Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OF~=ICE OF THE A~-~oRNEV GENERAL OF TE AUSTIN Ur. 1. Predeoki County Auditor Caloeeton Countp Galveston,Texas 88mpaoat put. of th8 8tat8, 8 uoopt t&os*,whl8h 8r8 0188rly II the aoartltuttoaa!& 8taUtM. 13 4eflnea tha Qmor8, #PeIarfbal ed the zkblllDie8 of t&o -ion- s1TSW, Tax. Jur. Vol. 11, seat&on 9, Art1010 0 OS the Ten9 Ooastltutlon +- preseribedthe mmx%uuaret~aC tens for gafimlptlrpomcr, far roads and bridges, for'Jnrfo8, end for persra8nt !a- provaent6, rsopeotlrely. The 0el!alHioa#u* c-t bus Hr. I. Predeckl,April 4, 1939, Page 2 no power to transfer money from ?ne fund to another or to expend for one purpose, tax money raised ostensibly for another purpose. The immediate purpose Of the pro- rlslon is to limit the amount of taxes that nmy be raised for these aeveral,purpoees,reapectlvely;but It la also designed to Inhibit excessive expendituresror any such purpose, and to require that an? and all moneys raised by taxation for any purpose shall be applied to that particularpurpose and to no other. Ault ~8. Hill Couuty, 116 SW 559, COnuulsalonera'court or FIendereon County ~8. Burk, 862 SU 94, Carroll YS. WiXllame, eO8' 8u 604. Tex. Jr. Vol. 11, pseei.609. The supreme OQurt or 'Toni I8 the be80 or carrollre. Wll.ll8ms. 808 811SO& aupra, osod the roll- .lnglanguage: weotion 9 of Artlole 8 of olu 'iato cOn6tltutlon,lahlb~tamyand alltran&rr OS tax aon8y rrom on6 ta anothbr Of~.MY8ml .classeaaf.iando thereIn authorired,:nnd, t&on, deolaredlyfor those @everal purposw Or OhS68i Oi purpo888, l'e8p6OtiYdybut'thnt 18 not all; the ultirate aad prastiealand obvious de8tgn and POrmO and:le@ 8f'fMt is to inhibit exoe~+re tupendlturesior any suoh purpose or olM8 Of ptup~Se8. Br WO- essary iaplloatlonsaid protlaions of Seetlon 9 of Artiale 8 were deeigned, not norely to liait the tax rate for oertaln therein de- signatedpurposes, but to require that anj and all money raised by taxation for any suoh purpose shall be app!l+l, faithfully, to that. lb. I. Fredeoki, April 5, 1939, Page 3 pertlcularpurpose, as needed thereror, aod not t0 any other pur~mwi car' use WbntnOever. :'hoseconetitutionalprovialons control, not only t2a raisin?, but aleo the npplioatlon, or rollauoh funda; and auoh is t'e legal effeat of Article 2242, (naveArtiolo 2352) and Article 7357 (now Artiole 704f3)of the Reviaad Civil S,atutes. when properly construedand apglled. True, the Constitutiondoea not say, in so many words, that aoney raised by the oounty, alty or tow, br tanlion fOr on. 8tWh pUl3088 8haU neYer b8 8qbUhhd tOr UIy other purposes, not 8~ea for u&her oi the tlvo ~8IIO~~.8l8S8OiOf pclrpo8W +OfiUd Ud 8p it8 ~si!l and 08rkin m 8lld.x81@ 8rreet. The v8ry d/ilaltlon o? Mm80 mvaral 8lasae8 OS pwpo8as, aad .th8doolaratioa of lUtbOTi~ to tar th8 -18 aW8fOF, rMQMtiYO- ly, 00~pled,a8th~ -8, inO8Oh iM%#.W8, with the x.iaitatlOllOi th. tax r8t8 $-.th8t o&88, wt hare’baen pedlaatad ttponthe exp8otatIonend I&ant that;88 a Dtt8r. of OOJRSOIIhOIiO8tYad iair 68aib& fuIROIL8Y t8kua froatho p8oplo oatemlb~ for 01188m- iled potgo88 ahall b8 8~Z&d, U BaOdti, far,the pmy~80 8lom.U wll mu the tu rat8 fOE that ~tiOUlU 01888, in w 006 yesir,8hall not e~a80&'th8 pruarlbad UXiW.*. 