Han, R. B. McElrath OpinionNo. O-2734

County Auditor Re: County Auditorts duties Gainesville, Texas respecting school ledger.
Dear Sir:
In your letter of September 10, 

### 1940 you request our opinion in response to the follcwing questlons:

“(1) Does the County Auditor have any authority or su ervision over the (a) School Funds of Cooke County or (by Schools of said County? “(2) Is the County Auditor of Cooke County required to keep the school ledger referred to in Art. 16521 

### "(3) If answer to No. 1 is Ino* and answer to No. 2 is ‘yes’,then please advise bywhat authority and from what source is Auditor to get the necessary information to keep the record? 

### "(4) Is the County School Superintendentof Cooke County required to keep the Ledger mentioned in Art. 

### 1652, or its equivalent? “(5) Is the school depository bank of Cooke County required to keep the ledger mentioned in Art. 

### 1.652, or its equivalent? 

### "(6) If such schoolledgeris required to be kept by either the Auditor or Superintendentor Depository bank, from what funds shall the cost thereof be taken; that is, county or School

### Funds;and if school

### funds, "(7) Is the cost of saidLedger required to bepaid out of expense money for the office of the County Superintendent as provided for in Art. 2700, Id.”
We enclose herewith a copy of our opinionNo. 0-1063 which we believewill sufficientlyansweryour first question.

lows: Article 

### 1652,Revised Civil Statutes,reads as fol-Hon. R. E. NcRlrath,page 2

"The auditor shall install in his office a school ledger showingan accurate account of all funds received and disbursed by the common schooldistricts of his county; a bond register showingall the school bonds issued by the common schooldistricts of his county, their rate of interest,date issued and maturity date; and he shall also keep an interest and sinking fund account of such schoolbonds." The above statute worded a little differently,originally appeared as Article ?467a, in H.B. 526,Ch. 134,p* 337, Acts 35th Legislature, 1917,which we copy:

"It shallbe the duty of the auditor to install in his office, a school ledger and keep in this ledger an accurate account of all funds received and all funds disbursed by the common schooldistricts of his county. He shall also install in his office, a bona register showingall the school bonds issued by the common schools of his county, the rate of interest they bear, the date theywere issued, the date they are to be paid, and he shall also keep au interest and sinking fund account of school bonds of each common schooldistrict of his countyo"
From the original act is is quite apparent that the Legislature intended,not only that the ledger should be fnstalled in the auditor's office, but that he shouldkeep in the ledger an accurate account of receipts and disbursements by the common school districts. We do not believe the meaning of the act has been changedby the slightlydifferentwording of the statuteas it now stands,evidently thework of the codifiers. Hence the answer to your second question is an affirmative one. Article 1653,Revised Civil Statutes, reads:

"He shallhave continual access to and shall examine all the books, accounts,reports, vouchers and other records of any officer, the orders of the commissioners court, relating to finances of the county, and all vouchers given by the trustee of all common schooldistricts of the county and shall inquire into the correctnessof same.' This article is the 1925 codificationof Article 1468, Revised Civil Statutes of 1911; and the amendment ,there,to by the 35thLegislature in the aboveH.B. 526. Art. 1468,R.C.S. of 1911, provided:

"He shallhave continual access to, and shall examine, all the books, accounts,reports,vouchers and other recordsHon. R. E. McElrath, page 

### 3

of any of the officers, and also the orders of the commissioners’ court relating to the finances of the county.” The amendedArticle 

### 1468appearing in H.B. 

### 526read as follows:

“,Access

to and right to examine accounts c orders of commissioners’courts, all vouchers given by rustees of common school districts. He shall’have continual access to and shall examine all the books, accounts reports, vouchers and other records of any of the offjcers the orders of the commissioners’court, relating to f nances 1 of the county and also to examine all vouchers given by the trustee of all common school districts of the county and to inquire into the correctness of same.‘I The 1911 statutewas in the exactwording of the original act. Sec. 

### 6 of s.B. 

### 258,Ch. 

### 161,p. 

### 381,General ma SpecialLaws, 29th Legislature, 1905. It is apparent that in the originalenactment t and as appearing in the 1911 statutes, the term “relating to he finances of the county” referred to “the orders of the commissioners’court.” In dropping the first sentence from Article 

### 1468,as the same appeared in H.B. 526, the 1925 codifiersevidently did not intend, and in adopting the codificationthe Legislature did not intend to change themeaning thereof in such away as to deny to the auditor access to books, accounts and other records kept by any county officerpertaining to receipts and disbursementsof common school districts. It is our opinion that the term “relating to finances of the county” is stillmerely a descriptive term applicable to “the orders of the commissioners court” and does not limit the auditor in his access to books and accounts to those pertaining to county finan sc and forbid his access to books and accountshaving to do zyth receipts and disbursements of commonschooldistricts. This is particularlyapparent in view of the duties cast by Article 

### 1652upon theauditor. The answer to your third question is that the auditorhas access to and authority to examine all the books, accounts, reports, vouchers and other records of all county officers, and he may examine all vouchers given by trustees of common schooldistricts. Details for such examinationmay doubtlessbe worked out between the auditor and such officers.

Since the ledger nmntioned in Art. 

### 1652must be kept by the auditor it follows that it isnot to be kept by the superintendent or depository, answeringyour fourth and fifth questions. Theywill, of course,keep proper records of any f1nanc1e.l

transactionspassing through them.Hon. R. E. McElrath,page 4

Article 

### 1650,Revised Civil Statutes, requires the auditor to t~provide himselfwith all necessary ledgers, books, records, blanks and stationery at the county's expense." We think the term "county'sexpense"precludes the purchase of any such books at the expense of the school funds. For such school funds are actually state funds. Houston Nat'l.Axchange Bank vs. School Dist., 

### 185 S.W. 589;Webb County VS. School Trustees, 

### 95 Tex. 

### 131, 65 S.V. 

### 878. Answering your sixth question, the schoolledger shouldbe purchased from county funds. This also requires a negative answer to your seventhquestion.
Yours very truly
ATTORNEYGENERAL OF TEXAS By /s/ GlennR. Lewis GlennR. Lewis, Assistant
APPROVED SEP 23, 

### 1940 /s/ Gerald C. Mann ATTORNEY GENERALOF TEXAS
APPROVED: ;3NI;;ggTTEE BY: , GRL:AMM:wb