Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

-- i OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN HO& w. Lee O’rnnlel oorcmmr of Texar Auustin, Texas Dear Sir: members if the St atsBiwrd\qr Barber letter M”September 8 dspartmnt upon ber’spends a portion coupatlon, is he en- for that day?* time required to perrorm the senloe. where a statute fixes an ofrloer’s compensation at a oertaln mm per day, mah ofrlosr, perronulng any eubrkmtlal senloe on a particular dar, has a right to reoeire hla per diem compmwation for that dar, regardleas or the hmgth or time required rm the perronnanoe 0r the 5- Ron. W. Lee O’Danlel, Page 2. rerrloe or duty. State 18. Hum, 102 *ash. 328, 172 mo. 1147, 1 A.L.R. 274 and note. The statute proriding lor thr oompensatlon of the members of thr State Board of Barber Examiners reads as fol- lows: *The oompensation of the members of the Board shall be a per diem or Ten ($10.00) Dollars per day for saoh day, eroluslre of Sunday, when perrormlag their duties et the main cftloe in Austin, Texas, and Ten ($10.00) Dollars per day inclusive 0r Sun- day, when performlng their orfloial duties when away from-the main oftioe In Austin, Texas, and In addition to the pe.r diem provided for herein, they shall be entitled to their aotual traveling expenses, Bach Board member shall z&e out, under oath, a oomplete ltanlzed statement of the number, of days engaged and the amount of their expenses when pre- senting same ror paynent.” It results iron this provision .of the law (a portion 0r Seotlon 27 0r Article 7Ma, Vernoa’s Saylee Revised Cl?11 Statutes) that the members cf the Board may not reoeive a per dlam for Sunday sertloes performed at the main orrloe In Austin, Texas, but may receive a per diem for Sunday servicer when perrormlng their cfflolal duties away from the main orrloe at huatln, Texas. Your third question reads as hollows: “(5) In a Board Yambsr who does not attend the regular monthly Board meeting in Austin entitled to reoelte per diem, even though he perrorms hi8 prseorlbed dutle s elsewhere?W The authority of a Board member to reoelre his per diem compensation for sarT1ces perrormed away from the main ofrloe at Austin, Texas, doer not depend upon his attendance oi the monthly meetings of the Bceird at Austin. Ii, on the day that the monthly meeting of the Board 1s held in Austin, one or the members should happen to be performing his orrlolal duties away rrom.the main 0fri0e at Austin, Texas, he will be entitled to his per diem for that day’s aervloe, but not, of oourae, to hla per diem ror that day’s service away from AUatln and alao bother Hon. W. Lea O’Danlal, Page 3. per dim ior duties periormed at the main orrloa in Austin. Your fourth quaatlon reads as rollcma: “(4) What authotity la required by the Comptrollar and Treasurer for the payment or money out of the State Board of Barber Exdmlnera Fund, auoh money to be used for the payment of per diem, salaries, and traveling expeaaea?n the outset, At wa may observe that neither tha Comptroller nor the Treasurer .hss any authority to pay any money out of the State Board of Barber Examiners Fund, axoept suoh as 18 appropriated out of that fund by the Leglalntare under the terms of the departmental .approprfa- tlon bill. A apeolal funl la not available as such, but Is only arallabla to ths extent of and within the llmlta- tlona Imposed by the general law and the departEanta1 ap- propriation bill. Ualeaa, therefore, tficlrr is an approprla- tlon ror the Item ror which payment la requested to be aads, no warrant may be drawn by the Comptrcller for the payment of auoh Item. Clalma for the payment of per diem, salaries, and traveling expenses, out af tha appropriation made for the State Board of Barber IExaminerS, must, at the out- est. be presented to tha Comptroller in oonformity with Article 4355, B.C.S. 1925, as amended, Acts 1951, 42nd Leglalatura, p. 400, Ch. 243, rhloh read8 as follows: “All olalma and aouounta against the State shall br submitted on Norma proaorlbed by the Comptmllar and In duplloata, when required by him, exoept olalms for pensions, and shall ba so prrpared ab to provlde for tha anterlng thereon, ror the use of the Comptroller*8 Department, as well as other appropriate matters, the following: “1. Signature of the haad of the department or other person responsible for lnourrlng the expend1 tura . “2. Appropriation number, aoooant number and fund to ba ohargsd. ‘3. Inltlals 0r the person asoertalnlng ii there are funda arallabla. lion. 1. Lee O*Danlel, Page 4. *4. Inltlala of the p er soludltlng n the olalm. *s. Wumber and date of warrant laaued. “6. Inltlala of the person oomparlng the olalm and warrant.