Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFlCEOFTHEAlTORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS AUSTIN Honorable Harry 3. Sohulz County Attorney Live Oak County oeorge west, 'i'smu Dear 81rr ha intereat uf 0 au6Uef8Biver a River Con86r-~, ion M ibtrfat . aatlng aa apinlon, has been roes1 the rallorimg questioat on Distrlot a8 ,#ey deem proper in ttesrsoi flood watrol on the Rneaea Vur6uant to the above order, X, ae Ccmnt~ Attorney, here been requested to write ytm for an opinion on the 1egalit.y~ of tho above appropriat%on.* Ronorable Harry J. Schulz, June 8, 1939, page $2 The ,NueceaRiver Coneervatlonand ReclamationDia- trlct is a governmantelagenoy end body politic and oor- porate wlth the power of governing end with delegated authority. Such district was created by Acts of 1995, Forty- fourth Legislature, First Called ~saion, page 1660, Chaptar 427. Te have read the Act very oarafully and nowhere In the Act do we find where the Leglalaturagave the oomiasfonars* court8 of the various oountlea in the district the powar to grant loans or advance money to the ReclamationDlatrlot. Furthermore, there are 88rersl oountias in the dIs- triot and when this money is turned over to the offlosrs of the district to be used in the m&tar of blood oontral as tbs Nueaes Biver, It Is not osly possible but probable that theMnay would be erpendad in another oounty. The money aan appropriated would be oompletaly out or the bands of the nommlasioners and would be aontrollad by the oiiiosra oi tha .~PeolsmstionDistriot, whiah is In itself & '(pnarmantal agenay, It has long bean sssousoad in Texas that -ssion- ers~ oourts sre aourta o?Umitad jurisd.lotloninj$sttheir .uuthority43rtena8 only to~Mttsrs psrtsisi~-to,thslirraspaat- its aoxuitiesand that their powaqs am,onIy those akprasslyor ixpliadly oonfarmd npon them by law.. Amar~aaanSoraty~Cmgmty T. Hill County, 267 8. 111. 265; Xl Paso tr Xlam 106“Sr 9. (2d) 598; &ward T. Henderson County, lid 8. XI (?!&?9; Xill County T. Bryant and Euffman, 264 8. W. 820; Comds8ioness* cool-tt. wallaaoa,1s s. wq 0%) sss. <'., In the last oasa oited in anpport of this proposItIon the aourt tiaid: The aomni~7sioners~ court 18 a oreattm of tbs Stats Constltutlomsnd its powers are lim$tad asd oontrollad by the Constitutionssd the.laws as passad by tha legislatura.* In view or the authoritiesolted above, the oommissios- era* oourt would have to have aosm express or implied authority to appropriate money from the general fund of a oounty to a River Consarration aml RaolamationDlatrlot to be mad by It8 orri0ers. FionorsbleHarry J. Schulz, June 8, 1939, psga #3 7rehave made an exhsustlve search of the Constitu- tion and the Statutes of Texas, Includingthe Act oraating this district, and have found no express or implied autho- rity anywhere for the comiasioners* court to make such appropriation. Therefore, you are respeotfullyadvleed thet It la the opinion of this departmentthat auoh appropriationof funda by the oommisaioners*oourt ia illegal. Trusting that this answers yaw quaation,we ramain B ATTORNEY CBRlSRALO? TXAS