Hon. Bill F. Griffin, Jr. Opinion No. C- 39

County Attorney Shelby County Re: The legality of certain exCenter, Texas penditures 'byShelby County and whether-those expenditures may be paid out of the Dear Mr. Griffin: Permanent ImprovementFund.

Reference is made toyour request which reads in part as follows:

"ShelbyCounty, Texas, by and through its Commissioners Court, is interested in investing the sum of $1,200.00 in connection with the employment of Forrest and Cotton, Inc., Consulting Engineers and Marvin Springer & Associates, Urban Planningand DevelopmentConsultants for the purpose of developing a planning program for the Shelby County Area, primarily concerning the development of areas surrounding the proposed Toledo Bend Reservoir.
. . . .~ (1

. . . "1would like to have the benefit of your views concerning the legality of such an expenditure on the part of Shelby County. . . . "Assumingthat such an expenditure by Shelby County would be legal, our first:question is whether same could be paid out of the Permanent ImprovementFund of Shelby County. . . .'I The decisions of the Texas courtshave repeatedlyhe:Ld that 'theCommissionersICourt is a court of limited jurisdiction and has only such powers as are conferredupon it, either by express terms or by necessary implication,by the statutes and C'znstitution of this State. 

### 92 S.W.2d 1011 

### (1936); Vo 

### essCountsv.State,127 'kc.1343,

berg v. Lovett l/5 S.W. 

### 508 ('Tex. Civ.App. 

### 1915,error ref.); Rooerv. Hall 280'S.W. 

### 289 (Tex.Civ. App. 1925); Article 23.51, Vernon's Civil 6tatutes; 11 Tex.Jur. 

### 632,Counties, Sec. 

### 95.

-IO?-. . t

. : *

Hon. Bill F. Griffin, Jr., page 2 

### (C-39)

In order for Shelby County to have the authority to make expenditures for the planning of a countydevelopment program, theremust be a granting of suchauthorityby the Constitution or by the Legislature of the State of Texas. The only statute which would seem to apply to suchan expenditurewould be Acts 54th Leg., part as follows: R.S. 

### 1955,Ch. 

### 351,p. 

### 899,which reads in

"'Section 1. That all counties in the State of Texas may appropriate from the GeneralFund of said counties an amount not exceeding Five Cents (5$) on the One Hundred Dollars (#lOO)assessed valuation, for the purpose of advertisingand promoting the growth and development of such county; providing that before the CommissionersCourt of any county may appropriate acy sums for such purpose, the qualified taxpaying voters of said county shall, by a majority vote of the personsvoting at such election, authorize the County Commissioners to thereafter %ll,tion I appropriate not to exceedFive Cents on the One Hundred Dollars ($+OO)assessed

.

.- ". . . YSec. 2. The authority to levy the tax provided for herein shall be restricted to counties of more than one hundred thousand (lOC,OOO)population, according to the most recent United States Census. "Sec. 

### 3. The authority to appropriatethe amount authorized in this bill out of the General Fund shall be restricted to counties ofmore than fifty thousand (50,000)population accordingto the last preceding Federal Census." The manner in which Article 2352d is reported inVernon's Civil Statutes, Volume 

### 7,is somewhatmisleading in that Sections 2 and 

### 3,quoted above, are found in the note following the compilation ofArticle 2352d rather thanas a part of the present statute. Article 2352d, as it was amended and passed by the Legislature in 

### 1955,has two Sections 2, 3, 4, and 5. (Acts 54th Leg., R.S. 

### 1955,Ch. 

### 351,p. 

### 899). Tie second Sections 2, 

### 3, 4 and 

### 5,are carried in Verr?on!sCivil Statutesas a note to Article 2352d.

The second Section 2 limits the authority to lavy a tax for this purpose to counties of 100,000 population ormore,:. . _,_

. ? _”

Hon. Bill F. Griffin, Jr., page 

### 3 (C-39)

; .’ and the second Section 3 of Article2352d limits the authority

to appropriate funds to countieswhich have a population in excess of fifty thousand (50,000)according to the last preceding United States Census. The last United States Census was taken in 1960, and at that time Shelby Countyhad a population of twenty thousand four hundred and seventy-nine (20,479). Texas Almanac,- 1961-1963. Therefore Shelby Countjr would not be included in the authority granted under Article 2352d. We know of no other stat,- ute which would grant Shelby County such authority.

Shelby County does not have the authority to expend money'for the development of a planningprogram for the Shelby County Area.

In view of the answer toyour first question, it is no,t necessary to answer the second question posed. SUMYARY Under the facts stated,Shelby County is not authorized to expend money for the development of a planning program for the ShelbyCountyArea.
Yoursvery-truly, WAGGOXERCARR AttorneyGeneral

BZ7Z???or~;a Assistant JN:wb APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman Pat Bailey Frank Booth Howard Kays APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: Stanton Stone

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