Honorable Weaver 8. Baker, Chdxmm 

State Board of Control 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Mr. Baker: opialon No. o-5417 

Rt: Availability of appropriation 

to G8tesvllle School for Boys 

for "discharge and trausportation . I' 

Your letter of June 21, 1943, requeets the opinion of this 

Department upon the question whether the appropriation for "discharge 

and transportation" made to the Gatesville School for Boys in the current eleemoeyuary appropriation bill irmailable for expenditure, 

in view of the fact that no pre-existing law can be found authorizing 

the payment of discharge money and transportation of boys dischar&ed 

from such cchool. 

Section 9 of the Act of March 29, 1887, establishing the 

EatesPille School, reaa as follows: 

"Section y. Upon the discharge of any person 80 

committed to 8aid house of correction and reformatory, 

the Superintendent ehall provide them with a mlt of 

rultable clothing and45.C-O in money, and procure transportation for them to their homes, if resident of this 

State, or to the county in which they may have been convicted, at his option." 

In lm the 21st Lsgislatw'passed the Act of April 2, 

lW, "to provide for the more efficient government and mainteunnce 

of the house of correction and the reformatory at Gatesvilla." 

Section 13 of this Act read a8 followe: 

"Section 13. Upon the dircharge of any persons so 

committed to said house of correction and reformtory, 

the Superintendent shall provide them with a suit of 

suitable clothing pad $5.00 in money, and procure trimsportatlon for them to their home, If resident of this 

i 
lonorablt Wuvwr P. hbr, ~01 2 (O-917) 

&ate, or to Vhe county in vhich they my have been convicted, or to Nch other place in thin State at vhich 

rid dircbmgmd inmate ny have procured engloymnt, at 

hlr oytioq prodded, that tranqortation rhdl not exceed that to the point from vhich said convict vas convict&a. * 

The codification of the statutu in I.835 carried Article 

2952, which red u f03.30~r: 

the 

“Article ~952~ upon the dbcharge of any permns 

10 cdtted to nld houe of correction and reformtory, the Superintendent rM.l provide them tith a suit 

of Nltable clothing and $5.00 in money, and procure 

transportation for them to their home, If resident of 

this litate, or to the county ln which they may have 

been convicted, or to euch other place in thie State 

at which aald dircharpd Inmate may have procured meploynent, at his optionj provided, that ruch traneportation shall not exceed that to the point from 

vhich said convict van convicted.” 

Article 2952 of tbs l&5 revision 1186 carried forward in 

1911 revirlon ae Article 523j of the Revised Civil Statutes, which 

read as foLlow6: 

“Article 5233. All lnmatos of said institution 

rbll be p-i&a with shelter, wholesome food and 

suitable cloth-, books and othr material necellmry for their training, at the expense of the date, 

except as othemiee provided by law.” 

It la to be noted that in thlr rwviaion the codifiera did 

not carry foruard the provbicn for providing lamstar, upon dimcharge, 

with a Nit of suitable clothing end 45.30 in money and trumportation. 

Article 5i?jj of the Ravired Civil Strtutes of lpll vas carried fonnrd tt Articlt 51.29 of the Rtristd Civil Matutu of TCPI, 

1925, which nad as fou0us: 

"Articlt 5l29. The Superintendent ~h8J.l divide 

the inutu into Nch CluMS u&d abaLl horw, feed 

and train tbm in much mnaer aa he dmm beat for 

the develo~teadadvaacemntoftke child. All 

lnmttr &all be prorMtd tith &alter, vholeroa 

hod and clothing, books, manr of healthful recreat9.a anat other material neeemsaay ior their tnining, 

at the expum of tb State, except 81 otherwise provided by lev.” 
Eosorsble Wearer H. Bsker, psge 3 (O-5417) 

Tba m~isi011 or 1925 -18 not 6 mm conpihtim 0f ~WV~OUS~~ 

ui6ting hr6, but COMtitUteS the Statutory b3V8 of the Ststt rsrpecting the rubject to vhlch it relster, superseding previously l xlrtlng 

la ws wh ic h a m o nlttsd thsrsfro6. l * l .î --39 Tax. Jur. 10. Tbersfore, the failure to carry forvsrd the provl6lon6 of Article 295.2 

of the 1895 revision into the 1925 revision operates 66 6 repeal tbsmof. 

There la, therefore, no provision of the gsnersl law authorlsing 

the furnishing of clothing and the myment of 6 sum of money to, md 

the pr~curlng of trensportstlon ror lnm6t66 of the JuvsnFle Sch001 

upon their discbsrge from the Institution. The paver to do this csn 

not be Npplled by the general sppropristion bill for the tleeaosynary 

lnstltutloxu of the State. Aev laws nosy not be ?assed or old one6 

repealed or amended through the aedlum of a gsnersl spproprlstion 

bill; the purpose of such bills Is to eupply the tbnds for the current 

oparstians of governmnt under existing laws, and, by Article 3, Sectlon 35, of the Constitution of Texas, such bills 66~~ contalu only 

"the vnrlour eubjects snd accounts, for and on account of vhich money 

is sp$ropriated." To allow the yesing of 3ew laws or t,Le repeal or 

-&sent of old ones In the general appropriation bills would utterly 

&fast the purpose of the constitutional requirement that "30 bill 

* + * hall containmore than one sub3ect. - . vhlcb 6hsllbe txmerwd 

in Its title." -- State v. Field, 57 Tex. 20:; v. Fb, $2 

Tex. 454; Conley v.Bughters of the Re blic of TE, 151 S. Y. 

883; Opinions of the Attome General; 1$1.1-l.@, p. 119; l&&ljjS, ---su--r 

p. 209; Letter -----+ Book 60, p. ~1934-1936, p. 46, p. 7i; Opinion Its. 

0-25’73. 

Since there's no law authorizing such expenditures for 

the benefit of inmatte upon discharge, snd the appropriation bUl 

csn not rupply euch authority for the resmns stated above, the oxpsnditurm of the item for such purpose would vlolatc Article 3, Section 44, of the Contiitut*, 9s s. grant of nwney out of the treaewy 

to sn lnditidual on a clain not provided for by pro-existing lsv. 

The appropriation item le void for snother reason. A# above 

noted, there 1s no longer sny law prescribing the purpssr for which 

sppropristlonr for "discharge snd trsnsportstlon" csn be txptnded. 

In the sbsence of such lav, the item "discharge sndtransportatl~" 

is vlthoti ascertainable meming. The sppropristlon does not set 

up any standards to govern the %penditure of such item. The amount 

of money to k psid the inmste upon diecharge 16 not prescribed, nor 

ie the nsture of the trsnsportstlon to be furnished. Belther la thers 

any provision by which the smount to be paid the inmate, or the cbarscter 

of transportation to be fumished is in my wise limited or z-agitated. 

In Nch use, the appropriation 16 not "specific" se to its purpose, 

sndtherefore doss not meet the requlremant.8 of Constitution, Article 

8, section 6. 

RWF-m-U4 Vary truly yours 

- ~~z%?243 

ATl!aRREY~oF~ 

By /s/ R. W. Fslrcblld 

QQ[ERAf. OF TEXAS R. w. Fsfrchm 

_ APPRm, OPnmm cmz, h861stant 

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