OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Bon. J.B. idaDonald, Codseioner 

Department of A~laxilture 

Austin, Texas 

opinion Ilo. 042ll 

Be: Does the Departaien 

have authority 

of th6 ftelns de 

5ent of sa&r166 

lauq and these, 

oeEQal.6onMn6 6eneral R6v6xtuO. 

tcom Charter Filing P608 

Civil Statutes, 1985, 8.4 

as per item 55-B of the 
Hon. J.E. 36cDonald, hnuaissioner, pa@ 2 

F 

the Baboouk Butterfat Lau, and the amaunt of 

this ccmtingent is #1,500.00. 

The next repreeents tees derived through the 

aduinistratlcm ,a$ Qhapter~304, 3eguLar Sseaion 

0r tfie Party-rirm Lagicilatum, the fame being 

foes oolleated r0r gerniaatlon teats and t&e 

amount is sarried uiad(p: itera 58-I. Oetieral Appropriation Sills the anmuzit is $2,500&O. 

"The asxt Xs,funds remsirad through the leasing of Jaolcs and Stallions tu,Caretaksra aOOotding.to the prorlsiorrr oi XI& l.2, Pirst Callsd 

Session of the Horty-fifth'Iagislatum and api 

pears as Item 64-a la the General Appropriation 

Bill, and the 8mount ti $1@cL00. 

*Please advlse'if the Departr;.ent nil1 havs 

the aathority to use auy portiona of the ab6V8 

items and amounts rotor ths papnrent ot salsr1e6 

ror position8 not otherwise -provided for in the 

dpproprletion Billi" 

"Rent, heat, light, postage, telephone,~te;legraph, printing, supplies and @ontinaes'it, 

(un&~arsoor~ oura) 

Item X5-b read8 as follows: 

*Rent, heat* light, t@qhone, telegraph, 

printing 6suuplles 

oaring our6) 

Itqn 64-a iuoludes the follw~t 
Hon. J.E. WDcmald, Cormaissioner, page 9 

*'PostcaSe, printing, freight, 

graph ant Contingent." 

telephone, tele- 

(Underscoring ours) 

Thus YO find six itom under (lifferent special 

rwnca in whrcp the uorda Yin& Contingent9 are u#d. In 

oii~p~thre# 0r them is the list 0r pw*~er preoedin(t 

the words .ru:d Contingent" 1tZsntloal. be oall attention to this fact In view or the stete5ent in the letter of request that 'Uere is lteniized four aaounto 

under the heaCIng, *Rent, heat, Ifghts, postage, talephone, telegraph, printing su?;,lies and Contin&eat, eta.** 

It iS to be nctcd that in eaoh of the above instances the appropriation is frorl: swcial fundz areated 

under oertain laws referred to in the itezioed appropr~- 

ation. Under the heading %U.ntenance and iGaellnneolura 

there is en appropriation out of the G8naralReven~ue 

mid 0s the state ior: 

Wirniture, rixturez3, postage, printing, express, telephone, selegraph and Contingent ofpllSeS.*~ 

pie especially want tc call attention to the:raat 

that there is no speoia3, inhibition kn the Departmnt 

of Qrictilture Appropriation agaloet~the sn&opnsat oi 

additional salaried emplo~rees other than those prorided 

for specirleally. 

The General U&r to Senrto Bill 427 oon&&&s~the 

tolloning Lndtrect authorization ior the emplomrit oi 

aGtitiona1 employees out 0r co~tlngent appropriations: 

R~PI:~ITI~~AL,ELCPLO~'S'C~~SATIO~~. *ha 

any a&dZtlonal ea. 

whuhish.spc~iti~ sa 

loyeea, other than those Sor 

LY appropriations have here& 

In been me&e, are fnqloyed and are to be paid 

out 0r oontlngent a?propriatlons, such enployeas 

sbfillnotbt3 i-maid alargeramountthanthat 

provlcfjd in the regular approprlatted zaZarie8 

S0r gimilar positionz in aueh department or 

ac;enoy, zaqd in she event there are no airmiler 

positions withln.suoh depertment, then ouah ad- 
Hon. J.X. EoDo:mld, Oomz&mioner, page 4 

ditioaal employee shall not be paid a larger 

anount than that provided for sia5vlar positions 

in other departments or agenolea. In the event 

laborera, akilled laborers, and me&aulcs ORBnot be obtained at the ubove mentioned salary 

male, then the head oi eriah department may pay 

tot temporary srzploymant only not exaeed5.q the 

prevailing wage wale paid in the looallty whem 

the teraporary eervlce is to be rendewd~w 

The worda woorAlagent approprlatlon8* would-iucluCe contingent money8 out oi special fund8 an well aa 

moneys out 0r the Gemeral Rerenue Fund. 

