THEAVTORNEY GENERAL
OFTEXAS
AUSTXN 11.

TEXAS W1I.I. FVILSON A-rroRN*:Y GIENERAL August 31, 1959

HonorableRobert S. Calvert Comptrollerof PublicAccounts Capitol Station Austin, Texas Opinion No. WW-69 $ Re: Effective date of H.B. 14, 3rd C.S., 56th Leg., and Dear Mr. Calvert: related questions.

You have requested an opinion on the effectivedate of House Bill 14, Acts of the 56th Legislature,Third Called Session, 1959. Your specificquestions read as follows:

"Is it effective immediatelyupon the approval by the Governor? Or, is it a ninetyday bill?
"Is the appropriationprovision effective immediatelyupon the approvalby the Governor and the other smendatory section effectiveninety days after adjournment?" The effectivedate of House Bill 14 depends on it is an appropriationbill simply setting aside a sum litmoney and providing themeans for its expenditure, ther it is a general law containingan appropriation. whether of pubor wheThe caption of House Bill 14 provides as follows:
"AnAct to provide Three Hundred and Thirty-threeThousand Dollars ($333,000) for additional expenses of the Fifty-sixth Legislatureby amending Section 2 and Section 2a of Chapter 241 (HouseBill No. 755), Acts, 1935, Forty-fourthLegislature,Regular Session as amendedby Section 2 of Subdivision (bjof Section 1, Chapter 1 (House Bill No. 2) Acts, 1950, Fifty-first Leglslature, First Called Session as amendedbyHonorable Robert S. Calvert,page 2 (W-692)

Section 1 of Article 1 of Chapter 404 (House Bill No. 660), Acts 1955, Fifty-fourthLegislature, Regular Session, as amended by Section 3 of Chapter 1 (HouseBill No. l), Acts, 1959, Fifty-sixth Legislature,Regular Session, as amended by House Bill No. 22, Acts 1959, Fifty-sixthLegislature, Second Called Session (codifiedin Vernon's Civil Statutes as Section 2 (e)of Article 7047c-1) so as to divert said amount from cigarette tax collections to the LegislativeExpense Fund, amending Section 5 a of Chapter 1, Acts, 1959, Fifty-sixth Legislature, Regular Session, so as to prohibit the earmarking of funds by motion or Resolutionby unilateral action of either House, appropriating suchmoneys for the Fifty-sixthLegislature's expenses;prescribing the per diem andmileage rates of LegislativeMembers of interim committees and other agencies of the Legislature;and declaring an emergency." Section 1 of the Act amends certain Sections of Article 7047c-1, Vernon's Civil Statutes,a general law providing for the levy and collection of certain taxes. Section 1 of House Bill 14 provides for the allocation of certain revenues derived from the tax levy of Section 2 of Article 7047c-1.

Sections 2 and 3 of House Bill 14 amend House Bill 1, Acts of the 56th Legislature,Regular Session, 1959, Chapter 1, page 1, which is an act creating the LegislativeExpense find and providing for the expenses of the 56th Legislatureby amending Article 6687b,Vernon's Civil Statutes and Article 7047c-i, Vernon's Civil Statutes.

Section 4 of House Bill 14 appropriatesmoneys transferred into the LegislativeExpense Fund for the purposes described in Section 5 of House Bill 1, Acts of the 56th Legislature,Regular Session, 1959, Chapter 1, page 1.

An appropriationbill cannot repeal,modify or amend an existing general law. Conleyv. .Daughtersof the Republic, 151 S.W. 877, (1912)Linden v. Finley, 92izx. m. 49- S.W. 578 (1899;;starve v. Steele, ii 'l'ex. ~03 (1882); ALLG,-- ney General's OpinionWW-9b (1957). The appl,opriationcontained in Section 4 of House Bill 14 would be invalidwithoutHonorable Robert S. Calvert,page 3 (WW-692)

amending the existinggeneral law since such appropriation would be contrary to existinggeneral legislation. The amendments to the existinggeneral law necessary in order for the appropriation contained in Section 4 to be valid were made in Sections 1, 2 and 3 of House Bill 14. Since House Bill 14 amends provisions of the general law, it is out opinion that it is a general law containingan appropriation.

Section 39 of Article III of the Constitutionof Texas provides:
"No law passed by the Legislature, except

the general appropriationact, shall take effect or go into force until ninety days after the adjournment of the sessionat which itwas enacted, unless in case of an emergency,which emergency must be expressed in a preamble or in the bode of the act, the Legislature shall,by a vote of twothirds of all themembers elected to each House, otherwise direct; saidvote to be taken by yeas and nays, and enteredupon the journals."
House Bill 14was passed by a viva vote vote. Therefore, its provisions, including the appropriation contained in Section 4, are effectiveninety days after the adjournment of the Third Called Session of the 56th Legislature. Caples v. Cole, 129 Tex. 370, 102 S.W.2d 173 (1937).

SUMMARY

House Bill 14, Acts of the 56th Legislature,Third Called Session, 1959, amending Article 7047c-1, Vernon's Civil Statutes, and House Bill 1, Acts of the 56th Legislature, Regular Session, 1959, Chapter 1, Page 1, is a general law containing an appropriationand is effective ninety days after date of adjournment of the Third Called SessionHonorable Robert S. Calvert,page 4 (WW-692)

of the 56th Legislature,not having received the two-thirds record vote requiredby Section 39 of Article III of the Constitutionof Texas.
Yours very truly,
WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas

JR:mfh
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman
B. H. Timmins, Jr. Dean Davis William E. Allen Jay Howell
REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEYGENERAL BY: Leonard Passmore