? - 

R-906 

: . 

-E A-rrom GENERAL 

~FTEXAS I 

PRICE DANXEJ. 

*-lx- oI11s2mAx? 

_. 

Au- II, TRXAEI 

Hon. Alfred 1. ClJae 

Crimlnel ,Dlstrlbt Attorney 

0p1nlon Ho. v-429 

Fort Worth, Texas Re: Authority of the 

Colmn.lsslonecs' cmrt 

to promulgate trafDsePblr: 

'Sla regulationa. 

We refer to your recent letter to thla Departmont whlah reads In part as followa: 

%eotion 31 of the Traffic Re&ulatlon 

aa enaoted by the last Leglalature, reads 

as follows: 

"'SootPan 31. KICAL TRAFFIC ~- colVrRcL 

DEVICES. (a) Local authorities, in theti 

respective jurisdiction, may place and raintaln eny treffla-control devioes upon any 

highway under their jurladlotlon aa they may 

deem neaesaaq'to ln&cete.and carry out the 

provialona of thla Act, or local traiilc 

ordinancea, or regulate, warn or guide traffic. All such traffla-control.tlovices hereafter ereotefl shell oonf~rm to the atate 

HlzT Department18 mama1 md apeoltloa- 

. 

"The trustees end patrona of a aahool 

known as Indian Oaks, an unincorporated oommunlty, have requested the Commlaalonera 

Court of Tarrant County to enact ‘or prss ea 

order or rebtrlatlon fixing the legal: rate 

of‘apeed in the aahool done at 20~riles p&r 

hour. The State'Elghway patrolmen have aeaured the patrons of this school that if the 

Cormlaslontws Court would enadt sucrh a regulation or order that they would enforoe it, 

but I am in doubt as to the aizthorlty OS the 

Comlsaloners~ Court to paas any sort of an 

order regulating traifio, especially if they 

undertake to attach to such order a penalty 

for its violation, and if they have no au- 
. 

Eon. ATfree H. Clyde - Page 2 (V-429) 

thtirlty to pass an order or resolution fixlng the rate o? speed or providing a,penalty 

for its violation, then I em fearful that the 

ofilcer asking en arrpat for the vl@at.lo~ b? 

auah an order would not be protaoted and 

might be aoed for false lmprlaonment or Mlaxiul arrest. I would therefore l ppr eo la to 

an opinion from you on, the following qq*r-, 

tlonr: 

“(1) Where Subdlvlslon (a) of Seation 

31 Baya %6cal authorities, in their roapiotlve jurlsdlotion, ray place and maintain any 

trafflo-oontrol devloea upon any hlghWw’u+r 

EF 

n&i 

urladlqtlp~~ as they may deem neoelrrary 

oat0 and 6arry out the provlrlonr of,. 

thld Aot, or Xooal tiiaffl6 ordln&noor,"ito,!~~ 

would the term ‘Looal authorltlra~ IaoluAo a ~ 

Comlrrloner~t Court, or doel it have ro?o& 

enoe only to looal autWrltlea having Le@alatlve aothorlty rueh aa City Counolli, Boarde 

0r Aldermen, eto., whioh have LeglalatSvo poW 

era. It has not been my thought that a Carmlrrlonerr~ .Court had authority to enaot aq 

rort of trriflo regulations and afilx a penalty for violation of suoh~trafflo regulatlonr.” 9 

. . 

J 

The Bogulatlon jffafflo Aot laqueatlori 18 aenate Bill Ho. 172, A&a o?~ the SO-+ Leg.,..R.a., 1947.~ 

Artiole 2351, V.C.S., among other thhga, provides that the Commleslonersl Court shall "exerol8e gonoral oontrol over all rqds, highways, ~ferrler, ana 

bridges in th+.r fJou+y. . . 

?&wl: 

Beetlen 12 of the’ Traffic .Be@latloa ~Aot 18 a8 

'aeo. 12. "Looal Authorities. helj 

oounty, muxloipal, and other looal’board or 

boQ having authority to enaot law* relating 

to tbfflo under the oonrtltutlon andlawr ” 

of this atato.7 

In Texas Jurlsprudenoe, Vol. ,il, p. 563,~wo ~ 

find the following: 

“Cduntlea, being component partr of the 

atate, have no powera or duties exoopt thoao 
. . 

.’ . 

