OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Iionorabla C, J. Wilda
County Auditor
nuaoaa countr
Corpus Christi, Texas
Dear sir:
tar o? raoant data
raquastlng the o t on the above
stated matter. rt, aa follows:
ounty after tha
ifloial. In
that Nuaoan
alarlea of the
ounty on the baa18
to 100,000 fnhabl-
ala 3912-g s8ataa
a”8the bra&at just pra-
mentioned, namely, 37,501
II uhloh braokat Muaoaa
ting aould not raoaiwa mora
amount allowed auoh ofiloara
the OXi8bing 18W8 Oi August 24, 1935.
wit August 24, 1935 Muaoaa-County, baln
in the populatia braokat ot 37,501 to 60800 b!
the ire oifloara mmximun salary was $3.750.00.
However, Art lo18 3883 allows thle amount to
be lnoraaaad by $500.00, whloh rapr888nta Ma
third of 8xOaaa 1808, thereby making tha mall-
-~’ 250.00. In addition to the above 8QoDnt
Ia a protialon ln Saotloa 13-of Arti
Honorable C. J. :iilda, Page 2
3912-E whloh atataar
“‘Frovldad ths t in aountiaa hsv$ng
a population of 37,500 and lass than
60,000 aooording to the last preceding
Federal Canslus, and having an aaaasaed
valuation ln 8x089s ot $20,000,000,.00
aooordlng ts the last praoadlna, approv- :
ad tax roll ot such oounty, th:: aaxlaum
anount sllowad such ottloara as aalar-,
lea may ba increased 1s tor aaoh
~l,~OO,OOO.OC valuation or traotl,onal-
art thereof, in 8xoasa ot said
fi 20,000 000.00 valuation over and above
the maxhm anount allowed such ottloar
under law8 aria tlng on Augna t 24, 1935. (
“The valuation in Muecaa County on August
24, 1935 waa 333,492,736.00. Tharatora, it in
aooordsnoa with your opinion, we use the 1930
canaua aa a ~asamlng stick lnaotar as the maxi-
.nuix amount tOr to8 Officers is ooncarnad, why
then would not tha tea offioara of moo88 County
be allowed an additional 145 added to the
$4,250.00 whloh waa the maximum ha oould raoaiva
at that tiaa. The additional l&S rapraasnta
the valuation in axcaea o? 320,000,000.00 aa
mentlonad in the sbovs quotation. It is pos-
sible that we might go turthar, it we are to
sssuma that the 37,501 to 60,000 la ths
messuring atiak, and lnoreasa the peroantoga
over snd above the maximum OS the basis of
the 1944 valustlon whleh was $89,480,000.00,
aa thla value 1s shown on the last praoadlng
tax roll at Nuaeaa County, If wa are oorraot
in this matter than there Is a possibility of
lncraaalng the salarlas ot the t8a ottloara
in ~uaoaa County by 70$. It la quita evident
that the b~aia under which tha aslariar of
the fee oftleara are to be pald remain at the
flgura ahown for the populstfon of the 1930
oensus and I reapaottully r*?*? YOU to Cpin-
ion O-2582 randarad to the- County AttOrnaY
and County Auditor ot Travis County, Texsa.
This opinion, on pace seven, the titth para-
graph resds :
--
Honorable C. J. Wilde, Page 3
** Your fifth quaatlan baoonaa moot
in view of our holding that )4,75O,QO~ia
the maxinu~ salary to be allowed dirtriot
and oounty oftleera of Travla County ~undar
the Otfioara* Salary Law.’
*Theabove quotation shows that lv,an though
the 1941 oanma would move Tratia Countj lath, the
braekat of 101,000 and not nor8 than 150,000,’ the
. ottioara are adrlabd that the maximum would. be
4,750.00, whloh aomaa wIthIn the brrokat of
8 0,001 to 100,000. We also oall to your attention
the taot that under Art1018 3912-X.’ Saotloa 6,
Nuacaa County, in aooordanoa with the artfoipatlon
on tha basis of par oaplta population PII the above
nantlone4 Sa8tio~ 6, lr being reimbursed on the
baaia of the population in Ruaaaa County aoeord-
in6 to the 1930 oanatm. Tharafora, we teal that
the par oaplta tax la paid on the baala of the
1930 population and other eountlaa are advlaad
thab the& used the 1930 population aa a maaaur-
lng atiok, than why should not the rpaeial
proviaiona allowa in Saotlon 13 o? Artlola
3912-S apply to Ruaoaa County and alla the
?a8 otiloerr to be pald on the bash of the
emxlmtua plua the paroantaga in valuation over
and above the ~20,000,000.00 valuation man-
tlonad in Saetlon 13 applying to oountlaa
having a population of not more than 60,000.
“In view of the taota we raapaotfully ask
that your Opinion o-2546 be raaonaldarad.a
Ae a general provlslon dth rataranca to the mini-
plum and maximum lalariar of county offioiala in oountlaa having
a population of not 1088 than 20,000, nor more than 190,000,
aooordln(l to the last praoadlng Federal eanaua, A?tlola 39128,
Saotlon 13, provldaal
*Art, 39128, 880. 13. The Co0mlaalonara~
Court la oountlaa having a population of twanty
thousand (20,000) inhabltaatr or more and leer
than one hundred and nlaaty thousaud l190,000)~
inhabitamta aooordlng to the lart praoadlng
Faderal Canaua, la hereby aothorlraa and It
nhall be its duty to fix tha lalarlaa of all
the following naaad ottloara, W-wit: lh a r lff,
a a a a a a oand
r oollaotor of taxer oounty judge,
oountt attorney, lnoluding oilafnal die trfot
gttornaya and county attornay# who partorr
670 .
