OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable Szm Baln 

County Attorney 

Leon County 

Centerville, Texas 

Your request f 

gueotion~ 

and Comissioners 

wer to t&e the 

ing expenses and 

ng varrants or 

ered upon the olatn 

have not been paid," 

Vernon's Annogated Texas Civil 

of each veclc each County Tax.Collecit in the County Dapository of his 

ceding week until the mount so deposited for the 

current calendar year shall have reached a total 

6ua of Fifty Thousand (&O,OOO.OO) Zollarc. 

NTheretiftcr, and until the motit 80 deposited for the y&w shall havo roached a total of 

One IIundred Sovonty-five Thousmd ($175,000.00) 

Dollaro he 3hztll doposit to tho cre2i.t of naid 

Fund on Monday of each IJCO~C an amount equal to 

fifty (505) per cant of colloctionn mde hwwur,der 

during the precoclin~ voel:. 

~~‘ww”tC1md ,“~n”vC”“..D .I-- ._, ,. I-.,,..._.,... ^ _..,.^......._ _- .----..-- -..-..- .- -.,...... -.., --.. -- -.-- 
, 

Honorable 8rm Bnin, Pago 2 

"Thereafter, he shall make no further deposits 

to the credit of said Fund during that calendar 

All collections made during any week under 

~~?~rovicionu of this Act (Arts. 66758-l to 6575a14; P. C, Art. 87oa) in excess of the mounts rcquired to be deposited to the credit of the Rond 

end Dridge Fund of MS county shall be remitted by 

eaoh County Tax Collector on each Honday of the 

eucceeding week to the State Rlghway Department together vith carbon copies of each license receipt 

issued hereunder during the preceding week. Re 

shall also on Monday of each weok.remit to the Dopartment as nov provided by Law, 811~ transfer fees 

and chauffeurs' license fees collected by him during the preceding week, together with carbon copies 

of all receipts isoued for oald feea during the 

veek. 

"He shall e&o accompauy all remittances to 

the Highway Department vith a complete report of 

such collections made end disposition made thereof, 

the form and contents of &aid report to be preecribed by the State PUghway Department. Rone of the 

monies eo plaoed to the credit of the Road and \ 

Bridge Fund of 8 county &all be used to pay the 

salary or compensation of any County Judge or 

County Commlssioncr, but all said monies shall 

be’used for the construction and maintenance of 

lateral roads in such county under the supervision 

of the County Engineer, if there be one, and if 

there is no euch engineer, then the County Commiasioners' Court ohall have authority to command the 

eervicee of the Divialon Engineer of thho State EL,&- 

vay Department for the purpoae of supervising the 

construction and surveying of lateral roads -in 

their respeotive counties,. All funds allocated 

to.tho countlea by the provisions of~thia Act (Arts, 

6675a-1 tia 6675a-14; P. C. Art. 807a) may be used 

by the couutlea in tho payment of obligations, If 

any, issued and incurred in the construction or 

the improvement of all roads, Including Stnte nighvays of such counties and districto therein; or the 

improvement of the roads comprising the County Road 

8y8tom." 

1 ' 

I 

The above mentioned otatute oxprosolg provides hov 

motor roglrtration fees coming to the County ehnll bo expended

It Olga provideo that such foos be placed in the Road and 

Bridge Fund of tho county. 
Bonorable Z3r.m BeAn, Page 3 

Section 9, Article 8 of our State Oonztitution 

prescribes the naximum rate of t=os for general purpo2ezI, 

for roads and bridges, for juries, and for permanent improvemento respectively. The monoy~wiaing from taxes levied 

and collected from each of the above enumerated purposea are 

conotitutional funds. 

The Commiseionora~ Court has no authority to trmafar money from one conetitutional fund to another, or to 

expend, for one purpose, tax money raised ostensibly fcr 

another purpose. The Immediate purpose of the provision 1s 

to limit the amount of taxes that may be raised for t&se 

oeveral purpomzo, reapectivoly, and it la aleo designed to 

inhibit excessive expenditurea for any of such pwpoo~s ma 

to require that any and all moneys raised by taxation for 

any purpoee ahall be applied to that pwpoce and no other, 

Carroll vs. Ifllliams, 202 Se Ii. 504j hit V. Kill COUIlty, 

1.16 9. W. 359; Tex. Jw. Vol. 11, p. 609-10-U; Henderson 

v. Bock, 262 s. w. 94. 

