The Honorable Ray D. Anderson Opinion No. H-885
County Attorney
Terry County Courthouse He: Whether an inde-
Brownfield, Texas 79316 pendent audit of the Tax
Assessor's records must be
made annually.
Dear Mr. Anderson:
you have requested our opinion concerning the following
two questions:
1. When the Commissioners Court employs
an accountant to do an independent audit
of the Tax Assessor's records, is the
auditor allowed to remove the tax roll,
receipts, delinquent tax roll and monthly
receipts from the office of the Tax
Assessor for the purpose of making the
audit?
2. Is the Commissioners Court required
to have an independent audit made of the
Tax Assessor's records annually?
In answering your first question, we assume that "receipts"
and "monthly receipts" refer to the duplicate receipts of tax
payments and tax receipt stubs kept by the Tax Assessor
pursuant to article 7257 and 7260, V.T.C.S., and not to the
tax monies paid him. In your letter, you suggest that
article 7199, V.T.C.S., provides the answer to question 1.
That provision provides in part:
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r
The Honorable Ray D. Anderson - page 2 (H-885)
The assessor's abstracts shall be kept in
his office at the county seat of his county,
as records of his office, and shall be at all
times subject to the inspection of the public,
The index book shall show . . . the volume
and page in which each survey is placed.
We do not believe that this statute necessarily forbids
the temporary removal of abstracts from the assessor's office
for a reasonable period of time and for a proper purpose.
For example, there is specific statutory authorization for
removal~of the books so that they might be inspected by the
Commissioners Court. See V.T.C.S. art. 7206, 5 1. Nor does
the requirement that trabstracts "be at all times subject
to the inspection of the public" mandate continuous availability;
otherwise the tax assessor's office could never close. A
temporary unavailability of reasonable duration should not
interfere with the public's right to inspect. Of course,
while certain removal of the records is permitted, it is not
mandated, and the place and procedure for examination of
records by an independent auditor is a matter to be resolved
by agreement between the independent auditor and the tax
assessor. See Attorney General Opinions O-6260 (1944);
O-2734 and 0-2734A (1940).
You also ask whether the independent audit should be
made annually. Article 1641, V.T.C.S., authorizes the
Commissioners Court to provide for an independent audit:
Any Commissioners Court, when in its
judgment an imperative public necessity exists
therefor, shall have authority to employ a
disinterested, competent and expert public
accountant to audit all or any part of the
books, records, or accounts of the county . . . .
The said resolution [providing for such audit]
may be presented in writing at any regular
or called session of the Commissioners Court,
but shall lie over to the next regular term
of said court . . . .
p. 3729
. .
The Honorable Ray D. Anderson - page 3 (H-885)
Provided that in addition to the emergency
powers granted herein, there is also conferred
upon the Commissioners Court the authority to
provide for and cause to be made an independent
audit of the aforesaid accounts and officials
when the court, by order duly entered at any
regular term, finds that the interest of the
public would be best served thereby.
This statute authorizes the Commissioners Court to call
for an independent audit when "an imperative public necessity
exists" or when "the interest of the public would be best
served thereby," but it does not require independent audits
to be made annually or at any other interval. Compare V.T.C.S.
arts. 1641d, 1641e.
SUMMARY
Certain tax records may but are
not required to be temporarily
removed from the tax assessor's office
for an independent audit. The Commissioners
Court of Terry County is not required
to have an annual independent audit of
the Tax Assessor's records.
_Very truly yours,
Attorney General of Texas
(PPROVED BY: w
Opinion Committee
jwb
p. 3730