E ATTORNEY GENERAL
Q,F TEXAS
PRICE DANIEL
ATT’ORNEYGENERAL
Mey 28, 1947
Hon. S. 86. Pliler Opinion MO. V-223
County Auditor
Taylor County Re: Authority to create a road
Abilene, Texas district embracine! a de-
fined portion of a Commis-
sioner’s Precinct, and use
Proceeds of. bonds of such
district to purchase rlght-
or-way.
Dear Sir:
We refer to your Inquiry of May 6, 1947, rhiah
is as follows:
“Please advise me If a Specie1 Road
District, for the purpose of issuing bonds
to purchase rights-of-way for Few to Mar-
ket Roads, may be formed out of a defined
portion of a Commissioners Precinct by
either the Commissioners’ Court or the Leg-
islature .”
We ere eseumlng that no “defined” road district
has been created and carved out of the commissioner’s pre-
cinct to which you refer, and that the commissloner(s pre-
cinct has no outstanding bonds issued under the authority
of the constitutional provision mentioned below.
Section 52 of Article III of the Texas Constll-
tution provides that under legislative provision, any de-
fined district,
e 0 5 0 “upon a vote of e two-thirds major-
ity of the resident property taxpayers vot-
ing thereon who are qualified electors of
such district or territory to be affected
, , .-
thereby, in addition tc all other Qebta,
may issue bonds or otherwise lend its ored-
it in any amount not to exoeed one-fourth
of the assessed valuation of the real prop-
erty of such distriot or territory. 0 Do
for the f’ollewing ,purposea, to-wit, e .z*
“(a) The oenstwation, maintenance
and operation of maoadamized, graveled or
paved reads and t'usgapikss, or in aid there-
of.”
The Ida@felature has the power to create and
define road dietriots and may delegate that power to com-
miesioners’ co,urts) a8 was done by the enaatment of Arti-
cle 752~ of Vernon’s Civil Statutes, That law authorizes
aomm1saioners I courts to crdate road districts “by eater-
iu am order declaring such road district established and
defining the boundaries thereof an Article 7526 prescribes
procedure for elections to authorize issuance of bonds,
In the case of Louisiana RyO and Nav. Co, v.
State, 298 S, Wr. 462, the court quoted the constitutional
;gv;;;n which authorizea the creation of roa.8 districts
:
“The language eunder legislative prc-
vision, t found in the section just quoted,
committed to the Legfslabufe all queatfons
relating to the oreation, the size, bound-
aries, eta*, of defined districts I The
Legislature oould, have oreated districts
outright, defined their baundaries, end pro-
vided for their organization and operation,
or it could have authoriaed their creaMon
by order of the commissfonersD court, wfth-
out petition or vote of qualified eleotors.”
The language of the Constitution and statutes
concerning the purpose for which road district bonda may
be issued is broad enough to include the purchase of
right-of-way wbfoh is not anly in aid of, but is eaten-
tial to the ocnstruotioa of a road,
In 8titem ~4~ 8uttsa Ootmtltp(error rsfrrerd)
272 5. W, 506, it is hehd that eemey arUin& f$Wa then
sale ef shah bonds may be w’ed to pp fer righI;-sf-way
ror madr. The Court 8aBd:
Hon. S. Md. Pillar i Page~3 (V'223)
‘Without the power to acquire and pay for
gland neoeaaargfor then construction of
roads, the power to construct such roads
would amount to nothing, and the object
of the constitutional and statutory pro-
vlalona be defeated.”
In the Mae Of~Arenaaa County v. Coleman-Fulton
Pasture Company, 1CS T%xas 223, 191 S. W0’~553, the Supreme
Court said:
*The term lroada,e in our opinion was not
uaed~ ln any such narrow sense in this con-
nection aa would prevent in the conatruc-
tion of necessary roads the necessary
bridges for such roads. The broad scope
of the constitutional provlalon when con-
sidered in the light of Its purpose com-
pels the view that the term waa used in
the amendment in such a sense as would
make possible completed and continuous
roada in fulfillment of the liberal pol-
icy to which the provlalon la due.”
We are of the opinion that a defined road dla-
trlct may be created within a Commlaaionerla Precinct by
legislative Act or by the Commiaaloners~ Court by an order
entered in its minutes, and that money arlalng from the
sale of bonds issued by such district, “for the purpose of
the construction, maintenance and operation of macadamlzed.,
graveled and paved roads and turnpikes, or in aid thereof”
may be used to purchase right-or-way for roads in such dla-
trlot. However, your attention la lnvlted,to that part oi
Article 752~ which provldea:
“e 0 .except aa herein speclflcally per-
mltted, no fractional part of a prevloua-
ly created road district shall be included
within the limits of the road district
areated under the provision of this Aot
0 0 .n
This language imposes a limitation on the pou-
eraof t& Commlssloneras Court, and the limitation has
been aahutrued to apply to commlsaloneral preclncta aa well
aa ,road d~atrlc.taO See Opinions Boa. O-7099 and O-11375,
copies of which are enclosed hersurlth.
. ---
Honorable S. & Plfler - Page 4
SUMMARY
A defined road district may be created
within a CommlaalonerPa Precinct by legisla-
tive Act or by an other entered by the Com-
mlaslonersP ,Court, for the purpose of construa-
tfon and maintenance and operatfon of macadam-
lzed, graveled and paved roaaa and turnpikes,
and in aid thereof. Const:Art. III, Sec. 52,
sub-section (o);'Art. 752~~ V. C. S., Anderson
County Road Dfstrfct No, 8 vs. State, 298 S,. W.
462, affirmed 7 S. W. Zd,
Money arfsfng from the,sale of bonds is-
sued for the purpose of construction and maln-
tenance and operation or macadamfzed, graveled
and paved roads and turnpikes, and in aid there-
of, may be used to pay for right-of-way for
such roads, Stites v. Sutton County (error re-
fused), 272 S. W, 506; Aransas County vs. Cole-
man-Fulton Pasture Co,, 191 9. W. 553,
Yours very txuly,
ATTORNEYGENERAL
OF TEXAS
gczfs
BY
W. T. Wlllfama
Assistant
APPROVED
2iiLkLJ
ATTORNEP GENERAL