OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Hon. Y. 3. ooar 

Countq nttornoy 

Blaaoo County 

Johnron City, Terer 

Desr sir: 

This will aoknowled 

Y9u.r le8ter re 

partmat r0r 

s ?aalntalned 

are per aa00 la raid tund, 

.OO bond, zad inax WOE voted by the 

Ccunty 0r BlaAOO. 

Vha departmat pacssd on this questioa 

f;~me am shown la your letter dated Feb. 6, 

me cCUnty cdII8iOAer Or meOiAOt NO. 

3 do& not think thet your.rullag ir corroot, 

440 
441 

Bo-. t. B. Gem, Page 2 - 

as ha ha8 been advised by prirete counsel 

that it ir nat Qorraot, and that t&a Cmnty 

fhmlasioner's Court hae th8 ri@t to use a 

pert oi aaid nooef in Co.z&issioner's Pracinat 

tk~~k~;tee for building end rYrintalaiag roeda 

. 

*I an asndiq you herewith a copy ot the 

order of the Cuztiasionern Court on Nomzbar 

lath, 1934 in this matter, in wkioh. said &leation nna bald and notice thereor given tuhafbr 

the prmialone of soa. 9 Art. 0 or the Conatitutlon of the Stats o# Texas, and ortlale 

6790, Chapter 4, Titlel16, Rvoiovd Statutea 

or 1923. 

Vreoilict B'o. three nom hae a grojeat 

proooodlag in road buildi.qi: by ?T. 3.~. crnd it 

needs from WAS7 to sssist in said iC?ojeot iA 

boildina said road8 aad PaintafnlnG them. The 

que8tion he mi;;lta ecarered is: 

*Can the c~srio~erm court 0r Euuwo 

legally per&t the Cd6sionar OS Yreainot 

Ho. three to usb a part of ttiia zxm6~ in 

the blllding of said road8 In said prealnat by the U.P.4. Erojeot? 

Vhir, matter wa8 gamed on by i’h. Z. Fannbg and Srundy 'i;illianm, pour esaistantr, 

iormrly on Feb. 6, 1940. 

*AB pts will @IO rrtm the order dated 

Xov. 12, 1930 that the purpose of ttia tas 

wa8 Sor buildkg aad rPeitztaininC t&e publid 

roads of said 316~00 Cmnty, Texs?S, hence 

the Cmmissioner of mscinct Xo. t&so waztr 

to ~ADW if he wotald be psmltttd t3 URN a 

psrt or said noaey in building and maintainiAs roedo 0r said prwaot x0. L5 under the 

If. P. A. Projeot now in probpess in Bald Preoinat xo..Three." 

On Feb. 6, 1940, In our optfiion Ho. O-1844, iA 
442- 

Hoq. V. B. Ooar, Page 3 

t?nmer to the followin& pueationt 

*Can the Conmissionsrs~ Court of Rlaaoo 

County'legally loan $1500.00 trm the Blanoo 

County Special Right-of-ray Fund to Road Prsoinot No. 3P” 

it w IS held that *the Cotxaiauloners' Court or Slanoo 

Coun ;y oannot lawfully loan the $1300.00 taken from 

the llanco County Special Right-of-Xap Fund to Aoed 

Prea sat X4. 3-. titer aamfully reoonsldering t&o 

abov I amtloned question aad the taats as preuentod 

theer Iwith, we have oonoladed that opinion Xo. O-1844 

uorrtotly anavmrs the sjmolfia question stated above. 

Eoxe ret, in asZi% for a reoonsideration of this 

ogiA.oA a dlfietsnt question 18 askad and additional 

ioctt are presented, which were not ooneidersd~in the 

OriC: .nd OpiAiOA. 

As stated in 

r 

cur letter, w:&h is quoted 

above, there is about ~24OC.OO in the Blanc0 County 

Speoial Road Fund, w>lch is znaintainsd by a five cent 

tax per hundred dollars per aMum. There 18 now about 

$lBOO.cO in sold fuad, after the payment of a $5OO.OO 

bond, and interest is paid. This tax wall toted by 

the OitiZOAS 0r the entiro oounty 0r BLaAoo. 

