THEATJTORNEY GENERAL
OFTEXAS
Hon. Orville 6. Carpenter
Chairman end Exeoutivs Uireotor
Texas Unsmployment CcrmpensationCcmmission
Austin, Texas
Deer Sir: Opinion No, O-896
Ret In visa of the amehdmentto the
Tsxm Unsmployment Compensation
Act, nould the~stete Comptroller
bseuthori,sed taissue duplicates
of forged unemployment:onnpsnsation
: warrants? ,~~
Ue ars'fn reo&ipt~:i&your 1Miter of.Msy27,. 1939,;inswhhioh'you
request am op%nionLan thsGolI0wing question::
,?'l'n
vieyofthe wording of:thia.emendisei~t(800~ 9 (d)
of'ths Texs;sTJh~plogmsnt~&mpansa~on Aot,. artioIe 5521-b,
Vernon% Ahnofatsd~CiMI. Statutus; as emendedbythe 46th
Leg*, Rsgnlar Ssssim), nouYd'your opinion be,the sams:as:0x-
preetid in you& &etter(~optiion Na.. 0-385)'of Ne~ol~l&h?~
(peyn*etioaI fnaeriktons~oursLI)."
In opinion No:O-366, addressed to yourself, ws held that
ertials 4365 0f~the Revised Civil Statutes of 1925~prohibits the isauanae
of a duplicate warrant whsks the loss of'destruotion of thenoriginal
has not been oalled to the attention end proven to the setisfeotion of
the Comptroller in the manner provided in sefd Statute.
Artlole 4366. Revised Civil Statutes, 1925. proridssr
"The kmptrolle~,~when satisfied 'thetaany original
warrant dram upon the State Treasurer,has been lost or
destroyed'.or when any aertlfioete or other evidence of
indsbtedness appmmsd by the auditing board of the State
hes been lost, is authorized to issue a duplioete aerreht
in lieu of the original mrrent or e duplicate or a copy
of suoh oertifisete,~caother evidence of indebtedness in
lieu of such originel:~but 110 suoh~dupliaate'werrent, or
other svidsnoe of indebtedness, shell issue until the ep-
plicent has filed with the Comptroller his affidavit,
stating that he is the true onnsr of suah instnnnent, end
that the same is in fact lost or dsstroyed,~end shall also
file with the Comptroller his bond in double the ewunt
Hon. Orville S. Carpenter, June 9, 1939, pegs 2 O-896
of the oleim with two or more good and sufficient sureties,
payable to the Governor, to be approved by the Comptroller,
and conditioned that the epplioent will hold the Stete
harmless end return to the Comptroller, upon demand being
made therefor, such duplicates or copies, or the amount of
money named therein, together with all costs that may eccrus
against the State on colleating the same. After the is-
suenoe of seid duplicate or copy if the Comptroller should
escertain that the 88111s
we8 improperly issued,,or thet the
epplioent or pertyto whom the same was issued was not the
owner thereof. he shall~et onoe demand the return of said
duplicate or oopy if unpaid, or the amount Reid out by the
State, if'so &aid; end, upon failure of the party to return
same or the emount of money 'celledfor, suit shall bs in-
stituted upon said bond in Travis County."
It hes:~bsencelled to our attention that since opinion No.
O-386 nesrendered on March 16, 1939, by this department, en amendment
to'.theTemas Unemployment,Ccsnpensetiontact, Artiole 662lb;Vernon's An-
notated Civil Statutes, Hessbeen enacted into law.
,~ Section 9 (d) of theActis the pbrtinent,portion of the emend-
mentr
."If a warrent hesbeen issued by the,Cqptroller in _
payment of benefits esprovided under this Aat. and if the
oleiment entitled to receive suoh,werrant has lost orloaes
or for any reason failed or fails to receive suoh narren~t
after suoh~werrent ls.or.hes been issued by the Comptroller,
end upon satisfactory proof~of.suoh,,the~Comptroller may
issue to claimant a duplioete werrent es provided for in
Article 4365, Revised Civil Statutes of Tsxes of,1925, but
in no eventshell e duplicete werrent be issued after one
yser fromthe date of the original warrant.
“_
"If after any nerrant hss been,issued by the Camp-
troller payable to a claimant for benefits under the pro-
visions of this Act, end such nerrent shell have been lost
or mispleoed, or if oleiment for any reason fails or re-
fuses to present said warrant for payment within twelve
months after the dete of issuance of such warrant, suoh
werrant shall be oenceled, end.thsreefter no payment shall
be made by the Treasurerion such werrent, end no duplicate
warrant in plaae thereof shell ever be issued."
The reference to ertiols 4365, Revised Civil Statutes, 1926,
in the above quoted section of the Texas Unemployment Compensation Act,
is oelled to your attention.
Artiole 4366 e plies only to lost or destroyed werrents. In
suoh oeses, the ComptrolPer mey,issue duplicates on two conditionsr
--
Hon. Grville S. Carpenter, June 9, 1939, page 3 O-896
First, the filing of affidavit of proof of ownership
of the original and loss or destruotion by applicants
Seoond, filing of a bond by appliaant.
Section 9 (d) of the,Texas Unemployment Compenration Act pro-
vides for issuenoe by the Comptroller of a dupliaate warrant, where the
original has been lost or has not been received by the oleimsnt "for
any reason". Thus, in the case of a warrant issued in payment of bene-
fits under the Texas Unemployment Compen6a'cionAct. the Comptroller is
not limited to cases of loss or destruction in issuing duplicate.
In respect to these warrants, he oan issue duplioates when the
beneficiary fails to receive the original warrant "for any reason".‘
Sinoe Seotion 9 (d) refers to artiole 4366, Rwised Civil
Statutes, 1925, stating that the Comptroller may issue duplicate benefit
marrants under the dot "as prwided for in article 4365,.Rwised Civil
Statutes of Texas of 1926". it is evident that in respect to benefit
warrants this section of the Unemployment Compensation Aot was intended
to broaden the scope of article 4366 without, in any nay, repealing the
provisions of said article.
Consequently, Section 9 (d) of this artiale and artiale 4565
must be honrtmed together and the provisions~of article 4566 would
apply in the iasuanae of dupliaate benefit ramants when the claimant
for any reaaonfails to receive the original.'
The claimant, honever, must present satisfaotory proof of
failure to maeive the original and he must file applicant bond as
required byartiole 4366.
In answer to your question, it is our opinion that the amend-
ment ttithe Texas Unemployment Compensation Aat, which is article
5621-b of Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, modifies article 4366, Re-
vised Civil Statutes, 1926, to the extent that it authorises the is-
suance of duplicate benefit narrants , not on1y.i.nthe 0880 of proven
loss or destruotion, but upon satisfaotory proof that alaimant has not
reoeived,his warrant. But, at the same time, it ,requiresthat in all
other respeots, such as the filing of affidavit and bond, the provisions
of article 4365, Revised Civil Statutes, 1926, must be met.
Trusting that the above fully answers the inquiry submitted,
-se am
DS:csab:wo Yours very truly
ATTORNEY GEEERAL OF TEXAS
APPROVED: s/Gerald C. Mann
ATTORNEY GERERAL OF TEXAS By s/Diok Stout
Dick stout
Approved Opinion Committee by s/IIPBChairman Assistant