**OFFICE OF**  **THE ATTORNEY**  **GENERAL OF**  TEXAS

. _--- **AUSTIN**

he Oowity aufUl44tiQE With

4.desired rsaora rob to attaal the

,at ia your JuQn4nt ia t&4 fifth itfan unller i.rti.c?le 3944:

cgaive twenty-five CQrlCS for 4aoh ex6aiin6tlQn of each p4per or re4or&, or that he faayf&tr&g~ tvimty-fLvfb rlenta to t&e pertion 6x6~16~ the pttperw anA reCorda? could me AOXC suc444&* .iag fee of trsntr ccents for eeah I.00 word6 for meking o~,pl4s of al.& Pt4ld notes awhosia4 523gonorabls A. L. Waehburn, Page 2

e charge under the pbotoetatia moaeee under the oiraumetenaee abort **maed?*** Artiale 3944 of **Vernon ’** **s** Annotated Civil Btatutee (Aate 1676, Ch. 164, pp 264-292, # 16) provides aerteln fees for county eurveyore and reade in part as fallows:

“County surveyors shall raceIre the following fees:
.*c l %xeeinetIon his off Ioe et the

“Coplee or any other Sor eaah 100 ArtIcle **oi** paperr and reaamle in

request of eny person..... .2b of all field-notes and plate, papers or reaorde in hle offiae, wmde, lnaluding aertitiaats..

. .20.”
**aeag,** Vernon’ e Annotated CIrIl St@>re **(Aote** 1919, **Seaond** Gelled Seeelon, Ch. 67, **Q.** 173, I 10) **pravl4ee** t *Surveyorsqualified under this law et&d aounty **surveyors** may**make a**  aertlfiante **of an7**  faot shownby the books, doeumente andreaorde of any oountt 

### l

wveyo r~6

of?Iae and maymake
a oertiiled oopy of any doousient a? reaord or entry shownby reaord of l uah oounty surveyor!, end l rld oertlfloate shall **be** aQe~Zeeille in evlbenas as **to** what l aId reoorde aey dIealoee. For eaoh euoh oertlfiaate the eurveyor may oharge a fee of one doller, and 

### foreeoh one hundred words aontalnea In any certified copy thirty-fire oente. **When**e aounty her a aounty rurveyoreuah surveyor alone 8ha.11 be authorlmd to m6kO osrtlfiastae and aertlfIed ooples and reoelve the face therefor.* Aaeeual ownarieon of Artialee 3944 and 6260 indioetee a poeeible oonflIat as to the amount of tree a aounty surveyor nay reoelve for aertified aaplee of the papers and reaorde in hle offiae. It would seemby the former he Is entltleb to 20# andby the latter, 364 **for** eaah 100 words In the Instrument aertlfled.gonerable H. L. Washburn, Page 3

While orlor to Its 0odltIoatIon as Art1010 5280 In lQS5, there nay have been somedoubt as to the validity of thgt portion of ‘the hat of 1919 pror%dlng tees tar **oounty** l urreyore (beoauee of an ineufflolent title or oaptloa), thers 484 be no doubt as to Its valMlty now. LegIelatIve revlelone 4f our laws aure prior def4ate In their oeptlone. kerloan g&l*mnIty Co. v. Olty of Austin, 118 Tex. E39, l34d0. W. 1019; go part0 Fergueon, llS? **Tex.** 

### Cr.R. aS, 18 S. W. Ed660. 8ino4 x$Q8Artlale W80 must be held to have SUQSTSSd4d that portion of ArtIole 3944 providing a tee of twenty aente (f!Oj) foci oertIfI4d ooplee ofdooumente and reaorda Inthe ooantf l umr~- or@* ottioe. The aounty surveyor Is ROW entitledto r*seIre thirty-five oente (SSf) for raoh one hundred (100) word4 oeitlfled of any 

### of the beaks, 

### dooumente end reoorbe In his off 108. Your first quertlan Is whether or not **this** fee Is ; p;l;;b:: to photographlo or photostatlo ooplee. L

. Wehold

Of oouree, Until 04mparatI**l~ resent tIm48 it has been the praatlae of those upon whom**the** duty falls ta reoord and **make**oertltled oopieeof inetrcmentetomake l uoh reoordatlon 4~ faoeImllee either by hand or on the tfPI*TIter. Wepolnted out in OplaloaRo. O-H41 that the tr~~earlptloa 

### may be **by** photographlo pcoaeee, l aylttgt 'Of o ourae,



### wherea #t&ate ruthorlree tha .reoordatIaa **of** an tnetrument the tra?ieorI~tIon maybe **by** the phOtegr~phi0praaeer as well as by oallIgraph%o proaeee. Weso heid In opinion Uo. O-637. 80, also, where aertltled aoplee of reoorde **are** permitted, the ooz4ee so aortItied maybe~~hatoetatie as well as type-written or handwritten. @ Therefore, in 