The qusetion as now praasnted la 5s hollows: 

*Can the Comissloners Court of Blanoo 

logally psmit the Caamiaaioner or m3ci3ot 

Ho. thrm to uss a prt OS this mnsy in the 

building of said roads in said precinct by 

the PI. 2. A. Projsot?* 

seotlon 9 or Artiolo 8 or the Stats Constitution reads as r0110wst 

me State tax 03 prctperty, exoluaire or 

the tar-neaessary to pay the publia debt, and 

or t'%e taxes prorldded Sor the bsasfit of the 

public trS8 sohoofs, ahall never erceod thlrtyfive cants or& the aA6 huAdrad dollar8 valuation; 

and no county, city or town shall levy more 
443 

HOG. v. a. c-r, hi73 4 

then tnenty-Sire cents for alty or county 

pw’,5oses, a2a not exceeabg rirttte3 cants 

far roads and briQ?es, and not sxceedlq rift 

taen cents to pay Jurors, on the ona hundred 

dollnrs valuotlon, except ror the ,?ayzmnt of 

debts incurred arlor to the ado9tIon of the 

awn&eat C8ptedttr 23th 1283; and fm the 

erection of pub110 build&s, streets, 3ewera, 

water works and other penauent Improvements, 

not to exoeoa txmty-rive cents on the one 

hundred dollars oeluatlon, In any one year, 

end ercept 88 i8 In this Constitution otherwise 

prorlded; and the Legislature iunurp aleo autborIze an additional annual ad valoren tax to be 

levied and colloated ior the further nalntenance 

02 pub110 roads; provided, t&it o ?saJorlty 

or the ~daziriea property tax-pagily: YOt8X-S 

of the caznty ootlng at an elsotlon to be held 

for thot purpose shall vote such tax, not to 

exceed rirteen cents 02: the one imndred dollars 

valuation of the property subject to tnxatlon 

in suah oountp. And the Le&lsZdturo may pas8 

local la&s for the ~alntenance or the SublIo 

roads and bI&ways, without the local ilotics 

required for a?ocIal or loesl lairs. (Sea. 9, 

Art. a, adopted election lrorenber t, 1906; 

3roolanatf on Ji3uary 7, 1907.)' 

.%rtlale 6790, Vernon’s Annatoted ClrIl Statutes reads as r0llms: 

*The ooxif:~sios3rs aourt shall order 8n 

eleotio3 upon presentation to it at any regular session or a petItIon sIgned by two hundred 

~u~iiriea voters and property tax yapere or the 

county, or a 3etItIo3 of arty person8 So qualfried 13 any politfaal subdivision or defined 

dlstrlot 0r the oounty, requesting said court 

to order an eleatlon to deternine whether eaid 

court shall lerp upon the property within mid 

territory a roed tax not to exceed fifteen cents 

on the one hundred dollars worth of groptrty, 

under the provIsIons of the azzendmnt or 1239 

to the Constitution oi the State of Texas, 
444 

Eon. V. B. Ooar, f’a~o 5 

ado#,ed in 1890. Snla aomt say aot on suah 

petition without notice; end nay zake an 

order ior szoh eleation, flxlng the amount 

to be.larled, not to exceed fiftaen cents on 

the one hundred dollars, the eleatlon to take 

place of any tine thereafter, not less than 

twenty nor zmre than nhety dcye irou the slate 

0r making the order thorefor. Upon a petltioa a:gned by a uajority of tho qualified 

tax pay1zz.g voters of any portion of any county 

or of any polltioal subdirlslon or any aounty, 

to said aaurt req.wLting that such portion of 

oald comty or polltlcal subdivision shall be 

oreated as a derlned dlstrlot, the said court 

ahall declare 6uuh territory a defined dirtrlot aa apead the order ror same upon the 

tinuter or oaid court; provided the petitioa 

aroresala shall derice by metes and bound8 

the territory desired to be 80 incorporated 

la suoh def’kied dIetrIot.* 

The orUer of the ooxznbaioner6~ court bearing 

date of ??ovexaber 12, 192Q, ordering an electian to be 

held for the purpose or aetetiing whether or not a 

spealal road tax of five cents on the one hundred aollars worth of gropertp skould be lerlea upon all the 

property oi Blaneo County, Texan, subject to taxatloa, 

Sor the :-urpoee or building and maintaining the publfo 

roads in said county was held under the provisions of 

Section 9, Artlole 9 or the Co1L8tIttltlOn 0r Terar end 

4kticle 0790, end rehaa as roii0398: 

%?ECiAL EOAD TAX XXTICN, Borezaber 12, 1930 

*On this, th.e lEth day of November, A.D. 

1930, this aourt be& 13 regular seasion, 

nith all zenbars thereof being present, uaae 

on to be considered the petition ,of ifape Smith 

and Two EUndred Berenty-thme ;273).&hers, reproperty tsz p@.ng voters of Bl63eo County, 

T~sis, praying that an elz+ation be held within 

and ror Blanoo County, TOXE.S, to doternine whether 

or not a meclel roaa tax of Fin, Centa on the 

One Zundreb ($100.00) Doll&m worth of property 

siiall be levied upon all the poperty or Blanoo 
445 

lion. V. B. Dear, Page 6 

County, Taaa, aubjeat to taxation, for the 

purgoee of build- nnd zmlntainln$ the publie 

mea l.ri said al8nco county, Texas. 