Eon. Alfred H. Clyde - Page 3 (v-429) 

which are clearly set forth and defined ln 

the constitution and statutes. The statutes 

have clearly defined the powers, prescribed 

the duties, and imposed the llablllties of 

the comlssloners~ courts, the medium throw 

which the different counties act, and from 

those statutes must coae all the authority 

vested In the counties. . . The corisslonem ' court is not vested with eny general police Dower. " (lbphaais ours) 

Article 6663, V.C.S., la in part aa r0ii0w8t 

"The admlnlstratlve control of the State 

Highway Department, hereinafter called the 

Department, shall be vested in the State HQhway Conlaalon, hereinafter called the Oonlarlon, and the State Highway lbginear. .' . i' 

Artlele 6673 provides that: 

"The Comlaslon is authorized to take 

~~~~~ mainta$n the various State Highway8 

, . . . 

Section 0 0s Artiole 8278, V.?.C., provider in 

part aa r0ii0w8: 

. 

"The State Highway Cotiaaion shall have 

the power snd authority upon the baais of an 

engineering and traffic inveatlgatlon to dote&no and fix the raxlmm, reasonable and 

prudent~apeed at any road or highway lnteraOetiOn8; railWay grade croaainga, NJ?VOa, 

hills, or upon any other part of a highway, 

less than the lnsxlrur~harelnbefore fix&d by 

thia Aot, taking lnto~aoncileeratlon the ridth 

and condition 0s the paverrnt a,ne other clraumstaneea o n l ueh portion of said highway 

as well aa the usual trarfio thePeon. That 

whenever the State ElghVay Commission shall 

determine and fix the rate of speed at any 

said point upon any highway at a less rate of 

speed than the maximum herainbafore set forth 

in this Act and shell deolaro the maximum, 

reasonable and prudent speed llmlt thereat 

by proper order of the Coalaaion entered on 

its minutes, auoh rate ,o? apood ahall beoo8e 

erfectlve ,and operative at aaid pdlnt on raid 
. . 

; 

Hon. Alfred M. Clyde - Page 4 (v-429) 

highways when appropriate signs giving 

notioe thereof are erected under the 

order of the Comiaslon at suoh lntersection or portion of the highway. 

"Tht whenever the govern$ng bodies 

of incorporated cities and towns in thla 

State within their respective jurladlctions determine upon the basis of&m engineering and trerric inveatlgatiotibet 

the maxImum reasonable and prudent speed 

at any lnterseotlon or other portion of 

the highway, based upon the intersectiona, 

railway grade arosainga, curves, hills, 

width and oondltlon of pavement and others 

conditions on such highway, and the usual 

traffic thereon, is greater or leaa than 

the speed limits hereinbefore set forth, 

said governing bodies shall have the power and authority to determine &nd declare 

the maximum reasonable and prudent speed 

llmlt thqreat, which shall be e??eotlve 

at auah lnterseotlon or other plaae.” 

We concur in the 8tateNent ln your brief wherein you say that: 

I . . . ~the setting up and maintaining 

0s traffic control devices ia an exercise 

0s a general poll00 power and la veated 

either in incorporated oltiea Andy towna 

through which auah hlghwaya pass, 'a in 

the State Highway C0nlsai0n, and 00ore 

not'be exercised by the Comlsslonera 

Court unless such power was granted by the 

Constitution or statutes. We are of tha 

~pialon that the control ovep roa&3, hl#hways, eta., as set forth in Art. .2X11 has 

to do with the oonatruot$on,slrd malntenanqe' 

0s such roads and does not authorize the 

Comlaslonera Court to set up ruler and rogulatlone for the uae b? the same." 

Therefore, in view 0s the r0regoing, it la the 

opiaion of this Department that the term "loos1 authoiltlea" as uaee in this Act, does not lnolude,Corrlaalonora' .Oourta but has reference only to these local authorities such aa City C6uuolls and Boards of Aldermeh whleh 

have loglalatlve authority to pass an ordo* regulating 
HOB. ame M. Clyde - Peg0 5 (v-429) 

trsrric and 8rrixing R penalty, and that the Colpmiaslonersl Court of Tarrent County does not have the 

euthority to pass any order regulating traffic in the 

oounty and asfiring a penalty for violation 0s auoh 

regulation. 

We appreciate the brie? submitted to this 

office elong with your retiuest. 

,smy.~. :’ 

The term "locel authorities" aa used 

'in S. B. 172, Acts of the 50th Leg., R. s., 

,1947;'e008 not .inoluee Commlaalorieri5a Courts 

but had referenoe only to thoae~ looal gut&rltlea ,aueh aa. Cltjr Councils and Bbarda of 

Aldermen, whloh have 1eglalatlVe atithorlty 

to paas'an ordq regulatllyr~tra??i and,a?i 

r’iring a penalty~, an@ the C~aaionera~ 

Court of TaPrant County does not have the 

authority to pass an ardor regulating trar- 

?lo.in the couuty' or part of the aountj and 

sr~lxlnga pepalty for vlolhtlon br,su0h ce- 

$ulatlon. 

Very truly 'ypura 

ATTORlUE GBlfljW~C9, TRXAS 

BA:djn 

m,~~~&, 

Bruce Allen 

'Aa8lat~t