### answer to your flretquestion, It is our aplnlon &ndyou 

### are **cQvleed** that the oounlq **surveyor** ma?In fulflllIng his duty **to** furnish aertlfled copies of the reoorde In his office to Interested parties, if he sogonorrbla H. L. Waahbur8, Pago 4

d~alrea,

omae l

uoh reoorda

tobe phatoatcted ad hawill m antltlad to charge a fee of thirty-fltr (SS$) oeata ror aeoh 100 wo rd8in the paper or dooumrnt oartlflad.

Your reoond quaatlon Lawhether or not the county agitator my be oom~allad to produoo hla raoords at 

### a point vhare they may be photoatatrd.

Aave prerloual~ pointed sot tha oounty rurva~or 88~ parfOr hlo duty O? iurniahtng o8rtlflod 

### ooplsa of hla raoorda llther by the photographlo oalligraphlo or typowriting prooaar. The option olaa& liar within him. UuQar the ltatutaa oreatlng hla ofiioe, Artlelea be83, 5S98, inoluairr, the oounty 

### aurvoyor la glvtm tha ouatodf of tha oountjr 

### aurvr~lag raoorila, la ohar a4with their % rafa-keeping and Is raqulrad to glro bon . uhilo under Art1018 **SBM,** **Vernon*r** **Annotated** Clrll Statutea, aor 

### intaraatad paraon haa thr right to aurlna tha rroorda In him offloe, tha oounty l urvr~or omnot ba oompellrb to praduoo thorn (withoutorder of oourt) at a polnt outal&aofh%aoiiloe, nor oan ho **be** ooepellatl **to** wlopt upf putioular 

### prooeaa for making oooiea. Wo

### 80 ha16 wLth reapeot **to** the oounty olark ia Opinion ;;.,9;“7, **oiting**

‘r.11. . . ., 156, ana 164, 146 1.g. YQUara rooorblngly atlrlaae that the **oounty** 

### aurtryor may notbe eoaarllad (without order of oourt) to pi@- doer hia oitlaial reoorda at apoint 

### rsaotrd fro8 hla offloe In or&or that they aar bs phot6atatad bt an lntor- 

### *ate& party.

Your finalguamtlon 

### la an to tha awning of the 

### phrase oontrlned In the fifth Item of Artiola 8944, suprai auwly, ‘Examination of paper8 and raamla la hla o?fioe at the raqueat of any person.;..... .85$.” You dealra to knov whetherthlr 

### phrrra oontmplataa a ire oi .E?bgfor eaoh oxulnatloa, or, a fee of .26dtar the rumination of asoh oaper and arah robor&.~o~rablo H. L. Washburn? Page 5

;,rticle SZQE, Bernon*a ,wrotated Civil Statutea, read8 as Sbll0~8:

*,$a~ p4r4on intometed, for hlnrself, or as agant or attorney of anothor,ahrll at **all** times have the right to eranina the **bcokrr,** papers, plats, naps Or othar arohiws balonging to the orrioe Of

### any surveyor, OLI the payment of tha fee fixed hy 1aw.m of couxsa, the *fee fixed bg la* :s set forth in ArtlOla 3944, namalyt

*~ga?pinatfon of papars and reeorda fn his off100 at the request of any person .... &2b#.*
wehave oonoludad that this ~mvlaion of ~rtlol0 8044 authorizes tb0 aountg surv6yor to ohargo .S5$ tb each ii areon for aaoh examination ha maymrrk0 of the roaorda ia it3 orfica. It does not authorlra a 

### oharge or -.lW lor oaoh paper eraminab. This is Olearlr 

### apparent when referanoa Is 1~66 to the aouroe of r . ;;014 3944; nSulJ, tha AOt of 1875, Chapter 164, p. EPS, There it was provided that the oountg eurvoeyor -ahall rsoelre the rouowiag hear

qor @aOhaxaalcatlon Of pzpara aud r0oora8 in his offioe, at the request OSany parson viahing to 0xmalttOthu, twenty-five oanta~ a * **

you ar0 sooor6lt@y 0dviaacI that &in&wArt1010 9044, supr4, the county surveyor Is 0ntltled to a tea of .E5# for sach axamlnation of th4 papsra and r0Oorda irr.hir ofi foe. **Very** truly yours APPRCSZSFEB 21, 1941 ATTORNEYG-L

ATTORNEYGENXRALGp~~~ Jm:emf