* In prraentlng a olalm to the Ccsnptroller for the iasuanoe oi a warrant for per diem and trarellng expenses or Baard members, eaoh Btnrd mamber, in ooflormlty with the pro- rlalona Or Seotion 27, Art1014 734a, Vernon*8 Saylea Revised Civil Statutes, mast make out and present under oath a oom- plate it~lzed atatcanent of the number of days engaged in the periormanae of his oifiolal duties and the amount of his expenses incurred. With reapaot to all olalma ror trarel- lng expenses, the tollowlng provisions of the rider appended to Senate Bill 427, hot8 of the 46th Leglalature, Regular Sea- alon, must be obserredr “(i) The rollowing rules shall be observed by all State ,employeea in rendering their expense aooounta before any expense aooount shall be paid iron approprldtlons herein made ror traveling ox- pens48 : “1. There must be a oonolae statement of the duties perrormad, aad tha points rrom whloh the employee travels rrom the dealgnated post of duty and all otbsr towns rlalted and the objaot of luo h+lelt and of the apeolilo expenses lnour- red. m2. The name or hotel, restaurant, board- ing or rooming house at whloh meals and lodging are proourad shall be given in every oase where a reoelpt la required ander this Aot. “3. The name of the transportation agenoy used sad the cost of the tloket purohaaed, toge- ther wlth a signed r4Oeipt for the same. ‘4. fess, as tips to .waltera on dining oars, or at hotels QT reatauraats, shall not be paid out 0r State roads. ... Ron. W. Lee OtDanlel, FJage 5. “(51 Exoept as otherwlaa apaolflaally ox- ampted, the provisions of this Aet shall alco apply to department heads and members of oommlaalona.~ Seotlon (a) of the rider provides: ‘Ally anployeea traveling at the expense of the State are hereby llmlted to the amount of $4.00 per day expenses for meals and lod~lng; It being 8p4OlflOally provided that the employee ehall obtain reoelpta for all amounts expended for all items ooatlng in exoeaa of SOf each, and shall file said reoelpta with their axpenaa aooounta, whloh expense aooounta must be duly lta%lzed and &worn to; and tha State Comptroller la hereby ax- pressly prohibited from paying any expense aocounts rhloh are aot ltemlzed and aworn to and aooompan- led by reoelpts as herein provided. St shall be the duty of the Beard of Control of this State to rurnlah to all ~ployeea or the State covered In this bill necessary forms for the printing of suoh reoelpts.* With reapsot to olaina for the lasuanoa of mr- rants for aalarles of the employees of the State Board of Barber Exemiaera, the requlaltloa should be made on iorma preaorlbed by the Comptroller under the provisions of Art1018 4355, above-quoted. In addition, there must be a full oompllanoe with the provision8 of the rider to Senate Bill 427, denominated 3alary Faymenta,a whloh pro- vldea as roll-s: “No salary for which an appropriation IS made herein shall be paid to any parson uhleaa auoh -person actually dlaohargas assigned duties. Dory month the head of eaoh department shall attach to the payroll ror his devirt;lent an artldavlt, tier oath, stating that the persona listed In said paproll actually performed thb duties for whloh they were being paid. The Camp- troller shall not Issue warrants for the payment of salarlea listed on said payroll unless this affldarlt la filed ulth him. Eaoh department head shall number oonaeoutlrely the salaried poal- tlona in his department for whloh an approprla- tlon la made herein (sit&r out of the gOa4ral reveaue fund, tees, reoelpta, apeolal ruada or l 1 9 Ron. W. Lee O*Danlel, Page 6. out of other funds available for use by said de- partment) and opposite the number of the position, he shall sat out the title of the.posltfon and the naze of the parson employed to fill the same. This statement shall be riled with the Comptroller, who shall, when lasulng his warrant to any anployee In payment of salary due said employee, nunber the warrant with the same number that 1s asdFned to the position Hilled by said enployea. Every depart- zzent head shall notlry the Comptroller ln writing or any ohanges In personnel In his department. This provialfxa shall not apply to seasonal help, and shall not prevent persona drawlag their ealary warrants during authorized taoation perlods.W Trusting that this furnlshea the desired lnforma- tlon, we are Yours very truly AlTOENEY G’EnRRALGF TEXAS R. W. Fairchild Assistant RWF:pbp