April 18, 1977

Honorable Joe Resweber Harris County Attorney Houston, Texas 77002 Opinion No. H-982 Re: Authority of county treasurer with respect to payment of jurors. Dear Mr. Resweber: You have requested our opinion on the legality of a procedure adopted by the Harris County Commissioners Court forpayment of jurors by thedistrictclerk. This procedure requires the establishment of aDistrict Clerk's Special Juror Account Fund by the transfer ofmoney from theHarris County Jury Fund. Checks from the Special Juror Account Fund are to be signed only by the district clerk or his deputy. The county treasurer is tomake weekly payments out of the Jury Fund to the District Clerk's Special Juror Account Fund, but has no other responsibility forpaying jurors under the contemplated procedure. You ask the following questions: 1. May the District Clerk, rather than the Treasurer, open the Special Account? 2. Do the statutes require the signature of the Treasurer on jury checks? 3. Must the Treasurer make delivery of all checks to jurors? Article 2122,V.T.C.S., provides inpertinent part: (a)
. . .The commissioners court of each county shall determine annually, within the minimum andmaximum prescribed in this subsection, the amount of per diem for jurors, which shall be paid out of the jury fund of the county.

p. 4088Honorable Joe Resweber -page 2 (H-982)

(b)A check drawn 

### on the jury fund by the clerk of the district court of a county may be transferred by endorsement and delivery and isreceivable atpar from the holder for all county taxes. (Emphasisadded). Article 2122provides forpayment of jurors by check drawn by the district clerk on the jury fund. Attorney General Opinions H-590 (1975)and M-659 (1970). We believe that article 2122 requires payment of jurors from the statutorily authorized jury fund and not from a special fund entrusted to the district clerk. Although the commissioners court may under some circumstances establish special funds andmake payments from them 

### inexercise of its granted powers, seeAttorney General Opinions H-590 (1975)and M-774 (1971),we donot believe itmay do sowhen a statute directs payment from a particular fund. We note that article 1709provides-in part: -

The County Treasurer, as chief custodian of county finance, shall receive allmoneys belonging to the county . . .and pay and apply or disburse the same, in suchmanner as the Commissioners Court may require or direct, not inconsistent with constituted law. (Emphasisadded). We believe the establishment of a Special Juror Account Fund under the control of the district clerk is inconsistent with the statutes, and accordingly we answer your first question in the negative. The provisions bearing on the duties of the county treasurer are gathered together in article 1709a. Attorney General Opinion H-171 (1973). An examination of this statute discloses theproper method forpayment of jurors:

Sec. 4.
. . .the County Treasurer in each county shall disburse allmoneys belonging to the county, forwhatever purpose they may be claimed, and shall pay and apply the same as required by law. Nomoneys shall be expended orwithdrawn from,the county treasury except by checks orwarrants drawn on the county treasury . . . .

. . . .

p. 4089Honorable Joe Resweber -page 3 (H-982)

(d)Warrants: It shall be theduty of the County Treasurer, upon presentation to him of anywarrant, check, voucher, or order drawn by theproper authority, if there be funds sufficient forpayment thereof on deposit in the account aaainst which suchwarrant isdrawn, to endorse upon the face of such instrument his order topay same topayee named therein and to charge the same on his books to the fund upon which it isdrawn asprovided inArticle 2554.
. . .

. . . . (f)In each county having an auditor, the County Treasurer and the depository shall make nopayment unless the such warrant is countersigned by the auditor.
. . . (g)The only exception to the auditors' countersigning is that ofwarrants for Jury service.
. . . (Emphasisadded). Attorney General Opinion y-657 (1970)concluded thatunder these provisions, the county treasurer is theproper official todeliver jury checks to thepayee. In Attorney General Opinion H-590 (1975)we approved theholding of M-657 and also concluded that the treasurer must endorse checks drawn upon the jury fund before they could be paid. The language of article 1709a, sections 4(d), (f)and (g)is especially noteworthy, since it specifically includes warrants for jury service among thewarrants tobe signed by the treasurer. We believe thatAttorney General Opinions M-657 and‘H-590 were correctly decided and require thatwe answer your second and third questions in the affirmative. SUMMARY Harris County must pay jurors from its jury fund, and not from a separate fund entrusted to the district clerk. The county treasurer must sign jury checks, and he is theproper person todeliver checks to jurors.

P. 4090Honorable Joe Resweber -page 4 (Hy982)

Xery truly

### yourat

APPROVED:

Opinion Committee km1

p. 4091