OFFICE OF THE A~TORNN GENERAL 0~ TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

GROVER SELLERS 

~IIOINSY GcWRAL ALi- 1/- N$y 

LIIs&ma &k-v! -33-y 

c+f. d-%7??*_, . 

Honorable, 3. I?. Heraa, Jr. 4+/~twX -+A? County Aud.itor 

%%411er countg 

Hsmpetoad, Mxas 

Deer sirs 

rbloh you propound the iollow 

AmI, aaA&di 

lrad to elthor 

ill, by overt aot, 

a8 and awthoda of 

e ma to submit oleiina (or 

&which I have disapproved 

t bean aoted on by th$s . 

approqe remain on file in my 0rsi0e ior 

public ~reoord, be turned over to the 

Coatdsslo&eret Court, or iiled with the,, : County Clerk4" _ . . 

- . 

. 
: 238 

;ionorable N. P. Iierne; Jr., Pw.P 2 

Article 1660, flevisd Clvll Stetutoa of Texae, provider 88 followet 

“All cl&as, bills end aooounts a@lnst the 

county mst bo filed in a~qAo tine for the auditor to exonine and approve sws before the - 

meetings of tho ooiu~ls3ioncrs court. Ko olalzi, 

bill or aooount ahall be allowed or paid until' 

it hoe been exaraimd oud opprovod by the county 

auditor. The auditor shall emnina the 83~~ and 

stamp his approval thereon. If he doo>tlo it x190- 

eeeary, 311 such aooounte, bill,or olains must 

bo verified by affidavit touching tiie oorreotnsse ' 

ot the 3me. The auditor 1s hereby sluthorizod to 

administer oathe for the purpose3 of this law." 

Article 1661, 3. 0. S., ~provldae as. follows: 

YIe (the auditor) ohail not audit or approve 

any ouch olaim unless it has bean contracted a3 

provided by law, nor any aooount for the purohaee 

of suppILe or materials for the uso of mid 

oounty or any of it3 oflloors, unle3s, in oddftlon to other requirement3 of law, there 13 attaohad thereto a requisition 3i~;led by the 

officer OrdorinE 33.m and approvod by the oounty 

judge. aid requisition mot bo mde out end 

sl@ed and approved in triplloate by the said 

officera, the triplioote to remain with the 

officer dcelring the purahasa, the duplioate to 

be filed r-vlth tho oounty auditor, md the .orif$nal 

to be delivered to tho party from whom ooi'd gurchase is to be rcado before any purohaso shall be 

made. Afl Wal%mt3 on the.county troaaurer, except Warrant3 for jury servfoe, au& be oounter; 

eimned by the oounty audItor.* 

The oounty audltor*e oxnminetion and approval of all 

olalms oontomplatod by said next heroinbefore quoted artiolea 

13 a aondition preoedent to the, oxeroiso of jurisdiction over 

such olalmr, by the oommi3310nar31 oourt. See Xyatt ;;etal and 

Boiler Xorke va. Lipaoomb, c7 S.. W. (26) 331; Andereon 90. 

Aahe, 99 T. 4.47, 90 8. iv. 874) and Yanti? 178. bIOntagu% Gounty, 

50 0. A. 403, ll0 S. We .162. * 

I 

, 
Xonorable N, P. Harms, poee 3 

Dome typce of olaims, hOviGVOr, noed not,bo prosonted 

to, tho oounty auditor for apgoval boforc they osn bo approved and pold by the oonmiasloncrs* court. See IIsoogdooheo County ~3. ‘riinder, 140 S. \I. (26) 972; fiaoo&doohee 

county vs. Jinklns, 140 S. W. (26) 901, errorrefuoad; 

Coina County va, itill, 25 S. W. (2d) 197; southern Surety 

co. VS. LioOulre, 275 s. W. 845. 

IV0 assunie that the olnlns about which you in 

euoh a3 are within the oonteaplatlon oi Artlolea 16 8 

uim are 

0 and 

1661, supra, 

The plain wording of said Article 1660, supra, in regard to a olaim, bill or aocount 5.a that tho%udltor oh311 

exanino the 3ane and stamp hia approval thoreon.” This lo, 

of oourso, when he ~DT~?OVO~ s0n". There is no prooaduro 

deoorihed in said article a3 to the methods used by the 

auditor when he dlsanbrovoo a olnim, bill or aooount. :‘le 

believe, in the abscnoo of an exprese etatutory dirootlve 

thnt the noet reaeonabla and pmotloal nethod of showi.n& 

the auditor’3 disapproval of suah claim would 3UfflOe. 

whether it be stamping hi3 dieapproval theroon, writin& it 

theroon, returnincj the alelm to it3 owner or verbally infoIXin& euoh owner of the dloapproval of such alaim. ‘iie 

,a130 believe the nplgaon-holin@of a 01&n, i. 8.. the 

failure of the auditor to take any ponitiveaotlon at all 

in regard to auoh olaim would, in 6oma lnetanoes, oonetttute a dleapproval of Bsme. 

We bellevm the fore&oing fully answers your firat. 

two questfone. 

Vie anawer your question@ Noa. 3 end 4 oetegorloally 

a8 follows 

Hoe. 3 and 4: NO, ~for ‘the reoeon that the co~i3i.3- 

alonera9 oourt &in no juriadiotlon over auoh olalm.3 as are 

not approved by the auditor. 

.IA regnrd to your guoetion No. 5, we point out that 

we find no etatutorg authorization for any further aotion 

to be taken by you in respeot to a oertain claim when onao 

you have dleapprovod etune. . . The. rtnal diep0441 or euoh 

‘\; 

, 

, 
Iionorable xi. P. Xerzis, pa138 4 

dloapproved olalni is mrcl.y e procedural netter that 1s 

loft to the good judrpent of the offloers width whom sake 

wae riled. 

In addition to the foregblng questions, you further ee;c ua a Ccnerol queetioa (1s to the legal otntus of 

a cartnln ordur passed by your oomzlsolont;ro~ court ln 

whioh .suoh oourt orders and directs you, ns county auditor, 

. to approve or rejoot certain claims mentioned thoroln, 

"to&other with all Oth6r oltilm properly :llod with him 

(you) whloh have not been aotod on by this oourt, and to 

Endlatoly oubnlt same to this court for their OOE5idcnYI~ 

." (word ln parenthesis addod for olerlty.) 

We believe the next above described order to be In 

the nature or a writ or aandonuo. Tex. Jur., $01. 28, 

order iseulng f 

p. 515 defines the writ of nandaldus "~8 a oo%cnd or 

rom a OOUrt Of OOapet0nt juriadiotion roquiria som orfloor, lnforlor court, or corporation to 

porforn aone duty enjoin& by law.= The Constltutlon of 

Texas (Art. 5, ao. 16) provldos that the flcouuty court 

or juQe thoraof" shall have povler to issue writs of inandanus, and Art. 1957, IL c. 8. T., also provides ior the 

loouanoe ot somo by the oounty judge, but after e delicunt seeroh of the statutoo and the Constitution; we fall 

to find where the oommioeloners~ oourt la ~lvon this authority. It is well settled that ooi3;3isslonero* oouSs 

oan only exorcise powers oonrerred by tha Constitution and 

lQW11. see kioore ~8. ~~ormnen co., 275 0. W. 478. 

This bein& 80, we feel it unneoessary to discuss suoh 

ordar' further es the oomalarrlonera~ oourt olearlp had no authortty to lcteue mae,~ 

Wo truct the ioragoh $uUg answers your quootlons, 

Youre very truly, 

* ' : AT'i!OlU&Y CMT&AL Oi? TiXX3 . ;.~ -.,