? - 

### 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 highwayunder their jurladlotlon aa theymay 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.tloviceshereafter ereotefl shell oonf~rm to the atate HlzT Department18 mama1 md apeoltloa-

. "The trustees

end patronaof a aahool known as Indian Oaks, an unincorporatedoommunlty,have requested the Commlaalonera Court of TarrantCountyto enact‘ or prss ea order or rebtrlatlon fixing the legal:

rate of‘apeed

in the aahooldone at 20~riles p&r hour. The State'Elghway patrolmen

have aeaured the patronsof this schoolthat if the Cormlaslontws

Courtwould 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 resolutionfixlng the rate o? speed or providing a,penalty for its violation,

then I em fearfulthat the ofilcer

asking en arrpatfor the vl@at.lo~ b? auah an order would not be protaoted and might be aoed for false lmprlaonment or Mlaxiularrest. I would therefore 

### l ppr e o l a t o an opinionfrom 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~tCourt, or doel it have ro?o& enoe only to looal autWrltlea havingLe@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 bridgesin th+.r fJou+y.

. . ?&wl: Beetlen**12 of**  the’ Traffic .Be@latloa

~Aot **18** a8

'aeo. 12. "LooalAuthorities.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 TexasJurlsprudenoe, Vol. ,il,

p. 563,~wo ~ find the following:

“Cduntlea,

being component

partr of the atate, have no powera or duties exoopt thoao. .

. ’

. Eon. AlfredH. Clyde - Page 3 (v-429)

which are clearlyset forth and definedln the constitution

and statutes. The statutes have clearly

definedthe powers, prescribed the duties,and imposedthe 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) Article6663, V.C.S., la in part aa r0ii0w8t "The admlnlstratlve control

of the State HighwayDepartment, hereinafter calledthe Department,

shallbe vested in the State HQhway Conlaalon, hereinafter calledthe Oonlarlon, and the State Highway lbginear. .'
. i' Artlele 6673 provides that: "The Comlaslon is authorized to take
~~~~~ mainta$nthe various State Highway8

, . . . Section 0 0s Artiole 8278,V.?.C., provider in part aa r0ii0w8:

. "The StateHighway Cotiaaion shallhave

the power snd authority upon the baais of an engineering

and trafficinveatlgatlon 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 otherpart 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 trarfiothePeon. That wheneverthe State ElghVayCommission shall determine

and fix the rate of speedat any said point upon any highwayat a less rate of speed than the maximumherainbafore set forth in this Act and shell deolarothe maximum, reasonable

and prudentspeed llmlt thereat by proper order of the Coalaaion enteredon its minutes,auoh rate ,o? apood ahallbeoo8e erfectlve

,and operative

at aaid pdlnt on raid. .
;

Hon. AlfredM. Clyde - Page 4 (v-429)

highways

when appropriate

signsgiving notioe thereof

are erected

under the order of the Comiaslon at suoh lntersection

or portionof the highway. "Tht whenever the govern$ng bodies of incorporated

citiesand towns in thla Statewithin their respectivejurladlctions determine

upon the basis of&m engineering



### and trerric inveatlgatioti bet the maxImumreasonable and prudentspeed at any lnterseotlon or otherportionof the highway,

based upon the intersectiona, railwaygrade arosainga, curves, hills, width and oondltlon of pavement

and others conditions

on such highway, and the usual trafficthereon,

is greateror leaa than the speed limits

hereinbefore

set forth, said governing bodies shallhave the power and authority

to determine

&nd declare the maximumreasonable and prudentspeed llmlt thqreat,

which shallbe e??eotlve at auah lnterseotlon or other plaae. ”
We concurin the 8tateNent ln your brief wherein you say that:

I

. . .~thesetting

up and maintaining 0s traffic control devices ia an exercise 0s a generalpoll00power and la veated either in incorporated oltiea Andy towna through

which auah hlghwaya pass, 'a in the State HighwayC0nlsai0n, and 00ore not'be exercised

by the Comlsslonera Court unless such powerwas granted by the Constitution

or statutes. We are of tha ~pialonthat the controlovep 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 opiaionof this Department that the term "loos1authoiltlea"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* regulatingHOB.ame M. Clyde - Peg0 5 (v-429)

trsrric and 8rrixing R penalty, and that the Colpmiaslonersl Court of TarrentCountydoes not have the euthority

to pass any order regulating trafficin the oountyand asfiring a penaltyfor 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'anordq regulatllyr~tra??i and,a?i r’iring a penalty~,

an@ the C~aaionera~ Court of TaPrantCountydoes not have the authority

to pass an ardor regulating trar- ?lo.in the couuty'

or part of the aountjand sr~lxlnga pepaltyfor vlolhtlon br,su0hce- $ulatlon. Very truly 'ypura ATTORlUE

GBlfljW~C9,

TRXAS

BA:djn m,~~~&, Bruce Allen 'Aa8lat~t