OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

--=- 

Eonorrblo Bamom Oil.8 

Comclrsioner, Geaeral Land Ofiiao 

Awtln, Tmxar 

Dear Mr. aUes1 

pinion upon the 

sire to we In 

opolal fund aooruOotad in 1931 orrem SOT 

ed along the hth bee.ee 

east aide of tb Paahandlo 

the rest 8ldO or tlm sttste 

were adjudged to b looated 

final decree of the Supreme 

SO Stntcr eatered Marah lT, 1930, In 

tat0 of oklahom8 1. The state of 

The Aot sete Sorth ooaditionr and re 

T 

letions 

whioh rhall govern the #ale of suoh land, and n Seotlon 

2 provides es r0il0mt 

-The Coxmni,rs:oner of the dsaeral Land 

Offloo, t& Attornr7 Ceaeral, and the uovsrnor 

are herrby designated and ooastituted a Spcola i 

Lax16 Board to aaoorhin the p emOn# l ltitled 

to pumAare said la&Ire Said Board 18 htrebauthorized to employ a6 many a8 three Qerron8, 
Hon. Besoom Oiler - Pa&r 2 

ii deemed neo er eetro y l 88lst in asoertalnfag the boas iid8 o i almntr of 8aId land8 a8 

8hown by the pub110 reoordr aad under the 1~8 

or the State or Oklahom, and to make ruoh 

8urve78 and l.ave8tlgatIon8 88 m87 b8 n80088ar7 

to earn out the provl8Ions of thlr Aot, and 

laid Board 18 hereby l uthorlsed to adopt l uoh 

rulon 

erped I ent.’ 

re,platlonr aad form8 a8 it may deem 

Seotlon 5, in part, provide8 a 

*Any olaImaat to any portion of raid land8 

who would havo had title to 8~ had It been 

looated la Oklahoma, may make applioatloa to the 

ConmLsIoner of the Oeaeral Land Offloe to purohase the land claimed. Suoh applloatlon 8ball * 

be aooom?enIed by field note8 of the treat claimed, 

together with a fIli* fee of One ( 

6a examlar3tlon fee of Fifteen (.15$ 3 

1.00) Dollar, 

Cent8 per 

aore, and with suoh other Iafonmtloa a8 the Land 

Board may require to be given, Inoludlag oer-tlfled 

ooplea of all munlmeat8 of title under the laws 

of Oklahoma.w 

Seotloa 6 provides, 

‘The exmiaatIoa fees provided for Ia SeotIon 

3 of thlr Aot shall be deposited In a apeolel fund 

to the oredIt.of the Land Board oreeted in Saotlon 

2 of thlr Aot, and 8eIa ftmd~ shall be wed to 

derrajr the expense8 lnoident to the enforcement 

of thlr Aot. ThIr had rhall be dlrbursed by the 

Board with vouohera drawn on th8 State Treasurer 

aad rlgaed by the Oovernor and oouaterslgaed by 

the Land Commll~loa8r. Aay 81~8 remaining la 

auoh fund after all l xpea8es shave been pald rhall 

be tramferred to the Pmmanent Sohool Fuad. 

The amount of mon8y aoorulng to the State of Texas 

for the rale of the land a8 provided for In Seotlon 

3 hereof ehall be plaoed to the credit of the 

Pemanent Sohool Fund.” 

The method you desire ‘to apply in the hendlIag 

of the exminatloa fez8 provided for Ia Seotlon 3 18 

8tated in your letter a8 follows: 

“. . .lt Is our desire to plaoe oaoh 
..“&a. “PO”“rn tiLLem - r3pe 3 

spplIoaat~8 remlttanoe of exsmlnatlon recs 

to this OfriO to the oredlt Of th8 8ttOr7ie 

ati appolnt~d b7 tha Spealal Lama Board, w r th 

tha Stata Treasurer, la a 8u#pm#@ l #OOPnt 

known as a ~Speolal Iand Board 8USpen8O Aocouat *. 

Tbn upon I flat31 doterminatIoa or the amount 

duo l aoh attorney for th0 8erVloe8 p%rfOrnml 

we would dlrrot tho State Treasurer, by a 

rouohor duly #I&aed by the Gatornor end oounterSig~iOb b7 the Land COI&S~~OYBT, to pay the r%- 

apeotlvr sunw due oaoh attomoy, 0ttd lllmvrlse 

4ny othor 8ooottnt8 dw agalmt Said ruad.” 

