OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable George H. Sheppard
Comptroller OS Public AccouQts
dustlo, TeMs
Deer sir, 0p1nloa lo. O-6664
Ret Uh4th4r fh4 oomls8lon4r~~
Your requ4rt Sor
enalons e letter from Ii.
County, whlnh r4ad4 a4 fol
tloa 1 provide4 as Joa-
purposes upca the property ad from p4r*oM ia
Colorado County, vhioh team8 utvg 6olleated rBol1
be used by the said aounty fur? t&4 purporer ai
preventing the uantlmed p&li;r aalunity, oeuaed
by great fload4, ead to ooastruat impvopwata to
ootltX’O1 flood W@ter4 la t&3 Uid C!OUUty ?Or th4
xionorablc C340r~4 It. Sheppard, p484 2
proteatloa 0r life, property, 0011, ror44t0, and
public hlghvage lylag vlthla the 08ia aOwty.’
“Section 2 provides further t
“‘The Commleeloa4re Court of aach t?ouaty, la
their dlecratloa, mey utlllrc the tax fuade donet-
cd end greated by the State of Teue for th4 aoa-
atruetloa
_ -_ -- - ~~of
_ flood aoatrol l.mDrov4m4ate end other
lmprOveei4ate; th4 melat4aeace-end op4ratlon thare-
of; or pug deposit the eem4 la e elalclng fuad to
pey laterset on rad to redeem the bond8 of the
reepeatlve flood control dlatrlcte of the r4epeo-
tlv4 oountiea. (
“Ssotioa 3 provides for th4 leeueaoe of boade,
but ve are not contempleting the leeuenue of bonde.
“he provided la Seat ion 3 lecond peregr8ph,
lo the Comlselomra Court lu&orleed to epsad
thle aon for other purpone than flood ooatrol,
ouch a8 the oonetrwtloa end melatsaeace o?
bridge8 rod th4 eoaetructlon end melataneace of
county roedo?”
Th4 Oolordo County Flood Control Dletrlot wee ure-
a$;; Agte 1941, 47th Ingleletur4, peg 568, Chepter 361,
. S4otloa 1 of eueh Act ooateiae this povleloor
‘&oh dletrlet ehell be e govsrruaeutel rgenay
and body politic and aorporat4, vlth the powers of
8overnwat and vlth the authority to exerelse the
~ight.0, prlvil4g40, 8ad fun4tloae hereforfter
epeolfled, tbc oreetlon cad 4etebllehm4at of ouch
District being eeseatlel to the lccaapllrhaant of
‘;hs purgoree of s4etioa 59 of Art1814 XVI of the
Coaetltution of the State of TOX~O, ee em4aded,
iaeludl~ the eoatrol, etorlng, prfw4rvetlon, and
dietributioa of ths otorm vetera of th4 rlveve end
etresles in Colorado County end their trtbuterl48,
for dieueetlc, mualclpel, flood control, lrrigrtlon,
@ad other uoeful purpoe40, the reelemetloa 8ti
dreiaege of the overflow laad of Colorado County,
ths coae4rvatlon of foreete, end to old ia th4
proteotlon of aevigetioa on th4 aavlgabls vetera
by regulating th4 flood aad etorm,,vatere thet
flov into neid aavlgeble etreUr4.
~goaoreble George 11. Sheppard, ppge 3
The Act creating ths dlstrlqt end Section 59 of
Artlo XVI of the Conetltutioa dellmlt the powera of th4
Flood Control District. Of necessity it aen have ac povere
exteudlag b4yoad them.
Section 1 of the Act crtatlag the DtetrLct further
povidae:
“The Commtanioaers Court of Coloredo County,
Texas, is hereby derigaatsd es the goverdldg ‘body
of ouch Dletrlet oad the egeacg throw uhiah the
vntukgeamnt and mntrol of the Dlstrlct shall be
administer&, and it Is hereby empovered to do
any aad all thiaga asaesmry to carry out the
alms and purposes of this Aat .”
It la perhaps thin prav~eloa vhloh baa eoafused
the Coami4~ioaerr of Colorado County, cad the Couaty Judge.
Dletrlcte like the Colorado County Flood Control Mstriat
4~4 goveraamatsl ageaaiea and bodies politic rad eorpo~ete,
sepereto and dlstla4t from the Couaty. 44 Tax. Jur. 263,
sue. 176. The Comlasion4rs~ Court of Colorsdo County ia
eatrusted with the maa8gemmt end control of the affelrs of
the Flood Coatrol D’iatrlct, but er4 aot thereby given carte
bl4ache in tha expenditure of the Dletrlet~e moseys. In
deallag with vmtt4rs of the District, th4 Coqmlesionera’
Court members are 4ctlag la a flduoiery aspscity, cad w4
atrlctlp eocountsble therefor.
The Legislature did not, by this Act Gf donot ioa,
make a gift of Stat6 ad valoreln t4xer to the Couaty of C)oloredo.
This is evident from the Aot itself. The captloa of this Act
~\~l:~w;Y45,49th Leglslatupc, Ohapt4r 364, pep 6541, LO es
:
‘An Act dsclarltq the floods of Color&lo Coua-
ty . . . to be 4 public oelemlty; . . . euthorltiag
Colorado Couaty ta not authorlr4d to we eay porb
tioa of the tares remltted by the State ?Gt purpose. Th4
alear import of the Act of doaetlon lo that Legislature
Eoaoreble George FL 98eppmd, ~464 4
lntend4d to aeelet the @strlat (not th4 Douaty) la tl?4 GCUl-
etructlorr end melnt4nenae of flood e33trol lmproversate to
eoatrol the flood~uetrrr iQ eeid aouaty. Th4 ~lreetloa to
the CaPlllieeloaere~ Uorrrt cc?atalaed ia Section i', vhlah 18
quoted in fie Setter 0; ~~l~;mty J-e, lo to them am the
gwv4rii.u~ ode 9r ii34 1 r .
The poted pert OS 8eootloa 2 allour uee of the
other I.mwor0meate~ the rciia~4news aW o~rr*tlm
thereo? ” The weCher tnprovewatn” rrierrud to era improve-
mate ai llle. ahereoter. Thet kr to eey, the rule of sju4d4m
paerfs .le aoatrclllag la t&4 eoaetruotioa of t&et term, end
the donated texee awnot be used for some purpoee not relet-
ed to t&e problem at flood @ontrol. !Thle oooetruotica 1,s
turthcr eubeteatfrt~ by the oeptloa of the Act of donrtioa
oharela i.t lpp4are that eueh tuee~doaeted ehell b4 use
?OF flood aootrol liqwoveaunt cod mwintentmae purpoeee.
Vary truly yours
ATTOHHHY(IWSWIOFTHXAS
Arthur L. Holler
Aeeleteat