OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

GROVER SELLERS 

ATTORNEY GEHLRAL 

. 

Eonorsble John T. &tot&son 

County AtWwney, Lamer County 

Paris, Texas 

Dear air: 

aommissionaraf 

8' Court of Lmmr Couat~, 

the City of Paris, Texaa, 

and ~aa5.etanoe given to the 

id oity .LO property looeted 

amwer to the ilrat question Is yea, 

ounty Auditor of Lwaar County authorafd $100 per monthi RSIU if no, out of 

ould he be authorized to pay aam6?” 

Article 234la-1, Vernon's Annotated Clvll Statutes, 

provldee: 

“The acmmisaloners* court in all oountles of 

this State ah811 be authorized to iurnieh fire PZ’Oteotlon and flre f&hting equipment to the aitizwns 

of such county residing outside the city limit@ of 

any city, town, or village within the aounty and/or 

ad join :ni: oount ies. The commissioners’ aourt shall 

have the authority to purohaee fire truoks end other 

fire-fl@ting s?uipmant by rlrst advertialng and re- 
Hon. John T. Hutohiaon, rage 2 

aeiving bide thbraon as provided by law. The 

wmmiesloners’ oourt or any county or this 

State shall also have the authority to enter 

into oontraotr with a oity, town, or village 

within the oouuty and 7 or adjoining ocuat$er, 

upon such terns and aondltlom as ahall be 

agreed upon between the ocmmissloners~ oourt~ 

nnd the governing body of suoh oitp, town, or 

village, for the use of the firs truoks and 

other fire flehtlng equipment of the ~oity, town, 

or ~vlllage. It la speolfiaally provldod,that the 

eats of any pemon or parsons while fighting ,iirer, .* 

traveling to Or from flre5, or 14 aog aanner furnishing fire proteotlon to the aitlsenr of ‘a 

county outride the city limita of sap oity ,, town, 

or village, shall @a oonsidered au. the aotr o? 

agents of the county In all reape6te, hotti~thrlwding suoh person or persona may be regular eap~ojlwa 

or rlreaen of the olty, town, or villa 8. 

7 

x0 olty, 

tom, or rillaga u3thi.n the oounty ,and or adjoining wxmtles, shall be held 1Iable for the eat8 

of any of itat employeea while imgaged in figbtlng 

firer outride the oity lisrita’yursuant to My 

oontraotthhsrrtoforr entered into b6tween thr oQPLalselone~tx wurt oi ths wunty end the got-Ally 

body of the city, town, or village. Provldrd,howwer, 

that any Sirs equipment purohared by any county shall 

be don6 only by a major.ity tote of property owing 

taxpayara and qualified votes of rueh oo\mtg at a 

oountycwido elaotlon oalled for such puzpow. m 

Generally sgssking, the authority of’ the commissioners I 

aourt as the governing body of,the oounty to m&o eontracts In 

its behalf ie striotly llmitsd~ to that oonferrsd sither expreesly or by fair or neoesrsry lmpltoation by the oonstitutlon and 

statutes or this State. (Terrent County vi). Rogers, 125 S. x. 

592; Baldwin vs. Travis County, 86 S. K. &SO). The authority 

to oontraot on behalf of the county 18 vested alone in the 

aom!isslonersl court in the absenoe of m statute authorizing 

soma other agenay to oontraot;.,. and if an agrsaaraat la not mad8 
716 

tfizoiri:h 0:' sariol;ioned by auoh aganoy, it binds neither the 

county nor the individual. (8parka vs. Ksutman County, 194 

c, 'ii. 605; ii?lWicaIl DiSlKIteOtin~ COmpaIly VS. Freestone COiUlty, 

193 s. .;. 440; Term Jurisprudence, Vol. 11, page 630.) The 

comml~1si0ner.e~ court must have authority of law for Its oontr3St8, and, if the authority haa been given, a reasonable 

oonstruotion ot it will be given to attest its purpors. 

(Commissioners1 Cot&t vs. Zallao8, 15 S. ii+'. 26, 525). 

Artiole 2351e-1, supra, epealtloally aathorizas the 

OOmalaaloners' COUXt Of E5J OOUllty Oi thi8 <8 t0 8nt8r kit,0 

contracts with any city, town, or villa&s wlthln the oountr 

and/or ad!oinlng oountiea upon ruoh terms an4 oondltiona aa 

shall be agreed upon batween the cOmmisaioa8r~~ aourt and ths 

govarning body of ths oity, toun, or villags r0r the ua8 of 

fire trucks snd oth8r fire tlghtlng Oqaipm8nt of the eitr, 

town or village. Thsreforr, you aZ8 rsspeotiully stZrla84 that 

it is the OpFniOn Of this d8paxtlaent that th8 0WIhiseioll8rs' 

Court ot Lamar County iS authorizad undac the law to l nt8r 

into a aontraot with the City Of Paris to provide ior tiretl~,htlng facilities to proteot property heated outride ot the 

city limits 0t Paris, 3peclfloally answering your first qarstion, you aae advised that tha CoarPiSsiOn8Fa' Court Ot Lamar 

County is authorissd to oontraot with the City of Paris to 

provide for tire-tigbting fso~llt~ra and pap tha eittJ blOO.00 

p8r month tar suoh reXViaee, pXOVidSe anoh aXp8nditPr8s ar8 

mad8 in conpllanos with ths county budget and the law &pplloable to the county budgst. 

In answer to your rroond question, you are advisrd 

thst it ia our opt?ion, in view of our andwar to your iirst 

quastlon, the oountg auditor lr authoriesd to apprwc olalma 

for the sum ot @OO.OO par,month for tha above raentlcned s8rvices, provldeil that a oontraet has b88n made by and betwsan 

the oounty snd olty for such abrtlOSs, and that such payments 

must be mad8 out of the gen8ral fund of the county. All countl 

eXpenUituras lawtullg authorized to be mad8 by $ county must be 

paid out or the oounty'r g8taersl fund , U518SS th8r8 iS -me 1aW 

which makss them a oharge against the sp8ciel ruzad. (vlllllams 

VS. Cerroll, 182 s. w. 29; Berar Oouaty, st sl, 11. Mann, 157 

S. '?f, 26, 134). 

I 

Tours tory ~tru3.y 

A7,TORNr.T CI!WTML OF T!%xj 

. 

d /a.kakAres11 ‘dilllisms 

Assirtant