“And It appearing to the acurt that said 

petition Is, signed by the required number of 

property tax pafling voter8 or skia County1 It 

Is therefore ordered by the ocaart that an eleatloa be held wlthln and for raid County, on 

the 6th day of December, A.D. 1950, whloh aak 

Is not lese than twenty, nor more than ninety 

days from tha date of said order to tleteaa&nh 

whether or not d spsaial road tax of Five aenta 

on the Om -ihndred ($100.) Dollars worth of 

property shall be levied upon all the property 

of Slanao County, Texan, subjeat to taxation 

for the garposo of building and malntalnlng 

the pub118 roads In Blanco County, Texas. Said 

eleotion ehall be held and notice thereof p$ren 

under the provIa3na or sea. 9, Art. 8 or the 

Constitution of the State of Texas, and Art. 

6790 Otipter 4, Title 116, Revised Stat&em of 

1925, and only gialiried voters who are property tax payers be allowed to vote at said eleetion. 

*All voters deaIrIng to su3?ort the 3ropo6- 

Ition to levy said tax shtil have prrltten or 

printed on their ballots the words *For the Tax* 

and those opposed shall have written or printed 

on their ballota the word& .Againat the Tax.” 

Said eleotlon shall be held at the usual 

voting places in said Blanoo County, TaraS, and 

the regular atpointed and prment acting oftfoars or eleatlona shall hold said eleotion. 

*The manner of holding aala l leotlozt ahall 

be governed by the laws goreming general eleotlonr in this State* 

*A copy of this order signed by the County 

Judge of Blanc0 County, Texas, shall sane al 

a prsper notioe to be pr.lbliahed ln a newsgap8r 
44 

lion. V. 8. Gear, Pa<* 7 

published in said Blanco Comty, Te~ae, and 

ehall mua copier of eald notlce to be posted at thraa pub110 places la said aounty, one 

of which ahell be ot the oourthouse door 

thereof.” 

As above stated, the purpose of the election 

was to determine whether or not a speolal road tax of 

flvr cents on tha one hundred dollar8 worth of proparty should be levied upon all the Xoperty of Dlemao 

County, Texan, eubjeot to taxation for thr purpoer of 

building end rnalntalniag the gublio road8 In Blanoo 

Comty, ond said eleotion resulted in the faror of 

levying eaid tax. 

The paragraph in the above quoted section or 

the Cov&.itutlou providing for tha levying oi 8 tsx 

sot to exceed fifteen csnte on the one hundred dollar 

veluatlon of property rolat2lg ts tha nalntenence ot 

;ubllc roads ~2s not a pert of the ori&nsl section; 

It moo added by ammd~e& in the yenr 1890 for the 

evident. purpose oi oonferring upon ooimties the po;ier 

to lay cut, construct owl malntnln better syetem at 

publlo hi&weys than they wre able to do uudar the 

rortrictcd taxation before protif.eQ for. It would be 

a narrow lnterDrstF.tlon to hold thctt the people edoptlng this smenduent to the Cozstitutfon had in ?iew to 

provioe a fund to be used only in repairing roads 

already laid out, instead ot the evident and broader 

policy to oroate a better end core extensive system of 

sublic hlghaaya. The gurposs of the Legislature ln 

naking the auenduent wtm to lnawaos the oapacity of 

the oounty to maintain a systen of ?ublio roads and 

the word Walstenancem must be held to include all 

the things neoeesnry to be done to accc#nplln$ the 

purpose. D;tUS CO’VNTY VS. PLG’iXAh, 01 2. 6. 222. 

The above mentioned tax 16 lerlod by the Oouuty for the gsnsral purpose of building and nalntaining 

the public roads of said aounty and is not rsstriated 

toanypsrticular road or portion of the oounty. 

~:i’e a~-e ot the opinion that the tex money lstied and colleotcd for the g,:eneral purpose of building 
44 

lion. V. B. Oosr, Page 8 

and maintaining the publla roads in aald oounty under 

the protialona oi Section 9, Article 8 ot the Constltutlon and Utlole 6790, nay be exgs.Med by the oounty 

oomwlssioners* court for the urpo5.e OS building and 

mlnteinlng the pbllc roads In said oomty a8 said 

court my in ita discretion determine. 

Thererore, you are respectfully advised that 

it la the oglnlon oi this de~artmnt that a part of the 

above mentioned money map be expended for the purpose 

of building and maintaining public roads in Preolnct 

Ro. 3 a8 the oomisslonera’ court may deternine. 

It 1s to be e>eoliloally understood that vie 

are not passing upon the authority of said oountp to 

pap bond8 and interest thereon out of the above nentioned fund. 

Trusting that the foregoing ful1.y answaro your 

lnqAry, we remain 

Ywrcl very tmly 

AX! : ob