It is settled law in this State that the Com~izaloners' Courts have no powro or dutlcs except those Glich 

are clearly sot forth and dofined in the Constitution and 

statutes of thia State or neceosnrily implied therefrom. 

.., Opinim Ao. O-937 of thi8 dcpartmcnt holds th& 

the CommIasioners' Court doos not have authority to transfer 

funds from tho Road and Bridge Fund to tho C-worn1 Fund. It 

is further Dtated in eald opinion that "the ComMaoioncrsl 

Court is not authorized to transfer any moneys from one 

oonotitutzfonal fund into another. Such tran8for, if made, 

vould constitute o diversion of such funds and be invalid." 

Articles 1625, 2626 and 1627, Vernon'3 Annotated 

Fexna Civil Stetutea, roadn as follows: 

"kct. 1625. Each county treasurer shall keep 

o. veil-bound bock In which he ehall register all 

I clSims egalnst his county in tho ardor of preeentation, and if more than one ie presented at the same 

time he ahall register them in the order of their 

date. Be shall pay no such claim or any part 

thereof, nor shall the anme, or any part timreof, 

be received by any officer in payment of any indebtedneas to tho county, L:ltil it has been duly 

regi8terOd In accordance with tho provisions of 

this title. All clalns In each class 8hal.1 be 

paid in.the ardor in which they are registorcd." 
Honorable Sam &in, Page 4 

“Art.. 1626. C~SIIIIS ag&w R 00&y am be 

reSIstered in three olaoses, as fol.lovs~ 

9. All jury ~crip’and scrip Lasued for fsed3.q jurors. 

“2. All scrip Issued under the provisions of 

the road lav or for vork done on roads tid bridges. 

‘3. All the general indebtedness of the 

county, ticludixq feeding and guardinS prisoners, 

and paupers t claims. ” 

nm. 1627. Said treasurer shall enter ench 

clt&z in the register, atatlng the class to which 

it belongs, the name of the poyec, the amount, the 

date of the claim, the date of registration, the 

number of euch clolm, by what authority issued, and 

forwhat service the same vas Issued, and shall 

ttrlte on the face of the 01aLu Its registration 

&umber, the vord cregistered,c the date of such 

;;E;;zai$ion, and ~ha11 sign his name offLcia3ly 

t 

The case of Wilkinson v. Pranklin County, et al, 94 

8. W, 1190, (Texarkana Court of Civil Appeals) (I!rit of Error 

Refused) held that an order of the Commissioncrst Court requiring the county treasurer to pay current varrants drawn 

8gainst the county general fund in preference to warrents 

of prior yaara dravn a.@.nst the general fund was void and 

the court held that varrcJl%i iosuad during prior ~oe.rs vkich’ 

bore preferential reSistration numbers to current year varrants vere payable out of the general fund for the current 

year in preference to current year warrants. Also see the 

case of Clarke PC Courts vi San Jack&o County, 45 S. W. 315, 

316. 

I The case of Iiovard et & v. Rendorson County, et 

al, 116. S. W. (2d) 479, holds among other thlnSs, that the 

County Co~missloners~ Court is vithout authority to bLnd the 

county by contract or othoruise to pay olaimn in cash vhereby 

such claFns vould be given preference in pessnt over other 

registered cl.aLms of the county. 

. 

, 
Honorable Sam Bain, pago 5 

Since the Legislature has specifically provided that 

registration fees shall bo expended for specific pwpoaes, 

those fees may not be legally expended for any other purpose, 

nor nay they be cretitqd to any fund except the Road and Bridge 

pund as directed by the statutej and when eo credited the COD 

nisoionerst Court may not trt-msfcr them, or any part thereof, 

to any other fund of the county. 

It is our opinion that your question should be 

answered in the negative, 8nd it is so anewered. 

Yery truly yours 

ATTORNEY GICIEFSL OF TEXAS 

WF:db 

APPRCVECMAR 28, 1941 

ti3X-L-d 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TFXAS