OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF T’EXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable Burl Brittain 

County Auditor 

San PatrioAo County 

sinton, Texas 

Deart Sir: 

Your letter or 

ion of this Qeprtment 0 

as followB: 

~qU'%!Sti~ th4 OiiBtltit+l tharoln readr 

6 we,46 

eduOtlQns (h't 88Of3) 
Honorable Burl Brittaln, Page 82 

. * oan est for this olfloer for the year 

194%!? 

*3. Would this County had to hare had MOO1 

or mom population in 1OsIz in order to 

be govemod by ths provisions OS Art. 

3ssg P. e and Art. aSo1 P. e now?" 

Artiole 5888, Vernon*s Annotated Olvil Statutes, 

provides In part: 

*Exoept as otherwise provided in thi8 _ 

Aot, the annual iese that may be retiined by 

preoinot, county and dirrtriot offlosw aimtioned in this Artlole shall be as folloWi: 

In oountlea oontalning twenty rive 

(~3,o;J~j thousand.or less inhabftantar aount, 

Judge, Dletrlat or Criminal Dletriot Attaiqey, 

Sheriff, Count7 Glepk, Oountp Attorney, Matrlot Clerk, Tax Collootor, Tax Asssasor, or 

tha Asrsssor and Gollsotor of Tares, 'Rpstityfour hundred (#PAOO.OO) Dollars aaoh; w . ." 

Artibl.e SS1891, Vernon*8 Annotate6 61+%1 &atatea, 

provider in pa-1 

“Eaoh efiioet named in thir Ohaptea ~@hall 

first out of the current ises of hts offtee 

pay or be 

r 

id the -QUBt allowad h%m under 

the provie ens of &tiO%s Sg@M& ttbga%&er tiihh 

the aaiarler 0~r bie aetaiutaqla ain& dsputl*8, 

and authofized sxpense8 u&de& Art&al6 SSW, 

and the amountneo~ssuery to ooiar oorts 0r 

pmmua on titersr eurety bond may b+ riqnirsd by law. ~If the OtWlcr@IBf ises oi.stioh CbfftOe 

oollsotsd in anp rsati'be more thaaths, -9-t 

needed to p&y the amou@ts abwe SpeQifb& 

same a&&l.bs dswd 6x60~8 fees, .iUid shwl 

i;ddsposdd OS iB the mann6f harainaftsclr PSO- 

. 

"In oaunt~sa oontmtning tksntpfive thou+ 

sand (23,000) OE less fahabltante~, Distrlat 

and Oounty~.ofiio~rn &ems6 harein shaX1 rstaia 

one-third or suoh exw3t3 Zsss unttl suah 'one- 
. * 

.~ : 

Honorable Burl Brlttain, Page 8 

third, together with the 

in Artiole 5883 alaounts 

Dollars (t3,OOOj. . . .- 

amOuB46 apeoliied 

to ThreoThourand 

Artlolo 39120, Seotlon 13, vemon*e Annotated 

C&l1 Statutes, reads In part ae r0um8 

*The Coi5lauloneru* Court ln oountieo 

hating a population of twenty thousand 

(eO,OOO) lnhabltant~ or nom, and 16~s than 

one hundrsd.and ninety thousanU jlQO,OOO) 

InhabItant aooording to the laut preoeding _ 

Fedora1 %BSW, is hereby authorlzed'and if 

shall be lta duty to fir the saXarlerr.ot 

all the.followlng named M'floe~s, to-nit1 

sheriff, ammmor and oollaotor of taxen, 

county judge, county attorney, lnoludln& 

0rimlnaL Uistrlot attorneye and oou&ty crtt 

torneya who perrow the dutiee of dIetriot 

attorneya; dilrtrlot clerk, aounty i?lerk; 

treasurer, hiae and anIn& lnsepsotor.:’ Eaoh 

of said offloere ohall be paid ln~momy on 

annualoalaryintwelro (I.21 squel inata& 

nents .of not lesy than %he total qua M&+od 

au oompensatlon bye Um fn ,hia ci~fioiail~ eq+ 

04qror th4 ilIMa years 1935, and Bat m&i+ 

t&~them&lm~amount ilLowedeuoh off'%oer 

tinder lami 'existing on Augumt 84, +?ati; + a ." 

