OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Hon.5. F. Blgbn
Eountyitttvrnsy
Braeorla CounQ
An&itm, leas
Pear 81x1 A
Opinion No.O-JILW \
Ret 5larlan cif 0 mI aslonnbrn
or Bxaaerla ounty.
& ,f
0 Caamiaarionar6 am, natur-
rai6lng their ealarlee if
blb, aad, nseblests, to say
,OOO.OcL*aluablon lkasorla
rundrto.pay euoh eel&tier.
n on maWag the Bill an a
&h* be Oonstrtwted to alban that
the bikhrd~ill of Qhe CQmmLasionerrshauld be ia-
Ron. J. P. Wan, Pam S
aludeU also.
“1 would appreoiate your opinion on this
mattbr.”
Artiale 39lSa, Seotion 15, Ravimd Civil Statute8
of Texas, a oopp of whlah 700~ enoloeed in your letter reads
as follfmba
“Sea. 15. Ths hnmisolonerel Court In
oountiarr having a poptilatlon of leas than
twenty thousand (80,000 ) inhabitante, aoaord-
ins to the last preaedln(2 Federal Canma at
the first reuular #ee$lng in January of eaoh
oalsndar year may pass an order r0viaing
?or oompansation ti all oounty a ni PreOifiOdt
officers on a salary basis. Thi+C~ssloner8*
Court In eaoh of such oountlas ie hereby author-
iaea, and It ehall btl lte duty, to fix tha
@alarias of’ Criminal Dlstrlot Attorneys. In
the event eudh ,oouxt parses suoh order they shall
ap to each of said Distrlot and Count,y offioers
n money an annual 8alary in twalve (13) equal
li)~
in8tallments of not lam than the total sum earn-
ad aa oarmpansation by mid offleer in hi8 said
otliolal oapaoity far the gisoal year o? 1935
and not ,~ore than the marimumall&m auoh oft%-
oer under laws exleting August 24th 1935, and
not mwe the the m&mum amount ali owad suoh
srtfloes unddi lane erietlw August 84, 193s.
prapidad, that in eountiea having a opulatlon
or 161~8than twenty %houana (83 0007 lahabltants,
aooonllng to the labt preoading gederal Cenaus
and havin an aseessed valuation In exosss of 8&n
Million ( sf10,004,000.00) Dallar~ aaoordlng to
the last preaeaing approved tax roll of auah
oounty the maximldaamount allcued auoh offloera
aa salarfe6 may be lnoraasea ona (1%) per oent
for eaoh One #illion (81,000,000~00) D0lJ.a-s
valuation, or fraotional part theraof, in axoasf~
or stid Ten ?ZilllOn (#lC,OOO;OOQ.OQ~Dollar8
valaation over and above the maxImumamount allczw-
ed such oftloera ,under laws exi&in& on August
34, 1935; provided, however, no salaries eoverea
by thie ,Seoti,on ehall~ex!~sd the firm of Four Thou-
sand rive Runiwea ($4,500~~00) D~llare regardless
o? the perasntage al inotiaee ixi population and
valuation and pravided further that in all ooun-
ties having a .poptilatlon of not lees than twenty
Ron. f. 9. Bxyan, Faga 3
thousand and one (EO,OOlj end nor more than
twanty-rive thowma (eS,~OOO), aaoordIn& to
the laet pmasdlna XTederal Censuib, and nhloh
has an aeeeeeed yaluatlon in eXOB88of ‘Ikenty-
itve Xillion (&!S,OOO,OOO.OO)Dollar8 aOOOxaiug
to the last prsoedlng approved tar roll of suoh
oountlea, the aounty ;judge, sheriff, aounty
attorney, afmessor an6 oolleator of taxea, oounty
olerk and dietriot olerlc, the maximumsalary is
hereby fixed at Three Thousand Seven I!unarod and
Fifty (#3,780.00) Dollara.
“(a) The oampensatlon of ai Criminal DIstrIot
Attorney, or County Attorney who performs the
duties of nfetriot Attorneys, togcther with the
compensation OS hti assistante, shall be paid out
or the %nanty Mfloere* Salary Fund, but the 8tat.a
shall pay Into suoh Fund eaah year en mount
equal to a sum whioh bearer the same proportion
to tha total salary of tauohCriminal Dlstrlot
Attorney, or County Attorney pertorminR the duties
at a Dlatriot Attorney, tagethex with the salary
of Me aasirrtants, ae ~a11 felony fesa oolleotea
by moh ofYials1 aurlng the year of 1935 bear to
the total faeci oolleoted by euoh offlolal during
mob pear.’
The pbpulatlon of Brazorla County, Texae, aooord-
%ng to the last preasding Fecteral Census le 23,054. The
Comptroller aleo’ Inform8 u6 that ths 1939 aesssned value-
tion o? EiranrorlaCounty ie $49,670,531.
