. . 

E GENEKZAL 

Honorable George W. Cox 

State Health OPflcer 

Texas State Board of Health 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Dr. Cox: Opinion No O-7301 

Re: Constructlon of general provlslon (b) of Senate Bill 317, 

49tti Leg. Ch. 378, Sec. 11, 

with respect to travel expenses 

incurred within the city or 

town where an employee is 

stationed. 

We beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter asking for 

an opinion from this department as follows: 

"We refer to the General Provisions of the Departmental Appropriatlon Bill (S.B. ,317 of the 49th 

Legislature, Chapter 378, General Provisions, Section 

11, Paragraph b), which reads as follows: 

"l(b) The State Comptroller shall not pay, 

and no State Officer or employee of any of the 

Departments or other Agencies of the Government 

shall include In his travel expense account, any 

amounts for meals and/or lodging Incurred wlthin the City or town where such officer or employee Is stationed. Such employees as are 

stationed away from their main office or headquarters who are not allowed traveling expenses 

where so stationed, shall be allowed such expense when called tothelr main office.' 

"With the above In mind, we should like to know 

If the state Health Officer, or his duly authorized 

Agent, has the authority to station employees of the 

Department In towns and cities over the State as he 

may deem necessary and transfer employees from one 

town to the other as he may deem necessary, thereby 

changing their statlons. 

'We would like to know what constitutes an employee's station and If he must maintain a home or 
. 

Honorable George W. Cox , page 2 O-7301 

room within assigned town for It to be known as hls 

station. 

'We shall appreciate your opinion on the above 

question." 

Article 4418d of the Revised Civil Statutes (Vernon's 

codlflcatlon) Is as follows: 

"The State Health Officer shall be the executive head of the State Department of Health, 

and he shall, subject to the provisions, of this 

Act, exercise all the powers and discharge all 

the duties now vested by law In the Texas State 

Department of Health and the State Health Offlcer, as well as all powers now vested by law In 

any officer, assistant, director or bureau head 

of the State Department of Health, excepting 

only such powers as may be conferred by this 

Act upon the State Board of Health hereby created. 

The State Health Officer, with the approval of 

the State Board of Health, may organize and maintain within his Department such divisions of service as are deemed necessary for the efficient 

conduct of the work of the Department. From 

time to time, he shall appoint directors of such 

divisions, as well as other employees of the Department, and shall designate the duties and aupervise the work of all such directors and employees. 

He shall have the power, with the approval of the 

State Board of Health, to prescribe and promulgate 

such administrative rules and regulations, not inconsistent with any law of the State, as may be 

deemed necessary for the effective performance of 

the duties Imposed by this or any other law upon 

the State Department of Health and Its several officers and ~dlvlslons." 

The latter part of this Article very deflnltely clothes 

the State,Health Officer with broad discretionary powers with 

respect to the control of employees In the task of performing 

the functions of the Health Department. 

This power undoubtedly Includes a dlscretlon in the 

Health Officer to station employees In the various parts of the 

State thought by him to be In the Interest of proper aupervlslon. Slmllarly, of course, he would have the power to restatlon the employees according to the changing needs therefor. 

This answers your first question. 
Honorable George W. 

As to what 

to advise that such 

Cox, page 3 O-7301 

constituties an employee's "station", we beg 

station is the place to which the employee 

la assigned as the one from which he will operate In the performance of his assigned duties -- 

employee 

that is, the abldlng El;;et;fsthe 

--.a base of operations. The word "station 

connection carries with It the ldea.of something more than a 

temporary presence thereat. It connotes duration or permanence, 

for the time being, rather than mere temporary presence of 

the employee. It 1s akln to the question of one's residence 

or homestead, in that there la embodied In the conception the 

feature of IntentIon of the State Health Officer, and, of course, 

the employee of a fixed place in and from which the employee 

will operate. No definite term or time, however, need be In the 

mlnd of the State Health Officer, for condltlons could, arise 

that would call for a change of base at any time. 

This department once had this question before It, and 

answered in Opinion No. O-3008, as follows: 

"The question of 'statlonlng' employees is one 

whlch,mst address itself primarily to the discretion 

of the department heads. Of course, the provlalona 

of the Appropriation Bill above quoted may not be 

evaded by terming what Is In truth an actual change 

of headquarters a 'temporary assignment;' but It cannot be said that circumstances may not exist which' 

would justify a temporary assignment', rather than a 

change of statlon, though It had been decided by the 

department head that at a later date,,a permanent 

change of statlon would be effected. 

We trust that what we have said Is a sufficient answer 

to your lnqulry. 

Very truly yours, 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF 

OS-MR-w 'By i/Ocie Speer 

Ocle Speer 

APPECVEBJULY 24, 1946 Assistant 

shf.?. 'YGep~rt 

(Acting). _ ~~.~~~ ATTORNEY GEEEBAL OF ~TEEAS -, 

ipprovei Cpinibn'~C'~rm;littee~By"$~G~ Chairman 

> . 

TEXAS