Opinion No. W W-312 

Board for Texas State Hospi- Re: Whether a Cert8in c1ai.m is 

ta3.s and SpecLal Schools barred b 

Austin, Texas Article 5 3.57 Revised Civil 

the provi,siona of. 

Statutes of texas, 1925, as 

Honorable Raymond W. Vowel1 

Acting Ekecutive Director 

Dear Mr. Vowel1 : amended I) 

The claim Involved in your request was presented to 

the Board for Texas State Hospitals and Special Schools on the 

8th day of July,1957 .and was approved by the Board on the 24th 

day of September, 19 4- (, and presented to the Comptroller for payment between the 24th day and. the 30th day of September, 1957. 

The claim arose by vlrtue of service rendered pursuant to a contract entered into on the 14th day’of Apr’il, 1954, for architectural services in connection with construction at the Eas,t 

Texas Tuberculosis Hospital, 

House Bill 11’1 Acts of the 53rd Legislature, Regular 

Session 

out of e 

195js Chapter Si, page 144, appropriated $291Q0,000.0C: 

he State Hospital Fund to the East Texas Tuberc’ulosis 

Hospital for constructing and equipping buildings. This appropriation was made for the fiscal year ending August 319 1955. 

The $th Legislature, ,dn House Bill 140, made the following appropriation to the East Texas Tuberculosis Hospital 

for the fiscal years ending August 31, 1956 and August 319 1957: 

“Any unexpended balances in the appropriation 

for constructing and equipping buildings for the 

East Texas Tuberculosis Hospital made In Item 7s 

Section le Article II (page 144) of Chapter 81 

(House Bill No’. 111), Acts of the Fifty-third Legislatuxe, Rsgular Session, remaining as of August 

31, 195ss are hereby reappropriated for the same 

purposes specified in that Act for the biennium beginning September 1, 1955.” 

Article k357, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925 

providing for the keeping of a list of claims by the Comptroller 
Honorable Raymond W. Vowell, page 2 (WW-312) 

of Public Accounts was amended in 1931 by the provisions of 

House Bill 495, Acts of the 42nd Legislature, Regular Session, 

1931, Chapter 24js by inserting the following provisions : 

“No claim shall be paid from appropriations 

unless presented to the Comptroller for payment 

within two (2) years from the close of the fiscal 

year for which such appropriations were made, but 

any claim not’presented for payment within such 

period may be presented to the Legislature as other 

claims for which no appropriations are available. n 

!Che phrase .“wlthln two (2) years from the close of the 

fiscal year for which such appropriations were made’) refers to 

the fiscal year during which the appropriated funds become available for disbursement, and it Is not limited to the first year 

the appropriated funds are available but applies to all fiscal 

years during which the appropriated hutids are available for disbursement 0 

10 (1953). 

Attorney General’s Opinions V-1416 (1952) and MSPrior to the 1931 amendment to Article 4357g the Comptroller had no power to close out accounts on various appropriations since there was no limitation as to when claims against 

such appropriations c,?uld be presented. Subsequent to the 1931 

amendment, the Comptroller could close out the accounts on the 

various appropriations after two years had expired from the close 

of the fiscal year for which the appropriatlons involved were 

made. The close of the fiscal year for which the original appropriation of $2,100 000,OO was made was August 31 1955, and the 

close of the fiscal year for which the reappropr J ation was made 

was August 31;1957. 

Since the claim involved In your request is payable 

out of the appropriation for the fiscal years ending August 31, 

1956, and August 31, 1957 and has been presented within two 

years from August 31, 1953, it is our opinion that the claim is 

not precluded from being paid by the provisions of Article 6357. 

Any statement contained In any former Attorney General’s Opinion concerning a construction of Article 6357 contrary 

to this Opinion is hereby expressly overruled. 
Honorable Raymond W. Vowell, page 3 (WW-312) 

A claim payable out of an appropriation for 

the biennium ending.August 31, 1957s may be presented to the Comptroller until August 31, 1959. 

Your8 very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

JR:jl:wb 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Geo o P nlackburn, Chairman 

John H. Minton, Jr. 

Mrs. l+ariaCta McGregor Payne 

B. H. Timnins, Jr. 

Fred Werkenthln 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: W. V. Geppert