Opinion HO. O-X532, or t&Is Department, by the 

Hon. Riahard Vl. Fairohlld, to George EL Shepherd, Caap 

troller of Publio hooounte OS the state OS Tcwu ia dlrectly in point. 

In thfs opir.ion it ie held that: 

* * * * unless the particular departnent 28 

speelally prohibited hem engaging any salaried 

employees ia addition to those provided spwiflcel4 by the apptopti8tion for that dopartmerit, a de~tmnt head my use his *aontJngcst* 

ap mprlation for the smplayment of odUitianal 

r&r ied help. 'Ehe departaent head ia not mqulred to obtain the approval of the tlmltation 

or mq-mentr Board ber0- makIng onoh employlru3nt, 

r0rth.a Boardhas jurlsdiationonl~~er thr 

glcyendittwe of ~surplueee* In asrtain spedial 

tua&s, and not over the expenditure of roontingent expense* appzopriaticms. Tb, departimnt 

head, -ever, will be required to mmber swh 

salaried poaitiour areated. and paid out of this 

oontingent fund, as provided in the paragraph 

ca 'salary payments* in the general rider to 

the general appropriation bllLw 

ThereasQnin ortihc abore opinion istbattae 

Legislature used t ii eterm *aontingent e~patme*~ in the 

mams of general Items of esptmse got proride& .&a? ep 

oifically, rather )hm inaidetital or unfi?remas lte?M* 
55 

Eon. J.lS. MoDonald, Cosurdssioner, page 5 

Vie wish to point out certain limitations contained in 

the generaZ 8nd speafal rider8 of the General Departnrental Appropriation BlU, Senate Bill. 487 of the Fortysixth Legislature upoa the expenditure of oontisgent 

f Lulus. 

In the general ride8 there is a IImitation apon 

the amouat of the lu8p #um appropriation for aostingsnt 

expenses rbiah smy be expended during say three month8 

period, 8ald provision reading as follme: 

~‘?t ia further provided that, durlhg say three 

8ohth8 period, no dspartment oan exp8nd more th88 

one-fourth of the appropriation 8s.do herein for: 

1.. (b) OOAtingQlt expe88e8, . . . protldsd that 

any unexpended balanoes frO8a prerlour qua&an 

m8y be expended during subsequent :~arter8.~ 

In additlos,your attention Is oalled to the prohibition against the use OS such oontfagent fund to 8uppl8ment the moheya pro&I&d rot “traveling exsensem*, 

as r0md8r 

*It is pamricied that 00 mpenditurer 8haU be 

aade for traveling expenaea by a8y dap8rtPent 

of this State in exoeas of the ammnt of smmay 

itemized herein SOT said purpoee~~" 

I.n the third plaae in the speQiaL rider to the Bepartnrsnt of Agriculture Appropriatloh in Senate Bill 

4B7, the expenditure of swneys ,$nCepeolal nind8 is l.%m 

ited expressly to the oarrylng lout of protisionr, of the 

aot8 nhioh areated the speaialrimd8 theu8?8lv6& X8 

other words, the sio8eya a6aruiu to a rpsaial fond under 

a oertain law oaoonly be used t or oartying out th8 psovi~l~nsor that partioular law a8d eanhot be l6geil4 used 

for aaomplishihg the purposes of,any other la% 

It 18 our opinion that ki the abS88Qe Of any prohibition against the hiring or additional aapZoyee8 to 

those speoifiaally prorlded ~QS in the hepert888t of 

Agriculture Appropriation u8dar Senate Bill 427, the 

&ep%rt&nt oi Agricblture ha6 the authoritjtsU8e its 

rarlous eontinged agpgoprlaticm out of apaalal fuada' 
Hon. J.E, ScDonald, Cozmlssioner, page 6, 

oreated under the various aats, such as those oontlngent qproprlatlons set forth at the out oet otttrie 

o~lnlon, for the ezploymnt of additlozal salaried help, 

but ~that coztlngeati fund under one aot nay not be used 

for the hiring of additional salaried help to aarry out 

the ;>rovisions of asother eat. 

Trusting that the abDva ruirp mswers your lnquirp, we -8 

Yours very truly 

iStob 

Encl. (Opinion O-1332) 

BY 

&rsiatant 

APPROVED 

OwNtON .O COMMll-rEL 

‘+&zF