OFFICE OF THE AITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN

EonorablaYe A.~Btmdy Chait'mn,Appro@'%rt.iO?~~ Souse of Repreftentatlres Auoa tin, texas
Dear Mr. Bundyt Coamdttee

Eouee Bill lo. olalms of Super Aot for the fle U6t 3i, m8, P preamble, lnsof~~- a8 10



# _ e S6ate 8011 Gonaerratlort dot prorides eoolrg aompemtation for ~eenices not 011~~~ Sor eaoh day he ahallbe in r meetlags of the Board of Sapemlrer tile for travel eaoh way between the resideu sot- a&thb deaignat.gd business ofSioe of th& Metrio~~psmisors. qnartbly for the&r aervkoea, Supemleora shall be p&l at.@ OreJ not reoeive eompenaaaion and atdleqb for any nnmber of days In fizoesa of five (3) in anytbreemonths periodr

W@2U3AS, ia the appro~riationato the State $011 Oonservat3.on,Beard for payment 04 Dfstriot Su etieora eniU.ng the 3lst day of Anguet, 134-3, the amount of #ii

rtr T¶xouaan5

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Honorableh. A. BnMy - page 2

($30,000)Dollars was provided,and for the year ending the 31at day of August, 1943, the amount of Thirty-six ThousaM ($33,oOO)Dollars approptiatlonprodded snffioient funds with vhich to pay per diem and mileage of Supervisorsas is prodded m ins, but, being set up under the title of ~aalaries~ in the appropriation bill, in au **opinion** lie. 0-4362, 86: DeflolencjAllowanoe to. the 3tate Soil Conservation Board, the Attorney 6eneral of the State of Texas **held** that monies appropriatedunder the titles of salaries **Oafa** not be used only in payment of perdiem,andnopart ofuNch aonldbeusedin payment of ndlsage.



### l NEEREAE, **at** the cad of the year ending Angust 31, 1942, the sum of Fifteen ThousaM, One Ifundred Sixteen ($la,llS,OO)

Dollars was paid te Superrisorefor per diem, leaving an unexpeadt33 balanoe in the appropriationof Thirty ThousaM ((39,000)Dollaru of Pourteen Thoueand, Eight Dundred DLghty~l?our

($14,1384)

Dollars. yor that period, obllgated mileage to Supervisorsamountedto approximately Nine Thousaql ($9,000)Dollars,which oould not be met out of the unerpendedbalanoeof~oarteem~~aaPd,Ici~tHunilredgLghty~ your ($14,384)Dollar6 under the ruling of the Attorney Qeneral. The same ao&litionexists regarding the appropriation Of Thirty-six%‘hOusand ($Se,OOO)Dollars prtided for the year ending August 31, 1943. In effeot, the monies oontained in the approprfationfor X942 and 1943 otherdse available for paying tileage to Supervisors,is nulliflsday the opinion of the Attorney General. Sinae the fu123s prwiaed, which **3fouia** othemlse be suffloientto pay both per diem and mileage to Supervisors,can be used only in-paymnt of per diem, the balanae unused in each case, after the payment of per diem, reverts unused. I

*TiiWORB, In order to pay the Supervisorsprovided for lu the Soil ConserrationLaw, the tileage equitably due the@k:

"BE XT EXAGTEDBT TSE LAXSLATDRE OF TSE STATE OF TEXM: s3BOTIOX 1. There is hereby appropriatedto the State Soil ConservationBoard, **out** of any money in the Treasury not otherwise ap opriated, the sum of J!Zght Thousax&, **Fire** iluudred **(@,,a00** r Dollars, to be used to pay mileage olaime of Mstriot Supervisorsfor the fisoal year ena%ngHonorable Lt. A, Bundy - page 3

August 31.,

1943, and the sum Of Ten Thousand,Fire Hundred ($u,@C) Dollars to be used to pay mlleage olaims of Dit+ trict 3uperrisorsfor the flsoal year ending August 31, 1943.'
you are respeotfullyadvised that 8. B. Ho. 118, if enacted,all1 be constitutional.

**section** 44 of Articis 111 of the constitution

### asGlares:
*The Legislatureshall proviaeby law for - the oompenaationof all offioers, servants, agents and public oontraators,not provided for in this Constitution, but shall not grant extra compensatiouto any officer,agent, servant, or public oontraators, after such public service shall have been perfomed or contract entered into, for the performanceof the same; nor grant,by appropriationor othervise, any amount of money out of the treasury of the State to any individual,on a claim, real or pretemied,when the same shall not have been **provided** for by pre-existinglair. * + s.*

vises for to exceed expenses,seotlon 6 of the State Soil Conservationlaw prosupervisors,fixes compensationfor servicesnot $4.00 per day, and five cents per mile for travel as therein limited. Such MstrLot Supervisorsare offloersunder the State 9011 ConservationLaw, xithin the meaning of the first sentenceof the above-quotedConstitution.

The State, therefore,by virtue of the statute is liable to ouah District Supekk8Ors for the mileage provided for them, and this liabilityoontinuesuntil it hae been eatisfied by payment. Payment may be made only by specslfi~apprepriationby the Legislature (Seotion g, Article VIII, Oonstitution of the State of Texas) and the authority and duty to make such appropriation abide until the payment and dbsoharge thereof ie made.

The 8tate Soil ConservationAat ia itself the ‘preexisting law*, whUh authorizes the appropriation under Senate %.I11

Do. 118.**‘**

**.** 

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honorableh. A. nuudy - page 4

In the case of Lightfoot,Attorney 6eueral v. Lane, Comptroller,140 9. 1. 89, the SupremeCourt ordered a writ of mandamus to issue against 1. P. Lane, Camptroller of Public Acoounts,commamUng him to issue and deliver to Jevel P. Lightfoot,AttorneyGeneral, a varrant upon the Treasurer of the State of Texas for salary due him, sayiug,hovever, 'The varraut aould not **be** paid until appropriationshouldbe oade if not theretofore made .* Inxplicit

in this holding of the Lightfoot case is the further one that the necessaryappropriationfor payment could and should be made.

The appropriationof Seuate Bili lltl ia in no sense in riolatiou of the provision of the Constitution firat above quoted.

OS-UR very truly yours ATTOiUIi%X

GENIBAL OP T