. -
OFTEXAS
AusTIN.TEXAB
August 9, 1948
Hon. Nathan M. Halt Opinion NO. .v-658
County Attorney
Panola County Re: The legality of paying
Carthage, Texas to the survivingwidow
of a County Commisslon-
er the salary which he
could have earned dur-
ing the remainder of
his term of office;
Dear Sir:
Reference is made to,your recent request which
reads, in part, as follows:
"This office has been requested to ren-
der an opinionon the questionof payments to
a surviving widow of the remainder of the sal-
ary'that could have been earned by a Consals-
sloner of this County during the remainder of
his term of office."
In your brief which was appended to the re-
quest and which concluded that your question should be
answered in the negative, you submitted the following
facts:
"J. IL Holt, commissioner of Prct.2,
Panola County, Texas, died July 1, 1948.
His surviving widow, Mrs. Etta Flnklea Halt;
now demands that she be paid fin a lump sum
an amount equivalent to the salary that
wouldhave been earned by her husband for
the remainder of his term in office. IIis.
salary vas.$300.00 per month. me Commis-
sioners' Court, being in sympathy with the
widow, now desires to pay the amount, and
has passed an order that this amount be paid
out of the General Fund. The Commlssionerst
salaries are paid out of the Road and.Bridge
fund in this county as the necessary trans-
fers to effect sawe were made at the begin-
ning of the year.
Eon. Nathan M. Hoit, page 2 (V-658)
I=the “f7
case
Uvalde County, 167 S-W. 26
fused) the court said:
lveston H. & S.A. Ry. v.
(Clv.App.,1942, error re-
"The CommlssionerstCourt of a coun-
ty has only such powers adsare expressly
or by necessary implicationgiven It by
the Constitutionand statutes of this State."
We have not found any provi~ion'lnthe Constl-
tution or any statute which authorizes &%nmiselonersl
Courts to make such a payment. On the contrary,Section
52 of Article III of the State Constitutionprovides, in
part:
"The Legislature shall &3ve no 'over
to authorize any county, city, town B:r
other polltloal corporationor subdlvlslon
of the State to iend its olreditor to grant
public money or thing of value in aid of',or
:?$.,,
. to any individual,ass~ciajilon or oorpora-
tion whatsoevea . . .
Since,ths.payment In question would only.be a
gift &¬ in payment rtor servlc&s *endspea by::tw
olaimant,~anain view of the foregoing, lt~Is our opln-
ion that you are oorreot in your ooncla~lonthat the
cOrmPiaSiOwrS'cOUI!ta!%~not pSy t0 the SUrViVing Iii&II
of a deceased County Commissionerthe remSinder of the
salary that poula have been earned by auoh County Com-
mIsslonerduring the remainder oS.hls term of offloe.
The Commlsslon&5~Court may not piy
to the eurviving widow 0s a aeoeasea Coun-
,tyCommlaeiqnerthe remainder of the salary
that ooula have beed earned by suoh Coun-
' ty Commfasfone~during the remainder of his
term 05 offioe had he lived.
Yours very truly,
ATTORlVEGENERALGFTlEXAS
I
@
.By li&%ik @@u
BA:b:mw Assistant