-747
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Hon. Sam Bein
county Attorney
Leon county
Contervllle, Texas
Deer Mr. Ealnl
Your regusoti ior an
hsrciin &at& kaa been roo
1. can ttle t county Auditor for
I&on county UJR se per manth, mm& Ml-
amttobopaidb rarrantcr?
Leon Ceuaty appelat
a.u ludit.or .aa4
ty karlllg a populatlen of tklxty-
000) hahablknts ar ooer, acMx&-
ng Federal Camms, or haviag l far
en Zpi~Lioa Dollars ($lS,OOO,S#,OO),
to the last appiovod tar+ roll
be county auditor, who shall hold Ma oiZioe i'ox two
(2) p~fa, and who sEaI1 remita ae compsasatioa tar
his t3sxvlcssOne %m¶red Twenty-flea Dollars (*US)
for qkachmillion dollars, or mpejor potiioc Cber4bof 0n
the aanase%d v%h%tiO%, th8 annual salary to be OUa-
puted grm the last; appravad tar rell; Said lniattal
salary frolp county funds ahall not ~XWM T-0 Thooi
sand six Windred Dollars ($3,800). . ..*
Hon. San Baln, Page 92.
Arti 1640, Revieed Civil Statutso, provide8 that:
TQhsn the Commleslonsro~ Court of e oounty, not
mentioned and rnumeratsd In the prsoeding Article ahall
detennlne that an auditor la a pub110 neoerslty in the
dlspatoh of the oounty business, and ehall enter an
ordar Upon the Eiinutea of said Court rully. eetting out
the reaaona and neoerelty of an audltor, and shell
Oatma raid order to be oertlfled to the Dietriot Judge8
IVvlng jdrlsdlotlon in the oounty, said Judge8 shall,
if suoh reason be oonsldersd good and suffloient, ap-
point a County Auditor, a8 provided in the 6uOOeeding
ArtlOle, who rhall qualify and perform all the dutlee
requlrad of County Auditors by the Laws of thlr State!
provided, said Judee ehall have the power to dlroontinue
the offloe of suoh County Auditor at any time after the
rxQlratlon of one year when it Is olearly shown that
ruoh auditor 18 not a pUbllo neoessltp and hla servioes
are not ocnmnensurate with hia salary reoeired; . . .”
.Artlole 1646a, Reviatd Civil Statutes, reade ae follows:
“The Commlssloners~ Court of any oounty under
twenty-five thoueand’populatlon~according to the last
United States Censur nay make an arraneemsnt or
agreenent with one or more other oountles whereby all,
Oountiets, parties to the arrangement or agreement,
me7 jointly employ and oompeneate a rpeolal auditor or
auditors for the purpoees speolfled In ArtlOlen 164S
and 1646. The oounty oommiasionere’ court of every
oountg affsoted by thie article may have an audit made
oi all the book@ of the county, or any of them, at
any time they may deed& whather suoh arrawemenfe
oan be m&r wlth other oountlee or not 1 provided the
dlstrlot judge or grand jury 1x09 order said audit lf
either BO deelres.w
We are informed by the Comptroller’s orfioe that Leon
County had a population of 19,tW3 inhabitants according to
the la& United States oeneus, and a tax valuation under Fifteen Kil-
. lion Dollars.
He bate been unablb to find any statute empowering a oom- ,
tiS8iOnfJrE court to employ a eltrk to keep all accounts in
which the county le intereeted and have en auditor oheck them
at regular perlode. Commlsoloners courte are oourts Of limited
jurlsdlotlon, in that their authority extends only to matters
pertaining to the general welfare of their respective counties
.-
.
Hal. San Baln, Pago PS
and that thelr ptmen ue only ttoae upready or lmplledlyeon-
zrssd,uratihem by law, that 18, by the Constitutionend ntatuter
. Al80 800 the eaaea OS sun Vajmr Eleotrlo Ll&ht
Co. t8. Deaea, SO SJ. 868; Ulll County t8. Hanllton 293 s.U.*
292; beetle Umber CO. ~8~ Camaie8lonermCourt of 3abLe County, i
2S9 3.W. 668; Comlssionarr Court TBO Uallaoe, l5 S.V. (26) 535;
Sward w3. ?allm County, 246 S.U. 920.
ArtAole l647, Revlso~Civil Statute8,read8 as r0lhte: :
',
*The districtJudges having jurlndlotlonin the \
oouaty, shall appointthe ownty audltat at a apeolal
aeetingheld ror that purpose,a aajorlty ruling1pro-
tided, that if a nrajorltf oi.suoh Jud@8 iall to agree
upon the 6eleOtiOrl of sane pes8oa as aUditoX then
either or aaid judgestihalloertlfy suoh raoi to the
Governor, who ahallthereuponappoint odlrsother
tllatrlot $xQge to aot and rote with the al’vmaeld
judge8in the eeleotlonof suoh auditor. The aotlon
ahall then be reoorded in the alnutea of the dlotrlot
court or the county and the clerk theroot &alleertll'y
theeantstotheoonm&aelanere~~urt,wbloh shalloauee
the mum to be reoordedin its minute8 togotherwith
an order direotln&the paynmt of the aud1tor.aaalary.w
la rlew 0r the rorf3g0bg atatuteu, you are respeotfuUy ad-
vised that it la the o&dnlonor thlrr dopartmreat
that Iaou .
Cauatymey wloy a oounty -tot under Art1010 1646, su a,
by O- rith tbs phin rmaaQt0w ~XW~S~OM 0r ati0 r0 -
l647 by reoordiagla lts.rPlnutea the oertlfledcopy of the
mluutes of the DlstrlatCourt appolntlngthe auditorand enter-
lag an order direct&g the payment of the auditor*asUary each
mopth as it mamaeat You ue rurther adoieedthat ii Iaon
cbiantyappointsan auditorunder the prcwislonrot Article1646,
that.elthertha.DistrlotJudge or the Comlsaloners Court oan-
not l'lxthe salaryof euoh auditor,ae the Le&lature has rixed
the salary or oountyauditorsby the plain provision8or hrtlole
3.645. In that artiolela found a yardetlok by which-every
oounty auditorts 6alnrymay be derinitelydetermined,exoept
thow Moose aalarlesare rlred by numerous braoketamendcmts
thereto, and by other brakketstatute8with whioh we are not
.here conoerned,'beoause they do not apgly to LecinCounty.
Aa Leon county has a populationunder twenty--ilYe
thoumanillnhabltanta,you are further advised that the oo;nis-
an arrangementby agreommt
slonera oourt or Leon county nay nifika
. . .
Bon. 3nmEaln, page#I
rith one or mare o&r aountleawhereby all oo\ldt$ea, part&a
to the WI%QgWUUlt or ~reement,aay Jointlyenqloyand o-
psnrato a lpeolal audltar or audltOr6~for the purposes apeol-
fled in Artlola 1645 md ~rtlolo 1646 or the Cdealonara
Court or Zionxzounty may hate'en audit aada or all the books
or the oounty, or any or them, at any tlma thoy amy dealro,
uhether mob ar~onsnta 0~1 be amdo with other oountlea qu
not and the Cmm.la8loner~* Court may oontraot with suoh ape-
old auditar to pay him a reaBonabl0 ree tor hla le~loea tor
mnk lng
th olpeoial mdlt.
Trusting thht the rorf%Oing answersyour Imp&Y,
wo remain
Your0 very truly