### THEAT~O~EY GENERAL OFTEXAS
Grover Sellers
AlTORNEY GICNl!xaAL Ausniw,1.T~xan (Overruled by 0-6903 insofar as conflicts)

Hon. C. H. McDowell Acting Director Opinion NO.0-6017 Re: Texas Agricultural Authority of Board of Directors Experiment Station of A.&M. College to purchase addiCollege Station, Texas tional land for MainState ExperimentStation. Dear Sir: Weacknowledge receipt of your letter of May12, 1944, requesting an opinion from this department on the legality of a proposed purchase of two tracts of land, consisting of 215 and 219 acres) respectively, in Burleson County, Texas, by the Board of Directors of A.&M.College for use for experimental purposes by the MainState Experiment Station in Brazes County, Texas. Youhave also submitted to us abstracts covering these two tracts of land for our examination, but in view of our conclusion with reference to the authority of the Board of Directors to makethis purchase, wefind it unnecessary to examine the abstracts.

In our recent opinion No. o-5918 weheld: (1) That the Board cf Directors of A.&M.College had statutory authority under Articles 2613a and 2613a-5, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes to purchase land “conveniently located in reference to the campus” for “college purposes” and (2) that the 48th Legfslature had appropriated the unexpended balance in the P’ureFeed Fund “for such purposes as the Board of Directors of the Agricultural andMechanical College of Texas may deemadvisable.” Onthe basis of these holdings wewere of the opinion on the facts stated that the Board of Directors of A.&M.College was authorized to purchase the Seth Mooring andthe John Lawrence farm as a part of the physical plant of A.&M.College andpay for the land out of the avaflable balance in the Pure Feed Fund.

Your letter states the purpose for which the proposed purchase is to be madeis poultry and livestock.” “for research on feeds and grains for The purposes for which the Board of Directors purchased the Seth Mooring andJohn Lawrence farmwere stated to be:

“1

. To afford additional space and a better type of soil for research andkindred work on feeds and grains for poultry and livestock and in all other phases of agriculture for the ~Agricultural &periment Station andZor research projects for graduate students in agriculture.Bon. C..H. McDowell, page 2 (O-6017)

"II. Toprovide for expansions in the production and processing of livestock, poultry, dairy, farm crops, and horticultural products in order that the College maybetter accomplish to a greater degree the following objectives: “a. Afford more practical training for students in all phases, of agricultural research, ,producti,on andmanageDent.

“B. ~&large certain processing facilities so as to give students training in the commercial operations of such plan+X.

“C. Furnish a large portionof animal, dairy andhorticultural products used in the mess halls. “n. Produce a larger portion of the feeds required for livestock andpoultry kept by the &periment Station andSchool of Agriculture.” Section 44 of Article III of the Texas Constitution provides that:

“The Legislature

. . . shall not

. ., . grant, by appropriation or otherwise, any amountof moneyout of the Treasury of the State, to any individual, on a claim, real or pretended, whenthe sameshall not have been provided for by pre-existing law.” The question here is not whether the moneyis available for the purchase’ of this land, but whether any pre-existing law authorized the purchase of this land by the Board of Directors of ii&M. College at the time the 48th Legislature pa’ssed the current appropriation bill. If there was no such pre-existing law authorizing the purchase the appropriation bill cannot be construed as conferring this authority. Fort Worth Cavalry Club, Inc. v. Sheppard,125 Tex. 339, 83 S.%(2) 660.

Chapter 8 of Title 4 of the Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, andthe amendmentsthereto are devoted exclusively to State Experiment Stations, their establishment, maintenance, ma operation. The powers of the Board of Directors of A.&M. College with reference thereto are separately enumerated. The Board is given power to lease land for experimental purposes, but its ~onlypower to buy land is limited to those instances where the Board of Directors has sold land which has “become undesirable for experimental purposes” and deems it advisable “to apply th,eproceeds of such sale in the purchase of,other land.” Article 139, V.A.&S. There is no general authority in this law to purchase land for experimental purposes comparable to the authority conferred by Article 2613a and 2613a-5, Vernon’s Bnnotated Civil Statutes to purchase land for college purposes.Hoi. C. H. McDowell, page 3 (O-6017)

Fromtime to time the Legislature has passed amendments to Chapter 8 of Title 4 authorizing the establishment of sub-experimental stations in different parts of the State but these laws have always provided that these stations were to be located on land donated by citizens of the communitywhich would be benefited by the establishment of the sub-station. Of course, if the Board of Directors has authority to purchase additonal land for the MainState Experiment Station, it would likewise have authority to purchase additional land for the numerous substations located throughout the State, that is at 1ea.s; ;aelzfng as there was moneyavailable in the Pure Feed Fund. the opinion that the statutes which we relied upon as abasis for out Opinion No. O-5918 should be limited to the purchase of land for college aurooses.

We, accordingly, advise that, in our opinion, the proposed purchase of the two tracts of land in Burleson County is not authorized by pre-existing law andthe Pure Feed Fundcannot be used for this purpose. Yours very truly ATTORNEY

GENERAL

OFTEXAS By/s/ Fagan Dickson FaganDickson, Assistant APPROVED

MAY73 1944 /s/ Grover Sellers ATTORNEY

GENERAL

OFTEXAS APPROVED:

OPINIONCOMMITTEE BY: OS, CHAIRMAN FD:BT:wb