On August 2& 1933, 6&e p&pulatl~& oi & Patti,010 

County, %nrp, aoaordiag to the theo'Zaa&.preo~ding Federal 

Conaua of 1930 *aa 23,fW lnhabltaata,, and at.,$hat time tho 

maxImum aamant ,.Woh the oounly judge -8 ent%tled to under 

Article zass -xfn&*tlc&a s891,~.Vsmaa~4:-~otated Civil Statute8, was the sups of '$S~OOQJMpet ~jW*,;:. .. 

mde~'%he &iota lrtditsd ia gouj~lattir, the total 

Wunt Of Ses~~eii~~84 'by the OOU%ty JUdgS fOs~!%he Y-r 1983 

wall (aa&6a and an ex offlalo sa$aky M'$l,9,99;92 ream paid 

to the oauuty ju&s fok that year laalrl~@ a total of e3.662.43. 

AHlols S896, VernontE Annotated ClliX StatUtSd, 

prohibits the UomaUi6iionszro * Omrt ircm allowing oompent3atlon 

for BX offfafo aerviaes to county offleers where the oompensation and exaeaa ieea whloh they are GJ.a;ad to Fetaln ohall 

reaoh .the m&&um provided for, .buO providss that whel% the 

oompematlon and exoet)e teea .do not reaah euoh maximum, the 
Honorable Burl Blttaln, Page 4 

oourt shall allow compensation if in their judgment It Is neos 'essary. This provlsloh it88ir authorless an ~+l.lowance for 

ex ofrloio servloes wlthln the limitation stated) payment 

need not be author$xed by some other statute, (Voltman v. 

Slator, 217 S. H. 898; Texas Jurisprudence, Volume 34, page 

546) The above mentions4 statute (Artiols Z$SOS) authorizes 

the Commissloaer~~ Court to allow (111 offloer oompenaatlan 

for ex offloio ?ervloer provided that suoh ocimpensaflon, togefher with the fses~r&alnad by him under the preosdlng 

seotlons (Artlole 21883 and Art&ale 3S91, supra) does not 

amount to more than the Umlt fixed by them. The oompeasatlon so allowed is not to bs regarded as exoess fees of whloh 

the officer oaa.moelve? only one-third, wheq hia total 

Z,n vi&of the foregoing authorltiss~:aud the faotr 

stated in your Letter, we answer the first~qu6j&~on stated 

above in the *g;atlve. 

XII riply to your eeaond question, you are advlsed 

that the mlnl#&um 8a$ary of the oouuty,judga.for the year 

f94F. is $8,662.43, aad the maximinn sdtary tha$;ths Cmmlt~- 

sion~ra~ Court uan '$Q* set for the oOUB%p :j@ge iOF ths 

yaaf 1943 18.$3,000.00. 

. x81 00~0tion with the foregofly;, ti atLl yo* 

attention,Co tbe~:oase of ~Naoogdoohee OOtmty V. WladeF, 110 

5. W. (I&K) 978 f~lt’refuued] xyferrlag te Seotioa @ of 

Artlole 89128 a&Artlola '$891, Vernon*8 Aamtated Qlvil 

Statutes, where ltnas sa%dr 

Tbder the statutes the salarjr 4f.@q 

oounty olerk of Nao. do&es Gogoty'was goa+smed by the pllalsrpn oa x-3 earno& La ~XQSS,~arid 

the ma&mm salary'& $15SOq?fJ0.w 

With r~eferennoi t&the t&d q&&Ian rtat,b~abuvs, ; 

in view of the &bore mMM.oned authorities 8&b t&s faOt8 

stated, we respsotful.1~ answer the 8sms in thhe ss$iiwivs.