Honorable C. J. iYildr, Page 4
the duties of district attorneys, district
olerk, oounty clerk, treasurer, hide and &i-
ma1 lnap~otor. Eaoh or said oifiOera ahsll br
paid in money an annual salary in twelva (12)
equal lnatallatanta of not loss than the.total
sum aarned aa oompenaatlon by hln ln hli of- .
rfolal oapaaity ror the tiaoal year 1933, and
not more than the maximum amount allowed
auoh offiosr under law8 lx la ting on August 24,
1935; . . ..*
The forr olng provision fired ha lalarlra of county.
oftioera, In oount f la within tha dmatad populatian braokrt,
at not mora then the maximum oompanaation allovrad auoh otfioera
under lawa axlating Au uat 24, 1935, Aaoogdoohaa County v.
Jlnklna, 140 9. il. (26 pl 901. Undar said Article, the maxlnum
art forth aervsa as a aoellingn on the salaries of oounty or-
fiosra ln oountlss wlthln that population braokrt (20,000 to
190,000), and said maxima% or *orlUng” la fixed on the basis
of an unohangeabla past aituationg this la, the maximum ouu-
psnsatlon allowed aald orilaera under laws axlatlng August 24,
1935. Also, we oall to your attention that under laws axiat-
lng August 24, 1935, there wore no roviaiona authorizing an
lnoreaar in offloar’s aalarlsa in a i dition to the maxl~~um
fess whloh said offlorrs wars allowed to rstaln under Artio-
lea 3883 and 3896. The provlaiona oi fitlola 39128, Seotlon
13, authorlrlng the peroentegea to be added to the foregoing
4mxlmua oompensatlon for oounty oftloara in oountira within
orrtaln population braokata and having oartaln aaaaaasd val-
uation wora not stteotlve until Jsnuary 1, 1936. Therriorr
said peroentagsa o? lnoraaar , authorized by ths aproviaoa*
or Artlola 39128, Seotlon 13, oould oonatitutr no part oi
the maximum oomprnaation fixed under lawa axlating August
2.4, 1935. Ylth rrferenoe to l ald aprovlaoa*, the languaga
of Artlolo 3912a. Saotlon 13, Is as followr:
. provldad that ia oountira having a
popu&l& to twenty bhouaand (20 000) and baa
than thirty-aovrn thousand fita h&d*ad (37,500)
aooordlng to the last preceding Federal Cansus,
and having an aaaaaaed valuation in SXOaaa Of
Fytam Idllllon ($15,000,000.00~ Dollars, lo-
oordlng to the last ap rovad prroading tsX roll
or auoh oounty the max % um amount allowad auoh
offioepa aa aalarlaa may bs lnorramd ana (1%)
Honorable C. J. !iilda, Page 5
per oent for aaoh Oar Ulllon ($1,000,000.00)
Dollars valuation OP fraotional art tharaoY in
axoaaa oi aald Fifteen Yilllon (~15,000,00~.~0)
Dollars valuation oval and above the maxlnwa
amount allowed such oitiaara under laws rxiat-
lng on August 24, 1935 1 and porldad that lo
oountlaa having a population of thirty-seven
thousand five hundred (37,500) snd less than
alxty thousand (60,000) aooordlng to thr lrat
prsordlng Federal Cewua, and havlng an
aaaaaaad-valuation ln lx o ea a of Twenty Mlllloa
($20,000,000.00) Dollars, aooording ~to the -
last prsoedlng approved tax roll o?. auoh
oounty, the maxiPlum amount allowad auoh
offlosra as salarlea, amy ba inareas6d one
(1%) par oant r0r aaoh One Million (#1,000,000.00)
Dollars valuation or fraotional~part thereof, in 8xoaaa
of said Twanty Mllllon (p20,000,000.00) Dollars
valuation over and above the aaxlmm amount
allcwed auoh offloar under laws rxiatlng on
August 24, 1935.”
As to population, the applloabllity of eaid wprovlaoa*
la dependent upon the population of a oountg aooordlng to the
last preoadlng Federal Census. It would bo possible for a
oouaty to be within a partioulap population bracket, aooording
to on6 pradrdlng Federal Csnaua, and, after the next Federal
Census, a county might ba outslda that braokaf, thereby randsr-
lng the * roviaoaW lna plloabla to that putioula, county. AS
to valuat i on, the appl Poablllty of the foregoing *provIsosa is
dependent upon the. assassed valuation of a oounty aocordlng to
tha last approved tax roil, It would be possible for a oounty
to have the rsqulrad valuation one year and, the naXt year,
it might not have the rsaoribed valuation, and auoh oondltlon
would randar the nprov P so8 * lnapplloablr to tha,t partloular
oounty. As we conatrua the language of Artlola 39128, SOO-
tlon 13, when a oounty la within the general population
braokrt (20,000 - 190,000), thr naxinum aalarlaa for oounty
offloara is ilxad at thr maximum oompenaatlon whloh OOUntY
orrloara wormowed in said bount under lawa axlat~gaaad
August 24, 1935, unlaaa the pop\tlat I 011 of *aid OoMty
on the last prooadlng Fadaral‘oanaua) and the aaaaaard Valu-
ation (baaed on the last approved tax roll) la’auoh that Ona
or the *provlaoa~ la applioablr to said oounty, thereby
672
Honorable C. J. 11168, Pago 6
luthalalng tha psroantaga of lnoraasa to ba ad&d to the
foregoing msxlmum oompanaatlon.
In vlaw of the fo r e g o ing,
we are oonatralnad to
adhere to tha previous holdings of this department in Oplnlon
Boa. O-2546 an4 0-2582.
Trusting that the toragolng fully snswara your
inquiry, we are
Yours vexy truly
AlTW (3lmmuL OFTXAS
BY
JAB:ddt