OFFICEOFTHE.AlTORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS 

AUSTIN 
xon. 68O.H. Sheppard, page 2 

*In paming upon Claiias presented to this 

departmemt for paymoat It becomes neoeenary 

for legal oonstruatlon of the wording, 'lo department Ran 9X1)811Fz.' Does this mean that a 

department oan not contra& for more than onefourth of the appropriation during any one 

qaarterT To be epecffic: A departmnt, during the first quarter of the fisoal year, make8 

pamhaeeo to the amount of one-fourth of its 

appropriation. During this came quarter the. 

department head contraate against the omnmt 

available for.tho next wter. I8 such poo&lure legal? In other words, doerr the department head have the right to contraot for 

supplies during the present quarter agabst 

the appropriation that becomes available in 

the next ensuing quarter and to pay for 8ame 

awwdlnglyt* 

In construing the above'rider, it must be aonrs 

In mind that the &me function of this department, as 

well aa that of the courts, is to determine the legislafire intent, and in 80 doing, due regard nuet be had to 

the ,old la8, the eril and the remed~.~ (Art.10, Seo. 6, 

R.C.S.1925), and that construction of a statute should be 

adopted which is reasonable and which will effeetixate the 

prrpoee of the Legislature In &opting It. Imperial Irrigation Co. ~.Jayne, 104 Tux.395, 1313 8. II. 676; OliWr t. 

State, 86 Cr.R.160, 144 S. II. 604. A statute elmuld not 

be given a oonstruotion that will render It rain snd purposeless, Af it can be otherwise construed. Stolte v. Xarren (Cir.App,) 191 8. T. 600. 

It must be recognlm3d that previous approprlation bills had, by their term, plaoed it within the power 

of a department to exhaust completely its appropriations 

for the plrposus above mentioned in the quoted rider, dtwAng the early part of the fiscal year5 and that in manf 

instances such appropriation had been thus mhaueted in 

the early part of the fiscal year, leading to the result 

that the departnnmt vae without apFopiated funds available for such purposes during the latter part of the tie-. 

cal year, so that there ensued either a partial paralyala 

of the funotiona of the department or an application allowed br th8 ciovernor for a defioiencp ramant. This ras 

the old law and the e-r11 at which the Legislature was 
. ’ 

lion. Gee. li. Sheppard, page 3 

striking In the rider'quoted. 

The remedy applied by the Legielature ohviouely 

was intended to require that the appropriationa namd be 

diTided Ant0 quartere, each of uhich wae to sew8 to 

oarry on the functions of the department during the particular quarter of the year in whioh It might be, umber 

the ridor, s8xp8tieds. The Legielature was not conoerrmd 

l olely with the matter of when the money might be actually E"" 

out, for thie Qonstruotion vould permit a departmen to purchase aud uee eu plies during the first quarter 

of the year out of its oont ! ngent fund and contract that 

payrmnt ehould be nude therefor out of the monies In eald 

appropriation available for expenditure only during the 

last quarter. The Leglslatum, if that construotion were 

to be adopted by thie department , vould hare done a futile 

and parpoeeloes thing in enaoting the rider, einae the evil 

at which it wae striking would be undlsturb8d. 

In our opinion, the Logielatire intention vae 

olearly to require that eaah quarter~s appropriation 

tight be expond8d during that qua+r ~only for departmontal ax nsee neaeeearily lnourr8d In carrying out 

the fumt ;ee ous of the department during that quarter or 

8xtending into the eubeequent quarter or quarters, and, 

oouvoreely, that appropria$loue available for expenditure 

during eubsequont quarter8 should not be obligated to pay 

sxpenses Azmwred for euppliee or servieee used in carrying on the funotions of the department in an earlier quarter of the fisaat year. 

Lexicographers define the term *expense* as having varioue meanings, among them being *to pay outs, *to 

lay out", @to ep8nd#, and 'to dispoeo of*. Webster states 

that in aooounting praotiae, *the creation of a llabillty~ 

is regarded aa an 88xpenditure~. We think that it was in 

this latter sense that the term was us8d by the Loglslature . 888 the ease of Norman, Auditor, v. Central Xentuoky Lunatio A8yluuQ (ICy) 17 5. v. 16G. 

Zt is our opinion, therefore, that a contract 

for supplies to be delivered during an early wartor of 

the fieoal year le to a8 regarded as an *orpondlturew of 

the purchase price therefor during that quarter, though 

aotual payment is to be made in a later quarter out of 
Eon. Gee. 8. Sheppard, Page 4 

fuzele ov8%lsble for expsnd.%ture In eucb later quartor. 

l8 do not, horever, belleve that t&e L@slatur8 i&8aded $0 prohibit a department fm3?2 COZhraUt%Dg, 

in en early quarter or the flsoal year, for supplies 

to a43 delivered during a 8ua88qw.mt quarter, and paid 

for during such subsequent quart8r out of fmde avaflable for axpendlture In such subeequsnt quarter. 

R. 'li. FelrchUd 

AJ3eistant