8OOtiOD sf?i Or &ti818 s Of #8 at8t8 o~~tit~- tlon reads.88 iollare:~ 2ThaL8glslatura 8hall ham no ~inmmr to anthorlte any aounw oily, torn Or other polibioal oorpora&m or mb-dIvl8Ioa of the 8tate to lend its ore&It or to grants pub110 money or thfng of value fn aridOf, or to any lndlvldnal,l%8o o la tio or n aorpora- tlon rhatsosier;or to beooae a etookholder in suoh oorpooratlon,assoEI~tion or oompcury; provided, however, tJmt under 1egialatiFe !a-.I . W&de&l, April 4, 1930, Page 4 provisionacy county, any politico1 subdlvl- sion of a county, any umber o? adjoining counties,0; any polltlaal subdirislonor the state, or any defined dlstrlct now or Cereafter to be described and dc?lned within tke state of Texas, and which may or may ixotin- clude, towns, villages or municlpal,~orpora- tioze, upon a vote of a two third8 mijorlty 0:'the rr-sldentproperty taxpayers voting thereonwho are qualltledeleotors of ewh. dlcitrlot or terrltow to be a??aoted thereby, in .abdition to all other d8bt8, w i88ua bonds Or OthUifise 18rd its Or8dit it'anj aaount not to exo00d 0a840twth or the a888880 od valuation or the real property o? 8uoh dietriot or tarritor)r, lxoopt that the total bonded lndobtedne8eo? any oity or tow 8hdl n8tu 6x8884 the lImlt8 lmpo88d by other po- Yi8fOU8 Of thi8 cOtt8titUtiOtl, Wd 18Vy 8lld oolleot moh tat88 to w the f!ttOZ88tthet8- on and prOrid a 8lnklng fund fOr th8 rsd8m?- tioa thereof, a8 the LegislatureMY author- itsi end In suoh wmnu~ 88 it say authorlu thei8~8, for the iollowlng purposes to-wltr O(a) The Iapiommeat of rlreri; ereek8, and etreema to prereat ot8rfbua and to permit o? narigatlon'thereofor Lri3etIon thereof, or In aid o? 8uoh pkU&OIeB~ ."(b)The aon8truotiOnand 8*itItell~O8 O? pool8, laker, resavoir8, dam8 aanala ~tUiWtUW~~?OTth8 gPrpo8*& ilTi@hUl, drainage or narl(latlon,or in aid therae?. "(0) The oonetruotlon,ERintenanoe and, opnrstfon a? meoadaaiaed,aratelmd or peted roada and turnpikea,or la aid thereof." Article 788, Revlee CiYil Stitutes, pOvid4M that: . The county oommlselonarr*court o? cay county having a population in ebcea8 xl-.2. Predecki,'%pril4, 1939, rage b of SO,OCO InhnSitaots,flccordlagto the last Yriitedstates ceasus, my in their discretion, order sa election to determine the propriety of a bond is3ue to provide for the aoastruatloa sm3 xalateaksceof causeways,viaducts, bridges end approac\;es scross any river and bottoms within the llmlto of suah county, lrrespeative Of C>J’ !WliOipal bOiXld4ri66.” Se6 the oese of Aromas County VS. Colema-Fultoa Fastma co., 191 3' SSS. Vle+re Infarmldby the comptrqlleR'8offloa thatCaln8t4nCwntyh48a popnlafI4aoi64,401iq- hablt4nt8‘aaoordIngto the lad Tatbra1 04a8u8, tbm- fore, comlngdthln the populationbrook&a met iorth In th4 aboro quoted StatIlk. In lI4u Of the &Jr. lng allth6rltIo~,~Jou are ron*8tfully llrI*oathat it r8 the opInIon o? thla m- partaent.that tOalmdon county ry axpoaa moneya from the rO4d W bridg4 fWId Of the OOUU~ iOr pMI&arf 6xpensss In aonnootlonwith the construotionof a brib&a Or tlUUl4l frOm G41V48tOll 1814Bd t0 BOliYOT ~UiBOUhk if ouab ftlIid8 are 4~4ilab&, btit th4t GdVe6ton CoPntJ dowoothave the authority to expend taxlW48derS~~ by Yirtuo or exIutlng UW.frml84 of t?m other fun68 or the aounty ior the pmlldauy sxpon880 la 4amaotion wit& the oOn8traotlodo r l brI6g@ or tame1 irc#rC@lv~Mi08 umng t4E4liruP4nbaule 9 You or4 forthor 8dTl44d that it ls oar opinion that the Cmtnty C4nm18#Ion4rBrOOUZt Of M1T48tOJl C&mlt$ MY, Gil their dlsoretloa 014~ M eleotioa to dot-e the propriety of a bend h8 to provide ia the oona%ruo* tioa and ralntoeaaoe of s bridge iroa.Oalre8tonIalan to Bolirar Psninsula, In aompllsnae wad under the provlalam of Chapt4r 4, Tit14 8Z of the Rsvi846 CIrIl Stat-WA ‘i’Z!USting that tb43%X?rugOing 4USW4rS faur In- au*, ‘14 remain . VOW tl’t.!l~ 3rOurS