We reiapeotfull aall your attention to Article5
2350, 8330(l) and a3!50(33 or the Bevlead Clvll Statttes
of 'Pexaaa,whlQh read as follows8
Article 3330 t
*)m counties having the rollowing aaoosoed
valuations, rsepeotively aa ehm by the total
a6~ssersedvaluations of ah propertlea certified
by the oauaby LMWMBSO~ and approved by the Cm-
mIssXoner8 Court, for eaunty purposes, for the
previous Feax, iron, time to time, the Co:.hnty
Ccm&selonsre a2 suah counties nhall each recc?ive
0lttkXla1~a1~rS.e~ not to mooed ths awxlnts
herein speoitlad, eaid salaries to be paid
in equal monthly installments, at leeat
one-half andnot exoeadinp; three-fourth6
out of die Road sad Triage Fund and the ri-
mainder aut af the Oensrsl Fund of the
eQunty$ sat4 nrrecsaead,valurtians and salaries
applloeble tharreto being es follows:
Sa5erfee to be paid
"&emsmd
Valuationssash Comdeeioner
6,OOO,OOl ana lees than
8 1O;OOO;OOQ
m,oooiooi
not to ex0etba. . . .
ana me than
.imoo.oo
13~000,000not t0 6imQsa . . . . .$1a00.00
13,OOO,OOl and less than
zo,ooo~ooonot to axoeba . . . * .#1a00.00
~O;OOO;OOland lef4s than
80,OOO;OOOnot~ta uxaeed . . . . .4eeao.o0
SO~OOO~OQl w@ pleas than
78;00&000 noli 60 sxoeea . . a .
78~000oob~ ma leas than
.&400.00
wb;Oati;OOO not “to uxmed. . . .
lSO,OOO,OO1fand lese than
.&400.00
lSO,OOO*OOO aa to oxaced. . * .
lS0,000,OOl and over . . . . . ..’1:c%i:
.
%I oountiea havln asmesed valuation cf
less than Ft~urKillion 8 lo6 Euridred Thouezind
Dallara (‘t@,SoO 0001 eaoh aaaanirssloner &hell
reosfve Five f>o&rs (8s) per day far eaoh day
served eo oambmlon~r, and a lllce amount when
aot%n,g an sx-offioio~ road arnpsrintendsnt in hla
CommW~loner~s Preoinot, providing in no event shall
his total,oompupensatlon exceed Eins Huntlred Dal-
larr (#POOPin any one year.,
WI aaunties bavina asesssetl valuation of
mom than Four BillSon )Ita Bandred Thousand and
One EdJars ( and lssa than Six Ml-
licin Pillars eat& ootmlselaner shall
ruosive Five per ilay for eaoh day
semta RB wmmisslcner, and a llku zmmuntwhen
aot,lng~as a-af?l.aio ‘meid aupe*lrlntandent In h%s
C!omaiaeloner*e ~ealnet, pr0viaiba in no event
Eon. J. P. Brran,Pew 5
shall his total compensation exosed Twkelve
Kundred Dollars ($leOO) In say one year.”
Artiols 2550(l):
“86 salary al each County Comie~ioner
and each County Judgs’mag be paid wholly out
of the County General Fund or, et the option
OS the Coaxaleeioners Court, mayibe paid out of
the County Genaml Fund and out of the Road
end Bridge Fund in the fallewing proportions:
Oount Judge not to exaeed seventy-five per
oent TIS%) e? euoh salaries may be paid out of
the Road and Rridgs Fund, and the remainder
out et the General Fund of the County, an8
eaoh Cauaty Ctmmisaienerta ealar IBAY,et the
disoretlen of the kaxis~ioners Eouxt, all be
paid out of the Read land Rridge Fund; provia-
ed this ‘Seation ahell not qply exaept in
oeuntins where the eonatitutional limit of
twenty-five cents (2Qtl on the One Hundred
IMlare lQI100) le l.evieQ for general pu2-pof~ss.v
Axtiole lS%O(a) I
@Qie Qnmlssicneria Court et Its ~firat
raguler meeting eeoh year ahall, by order duly
made and entarea upon the Kinutes of same Court,
fix the aalariaa of the County CcmrSesionerla
ror suoh peer, within the linits ee provided
ior in thPs Ad.”
YetI are reapeatfully advised that ft 1s the opin-
ion of this dspertmetit that Artiol,ee 8360, 2350(l) and 2%0(2)
govern the saleriea and method of payment af mum of the
eeunty m!annd@eiolrero‘of Rraaoria County end that their
xalarlee aenuot exoead &,400.00 R8r annum.
Very Wuly yours