
and do keep, euah n ledger. They oould not teka oar4
of busineaaee of their otrloer without It, nor oould
thsy make the annual report B required of thorn by the
eta te superintendent. They are provided with every item
of information necessary to keep such a ledger, and so
far as I am able to learn, an auditor is not authorized
by law to demand a report of receipts and disbursements
of school funds, either from the depository bank of the
county or the county superintendent or any other school
of ficlal.
“In view of the foregoing mesa Or oonflioting eir-
cumatanoes, your opinion Is deslrsd as to whether, unbar
the tema of article 1852 and oth4r etatutes pertaining
to school matters, it is mandatory upon me a8 County
Honorable R. A. ILcElrath, Fags 6
auditor of Cooke County to *lnatall~ such a lodger
regardless of the fact that no provision la mad4
for supplying me with the Information neaessary to
ksep such Y ledger.
*In vier of the further fact that the county
superintendent of Cooke County muot keep and doe4
keep such i ledger an deecribed in article 1652,
your opinion is desired as to whsther such a lsd-
ger ahould be paid for out of the school fund4 a4
provided for in article 2700D-1, seotion 2, vhloh
act reacis as foilows: 'Tin4 county board of trustees
rhall annually on or before the first day of August
hareaftar crder a scholastic per capita aeeeeement
against eaoh school district within ths county In
aufficiant amount to provide for the payment of the
salary and office expense8 of the county superin-
tandent and any office assistants he may have, ae
is now provided by law, or may hereafter be pro-
vided. And the said asersement when legally made
and certified to the school dletrlctn of tha county
shall be paid by them for the purpose herein 4p401-,
ited.*
"Or shall seme be paid out of county fund4 a4
provided for In article 3099-b section 2, whioh aaye,
'Suitable offices and stationery and blank4 neee4sary
In the porfornmnce of their dutlee may In the dlrcre-
tlon of the commlsslonere~ oourt also be furnished to
resident district judges, resident district and county
attorneys, county superintendents, and county surveyors,
md my 50 p.%ldfor on order oL' the commissioners*
court out of the county treasurer?’
*Or must'it be paidibr out of the private funds Or
the county superinLsndent?n
Article 1552, Ternonfa dmotatsd Civil Statutes,
reads as follows:
"The auditor shall install in his office a sohool
lodger showi.nC an accurate account of all tunde ro-
caivad and disbursed by the comon school distrlcts of
hi@ county; a bond regi.ster showing all the echo01
bond6 isausd by the common sOho districts Of hi4
county, their rate of interest, date laeusd and matul-
itg date; and he ahall also keep an intereat and aink-
ing fund account of such sohool bond."
Honorable R. A. McElrath, Page 7
Article 1653, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes,
provides that:
” . . .-*
Fe shall tiave continual accasa to and
shall examine all the books, accounts, reports,
vouchers and other recorde of any offioer, the orders
of the commissioners court, raleting to the flnanoe
of the county, and all vouchers given by the trustees
Of all common school districts of the oounty and shall
inquire into the corractnasa of the same.*
In our Opinion No. O-2734, addressed to you, It was
held that the school ledger mentioned in Utiola 1652, aupra,
must be kept by the county auditor. We believe that our Opin-
ion No. O-2734 la correct end specifically answers your flrat
question presented in the above mentioned latter. Therefore,
you are respectfully advised that it is our opinion that it is
mandatory that the county auditor keep the school ledger re-
ferred to in Article 1652, aupra. You alao raise the question
aa to how you are to secure the information neoeasary to keep
a school ledger as above mentioned. Article 1653, aupra, among
other things, provides the t the county auditor shall have oon-
tinual access to and shall examine all the booka, aooounts,
reports, vouchers and other records of any officer . . . and
all vouchers given by the trustees of all common school dia-
tricts of the county and shall inquire Into the correctness of
the same. As stated in our Opinion No. O-2734, ndatalls for
such axamlnstlons may doubtless be worked out between the
auditor and auoh officers.n The manner In whloh such details
are to be worked out is within the dlacratlon of the auditor
and cannot be passed upon by this Department.
It is stated in your latter “that the auditors of
Cooke County have not kept a school ledger since about 1927.
Evidently the keeping of such a ledger was abandoned about ,the
time the opinion of the Attorney General, Book 62, page 337,
was released which opinion says * . . . sohool affairs of a
oounty, administrative and finanolal, are under the supervi-
sion of the state and not the aounty . . . tn It is true that
,&ha above menticned o,oinlon holds as just atatad. However,
this opinion, which is s conferanoe opinion, among other things,
further holds in effect that the county auditor is required to
keep a school ledger, showing all school funds received and
disbursed by trustees or county school districts in his county,
and a record of all school bonds Issued by said districts and
that he (the county eudltor) 15 required to exemlna all vou-
Honorable R. A. UcElreth, Fags 8
ohara given by trustees of common school dfstriats of the
oounty and to inquire into the oorreotneas of the same.
Xe think that there 1s much merit in the position
you take. However, Article 1652 was added to the statutes
in!..1917 and we can sea no good reason for Its existence
sinoe, as stated by you, such ledger is kept by the oounty
suparlntandant and a like ledger is kept by the oounty dapoait-
ory, but the Legislature has made the requirement set out in
Artiola lBS2, supa, end imposed such duty upon the oounty
auditor.
Artiole 3@99b, mentioned above, authorizes the oom-
misslonars~ oourt to purchase blanks end stationery when the
court in its discretion decides to do so. However, we do not
believe that this statute authorizes the aourt to purohaaa
books such as ledgers.
In vlaw of the lest above mentioned statutes you
are advised that it la our opinion that the ledger kept by
the county superintendent should be paid for out oi the
sohool funds as provided in Article 27006-l and Article
2827a. The county suparlntandent is not required to pay tha
ooat of the above mentioned l++Qger parsonelly.
Trusting that the foregoing fully enawera your in-
quiry, we are
Yours very truly
ATTORNEYCl!NEFUU QB’TXAS
BY
Ardell williams
Assistant
A=;,,
AH’:BBB
ATTORNEY CX%ZRAL OE’ TZXAS