’ OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
=Ro”ER SELLERS . . .
A,~~~~~I GENERAL ,
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#onorable John II.Winters, Executive alreator
Stste'Depar~ment of Pub110 Welfare .
Austin 3, Texus . A
Yo& request, aaIr1 rue Senate Bill No. .
25Q, Acts of the 48th tcglsl Se6slons is a6 fol-
fOWS:
destroy ~cer-
records for
its possession and
nd furt.heruse, anb
of records no longer
e ao~~od for d.isposlngof
ember 1, 1944.,the .Department of
had an active case load of lF!f3,138
this number, 170,PW were old Age
Assistance: 4,011 were reclpjents of Aid to She
Seedy Blind, and 10,677 were recipients of Aid to
Dependent Children.
*In o’ccordance with the state plan approved
by the Social Security noara, the department Is ,
required to ralnventlpto each rcclpient on the
rolls at -Yeast once annualfy rind. more frequently
as the clrcumstnnoee of the recipient chnn8es justl-
fylng It. After each reinvestigation, A form is
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I,aoribleJobn Il.'Winters- page 2
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made %y tbe worker In triplicate Indicating the j.
sation taken as a result of the relnvestlgatlon.
&me aopy of this form is sent to the State Of-
fiae of the Department of Public-selfare. Any
ahangee In the amount of grant are reoorded in
the official records of the Division of Audltg
and Aacountsb ‘The form le.of no fur~ther use to
the department? however, thle form is kept ln
the DivleSon of Audits and Aacounts for a period
of six months, as they are audited by the Federal
Auditors of the Social Security noara on a six
month basis. After slx months have elapsed,
thay are stored in the warehouse. The State
Auditors are likewise making an audit of the
department, and when the audit lo completed,
the forms ai'llbe of no fbrtber benefit to the
department. One copy of this form %s sent to -1:
the recipient at the time the change Is made,
and one copy is filed in the reolplent's case
foYder In the county where be lives and is.
kept as a permanent reoord. Thera~ls an fiaan-
mulation of nlmost a half a mllllon'of these
forms. In addition to the ,formsmentioned
above, we ase a fotm for the prpose of chang-
ing the address of the reoipient. The change
ot address Is reaoraea In the Division of Audits
and dacounts 1mmediatel.yupon receipt of this
form in the State Oiflae, one oopy of which has
been retai.nedIn the recipient's case folder.
As soon as the, address is chanced, the form is
af no further value to tbe department. Thousands
of these forms are received and prooessed In the
State Office monthly.
'The department has ln,terpretedthis Senate
Bill 250 t.omean that tho department is author-
ized to destroy certain Texas Relief Commlselon
Records, certain duplicate Old Age Assistance
Records accumulated during 1930 through 1938 and.
to also dlnpose of all reCOrda in its possession
snd cuatoay, which have no value and furt.heruse
t0 the department aftor certain requirements con-
tained in the aat have been complied with.
-1s the Department.of Pub110 Uelf%re author-
i8ed by Senate Dill No. 2R0, Aots of the 48th
Legislature, to dispose of the recordu described
*bore, ma may the department dispose of future
sWumulatlons of these records as they become ob-
solete?m : :i
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,3n~~able John A. Winters - page 3 1 .. t
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Your inquiry should be answered 2n the nspathe. :The I
,&ority is not an ‘broad 08 JOUF Indicated .interpretation of
it 6ppeare to be.. In other words, the wneral purpose of the
A3t 16 to authorize the destruation -- not of all rceorda in
the departmental CU6tOdy which have no value and are of no .y
mrthcr U6e t0 the department -- but rather, the power of de-
,tnlotionextends no ,further th6n to certain records of the
fcx@e Relief Colmni66iOnlfoF the Year6 1932 t0 September 1,
1~39, * Q 6 nnd all.duplicate Old Ace Ansi6t4nOe reoords ac-
c6601ating for the Year 1933 r.hronp% October, lCQS.* In the
prnt of authority tEer0 ia an eXpFo6R ljmltat.ion of that power.'
rho Impage, l* * * and to make a list of all records in ita
co#FnS6~on and custody which h4Ve no value and further u6e, and
to 6ubmit such lint t.horeafof Fecordu no lonter needed and
Yorthless', are not words of enlargement but the lanfl~ageem-
braces only t.he ‘certain records" as to which the pewor to de-
stroy 16 given, as nhote shown. i i
To en'lsrge tho vower of the Board 0~ neceeeiteto rei i
ss it appear-e your interpretntion is , would render the Act void,
rren though 6UCh extension ~6 clearly exrreased 5n the body of
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the bill, Bince to do so would put the Act la violatlnn of Seo-
tlon 55 of Article III of the Constitution, uhioh declares: :
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6??0btZlr (except general appropriation bills
wbicb map *brace the varjous subjects and accounts,
for and on account.oC rhich moneys are appropriated)
6hall COntdn more than one 6UbjeCt, which 6ha11 he
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erpreesed in Its .tltle. i?Ut ff cny 6UbjeOt 6ha11 be
c=braeed'In on act ahloh shall not be expressed in
the title, such act shall be void Only a6 to 6o 6XICh
theroof as shall not be so expFe66ed.'
?h6 title to Senate hi11 No. 250 ia:
sA3 ACT direatin6 the &ate'DCl‘artaent of l%bljC
Welfare to prepam a list of Certain FeCOFd6 of the
fax46 Reliaf Comml66~on for the Years 1932 to Sentem-
ber 1, 1939, nnd all duylicato @ld bee Assistance
record6 accmlated for the yeare 1930 through Ootober,
1939, to be submItted to the Texas LlbrarY and Ilistori-
cal Coml6Rion foF exazvjnation:diroctln6 such Co:nais-
slon to 6cquire such Fccorda ac are wanted bY them
qithln fire daya al'terdcliterg of 6ueh Ii 6t; direct-
jnr Stato norartmont of Public Welfare to transfer
6ald uSole6s rcoordn not Wanted by t,heTexas ribrary
6nd I:l6torlcal Cor~jsoinn t0 the ?tntC Board of Con-
trol for sale and destruction; and dcolering an emor-
pencp.’
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. .morable John H;,,?interu- pngb 4
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‘.l%hebill itself, therefore, is limited as cat,ter &
;,, (whatever the 1aoguuage of the bi13) to the one mibjoof men-
(ianedin the title. ,
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tinting tbot this is II ak’ficisnt anewer to your in-
(OlW~ we m-0
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Vary truly yours
d66iSt6tlt