Tha I.e 

k 

ialature ha8 not, within the last two 

pears, 8peol?loa ly approprlatsd the epeolal fund or%at%d 

by suOh erambatlon fees to the purpo8es for wh1Oh they 

em authoxlzed to b% used by iWSol% S330a. 

TIKI question presented 18 wh%th%r or not th% 

imthod proposed for &:sbur#In~ the fund In questlcm IS 

in vlolatlon or Artlole 8, Sootion 6 of th8 Texea ConStitUtiOa, whloh provide8 thatt 

"No money shall be drmn from the Treasury 

but la pursuanoe of spaoifio approprIntlons made 

by law! nor shell any appropriation of to:e;f bs 

made for s loqq- term than tm years, " 

The QIWiOUS opIaIoas of thIk~~d%partment ar% 

umnlmous In holding that speoial funds, 8ubstantially 

Slmiler in nature to the fund provided for by Artial% 

8330a, are rubjeot to the rOViSiOa8 Of Artiola 8, 

Seotloa 6 of the Comatltut s on, for the reason that SUOh 

fnw.ls ooxmtltut% Wmey drawn from the Treasury* within 

the msning of the oon8tItutIonel provlsIoa, and that 

suah fund8 oau only be disbursed by speoifio appropriation 

sffeotlve for a tern no lone.or than tvm yeara. 

In Opinion No. o-700 of thI8 department, addressed to Bonorsblr 2. H. Thornton, Jr., Chair-; Canmittes on Appropriations, House of ~epresentatlves, dated 

May 5, 1939, this ruestlon was exhsustlvely rOVI%'2:ed with 

respeot to a greet nwnbe.- of spuoial funds ox-sated b 

t&e b&iSl.3tUT%, zany Of whioh SwdS am substantial 1 7 

rlnilar to the Bxemlaetloa Fee Fuad 

S330a. It was there held that B #pee s ii0 

rovlded la Artlal% 

appropriation 

was neoO8sar 

I 

for suoh Sp%OIal fWd8 before they 00ula 

lo&ally b% d %bWS%d. 
. 42 

Hon. Besoom Ollea - Page 4 

In OpI.aIon No, O-320 0s this department, dated 

May 4, 1939, addrrssed to Honorable Jo% KunsohIk, oommI8sIon%r of Labor, It wa8 deoldod that a epeolal fund 

d%8i~aat%d by the Legislature as the State BoIl%r Insp%otIon yuzkd oould not be disbursed without a speolf lo 

appropriation and that ruoh appropriation oould not be 

l ffeotlve for mare than two years ln the future. 

The 8-e holding was mad% in Opinion ~0.0-1176, 

apprOV%d Auguet 23, 1939, addressed to Honorable Walter 

C. Woodwsrd, Chelrman, Board of Insuraaoe Comm.l88Ioaer%, 

with reepeot to %xemlnetIon tses ooorulng fran Insuranae 

oompanles whloh had been examined by the Board of tisuraaoe ConunIsoIonera. 

A oopy 0s Oplnloa NO. O-320 referred to above 

18 herewith enoloaed. Copies of tha other opinions 

referred to will be mede avalleble to you, should you 

dealrs them. A repetition of the argument and oltatlon 

of authorities Inoludsd In those oplnlons will not be 

made here. fn vlew of those opinions, whloh m believe 

to be oorroot, we muat advlse you that the examlnstlon 

fee fund in question is State m:ney wlthln the meaning 

of Article 8, Section 6 of the Constitution, end es there 

has been no apeolflo apgropriatlon of suoh fund within 

the last two years, Its dlsburaezent In the manner you 

outline would be Illegal. 

In Conferenos Opinion No. 3048, eddre.saed to 

Honorable Tom C. King, State Auditor, It was, in etfeot, 

held that Artlolo 43e8, as amended by Chapter 242 of the 

Aots of the 4206 Legislature, does not euthorlze the 

pleolug In e suspense fund ln t&e State Treasury fees 

suoh a8 the eramlnstlon fees In question, the 8tatus Of 

suoh fees not being undetermined, and no dispute or protest 

having been made by the pertles who paid suoh fees. A 

oopy of Opinion No, 3048 Is elao enclosed herewith. 

For the reasons stated, you are advised thst 

the method proposed In your letter for the handling Of 
Hon. Bacoom Oiler - Peee 5 

the feea in qucrtlon doe8 not oora~ly with the law. 

Your8 very truly 

ATTORNEY WIXRAL OF TEXAS 

Robert E