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THE LtTTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

June 24, 1957

Honorable R. D. Halt, M.D. Chairman of the Board Board of VocationalNurse Examiners 904 Lavaoa Street Austin 1, Texas OpinionNo. WW-175 Re: Method of Selecting a Director of Training for Vocational Nurse Rxaminersunder provisions of H.B. 99 (V.C.S. Art. Dear Dr, Holtg 452&z, Section 4 (c) ).

In your letter of June 19, 1957, you have requested an opinion from this office as to whether it is necessary that the Director of Training, to be seleoted to fill the vacancy createdby'the recent death of the incumbent,must be a RegisteredNurse; ormay the Director of Trainingbe either a RegisteredNurse or a LicensedVocational Nurse, at the option of the Board.

House Bill 99, Acts 55th Legislature,Re ular Session 1957, chapter 47, page 95 (V.C.S.,Art. 452 c, Sec. "fo!L~; b 8

eaame effective on April 5, 1957, and reads as
"TheBoard shall employ a full-timeDirector of Training,who shall have had at leastfive years experience in teachingnursing in an accredited stihool

of nursing or an accredited training program. During the first five (5) years after the effectivedate of thisAct, the Director Of

=Y shall be a RegisteredNurse, licensedby the Sta e Board of Nurse Examiners. Thereafter, the Board mav select either a LicensedVocational Nurse or a RegisteredNurse as the Director of

The duties of the Director of Training to visit and inspect all schools for the training ofVocationalNurses at least once a year and to conferwith superintendentsof hospitals and superintendentsof nursing schools as to the system of Instructiongiven and as to accomodations and rules governing said schools in reference- . . . -

Honorable R. D. Holt, Page 2, (W- )

to its students. The Board shall orescribe such methods and rules ofvisiting, and-suchmethods of reporting by the Director of Training as may in its judgmentbe deemed proper." (Emphasisadded) Prior to the above quoted amendment,Article 4528c, Section 4 (c) V.C.S. (Acts 52nd Legislature; 1951, chapter 118, page 1973reads as follows:

"TheBoard shall employ a full timeVisitin Secretary,who shallhave had at least five + years experience in teachingnursing in an accredited school of nursing or an accredited training program. During the first five (5) years after the effectivedate of t,his Act, theVisiting Secretary shall be a RegisteredNurse, licensedby the State Board of Nurse Examiners. Thereafter. the Board may select either a LicensedVocational Nurse or a Registered Nurse as theVisiting Secretary. The duties of said Secretary shall be to visit and inspect all schools for the training of VocationalNurses at least once a year and to conferwith superintendents of hospitals and superintendentsof nursing schools as to the system of instructiongiven and as to accomodations and rules governing said schools in reference to its students. The Board shall prescribe suchmethods and rules ofvisiting, and such methods of reporting by said Secretary as may in its judgment be deemed proper." (Emphasisadded) An examination of Section 4 (c) of Article 45280, V.C.S., both in its original form as enacted in 1951, and in its present form as amended in 1957, reveals that the only difference in the two acts is the title of the official. The qualificationsand duties ,arethe same. In fact, the caption to the 1957 amendment (HouseBill go), refers to this change bn the following language:

"AnAct amending por,tionsof Chapter 118, Acts of the Fifty-secondLegislature, 1951,which is codifiedas Article 4528~ of Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes and is sometimesknown as the Vocational Nurse Act; amendinp Section 4, subdivision (c),by changing the title of PVisitingSecretary' to 'Director of Training'; q D -".(Emphasisadded) In 39 Tex. Jur.,page 257, 258, the following rules of statutory constructionare laid down:

I, 0 0 0An amendmentwill be construedand_... -

Honorable R. D. Holt, Page 3, (Wharmonizedwith the act that it amends or to which it is added, and of which it forms a part. The courtmay look to the body of the amendatory act, its title and emergency clause, the existing facts or conditionsat the time of the amendment, and the body of the act amended
. e e 1,

. . . originalprovisions appearing in an amended act are to be regarded as having,,been the law since they were first enacted,
. . m To the same effect are Markwell v. Galveston County, 186 S.W.2d 273 (Civ. App. 1945, error ref.); American Surety Co. of New York v. Axtell Co., 120 Tex. 166, 3b S.W.2d 715 1931) and Walker et ai v.. Money, 132 Tex. 132, 120 S.W.2d 428 (1938).

It is a familiar rule that the court in construing an act of the Legislature,must ascertain the intention of the Legislators in the framing'andpassa8e of the law. Cernoch et ux v. Colorado County et al, 8 S.W.2d 470 (Civ. APP. 1932).

It being apparent that the.Legislature Intendedby the 1957 amendment to Article 4528c, Section 4 (c) (House Bill 99, Acts 55th Legislature,Regular Session, 1957, chapter 47, page 95) to change only the title of the office, as shown by the caption of the amending act, and that such officehas been in existence since it was first created in 1951, the five year period during which the Board was restricted to Registered Nurses inmaking its selection of a Visiting Secretary or Director of Training has now expired;and the Board may now fill the vacancy with either a LicensedVocational Nurse or a RegisteredNurse, who has the other necessary qualifications.

SUMMARY

The Director of Training forVocational Nurse Examinersmay be either a LicensedVocational Nurse or- - ‘_- . -

Honorable R. D. Holt, Page 4, ,(WW- 1

a RegisteredNurse. Very truly yours, WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas

Riley Eukene Fletcher Assistant REF:jl APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE: H. Grady Chandler, Chairman Larry Jones Milton Richardson Joe Rollins REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: Geo. P. Blackburn