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<div class="ocr">288

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN

Honorable William W, Allen
County Attorney

Lavaca County
Hallettaville, YTexns

Dear sirt Opinion
Re; Under Of

Tour request for | been received end care-

s8 cd poll ‘er ex

pnaities have been released ‘by any of the pro-
ng hig’ Act shall be aad the same are

fa, ani no such costa shall here-
‘reed, collected, or accounted for,
provided, However, that any coats thet are now
due and payable to any officer or official shali
remain a valid obligation, novel thetanding the
provision hereoft.'

Would aeid provision a apply to a County on
the ealary syatem where the Ceunty Offlears are

‘a rh MO COMMUNICATION $$ TO BE CONSTRUKD AS A DEPARTMENTAL OPINION UNLESS APPROVED BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OR FIRST ASSISTANT
“4
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<p>289 </p>
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<div class="ocr">289
Honorable Wililam ¥, Allen, Pege &

paid a calary, but certain coats or fees are
due their office, and same is turned over to
the County Salary Fund? And where no fee is -
due individually to eald officer, Would the
coats such as @1,00 fee allowed for each
trauot, sto., have ta be charged and ecolleeted
in such a ease?”

Section 3 of Article S9lfe, V. A. Cy Se, reads as
follows:

“Sec, 5. It shall be the duty of all
officers to charge and coliset in the manner .
authorized by lew all fees and commissions
whieh are permitted law to be assessed and
colleeted for all offieial servies performed
by them. As and when such fees are collested
they shall be deposited in the Officers! Sal-
ary Fund, or funds provided in this Aot,. In
event the Commissioners’ Gourt finds that the
failure to coliest any fee or comiasion was
due to neglect on the part of the officer
charged with the responsibility of collecting
sane, the amount of such fee or comaission
shell be dedueted from the salery of such
officer. Before any such deduetion is made,
the Commissioners’ Court shall furnish such
officer with an itemized statement of the
uncollected faeces with whieh his eeceunt is
to be charged, and shall sotify such officer
of the time and place for « hearing on sane,
to determine whether stoh offieer was guilty
of negligence, whith time for hearing shail
be at least ten days subsequent to the date
of notice, Unless an officer is charged by
law with the responsibility of eolleesting

fees, the Commissicneret Court shall aot in
any event ke acy dedueticns from the au-
_ thorized salary of such offieer,"

In @ salery county the fees to whieh the officer
would be entitled persomally if he were on the fees systen
belong to the county. Tha offleer must opvliect them for the
county und clase them in the Officers! Salary Fund. It was
Clearly contemplated by the Legislature thet the salaries of

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<p>290 </p>
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Honorable =illiec Ww. Allen, Page 3

esunty officers should be raid largely fron fees cf office
de;oaited in the officers Salary Fund.

irticle 3, “eetion St of our Ttate Constitution,
reais as follows;

“The Lectaleture shall heve no power to
raleage or extinguish, or to autherize the
releasins or extinzuiphing, in whele or in
part, the indebtedness, liability or oblige
tion of any corporation er Individual, to
this State or to any county or defined sabe
division thercof, or other munieipal serpo-
ration the ain, excert delinquest taxes
which have been due for « period of at least
ten years.”

We are familiar with the onse of Joneses va, Yiliians,
45 5.%. (£4) 156, which holds that the constitutional ine
hibitien of resi<stion of senalties by special law ftaplies the
legislative pover of resiseion of penalties by general law,
it ia our opinion however, that the ooetsa aad fees due
officers (in fee counties} and due counties (in salary counties)
which were « rned pricr to the passage cf said aat are not
pecalties and cannot be remitted by the Legislature in
violation of ‘eetion £8 of artisle 3 of our btete Constitution,
Said act ia inwalid insofar as it ettempts to renit goats
anc feces sarnced by she effieers (for thessdlves in fee
@cunties and for the esunties in galery gounties) prier te
he peasace of the act,
You are therefcre reepectfully advised that it isa
the crinion of this éerartaent that if the fees-and costs mention-
2 in the act were earned prior to tha passage of the aet and
at 2a tine the cfficers were on & aclary byste= such fees and
este shoulé be collected by such officers and be placed in
tie officers’ Salary Fusd ef the ecunty. .

Very truly yours

ver JUL 17 Pai cmumceptene pas .
ATPORUIZY GUIEI-AL OF TEEAS

ne ria yt ge sy ~" :

ATTSOSS et ch ahah ee @ ¢ Fanning

BI Pieaw

ray

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