ORNEY GENERAL 

OF TEXAS 

Honorable Penn 9. Jackson Opinion Nc. WW-494 

Chairman 

State Board of Insurance Re: Compensation of members 

Austin 14, Texas of the State Board of 

Insurance for the fiscal 

year ending August 31, 

Dear Mr. Jackson: 1959 0 

You have requested an opinion wneerning Item 1 of 

the appropriation under the heading 'pBoard of Insurance Commissioners" eontafned fn House Bill 133, Acts of the 55th 

Legislature, Regular Session, 1957, Chapter 385, page 870, 

at page 1006. Your qaestfons are as follows: 

"1. Is the Comptroller IawPully authorized to pay 

the members of the State Boar1 of Insurance their 

compensation beginning September 1, 1958, from such 

appropriations for salaries and wages enumerated In 

House Bill 133? 

"2 ~ Commencing September 1, 1958, when the members 

of the State Board of Insurance devote full time to 

the duties of their of"fioes, and so certify, may 

they be paid out of au& ap&c,_, ~--~n?f~tions~ at the ?2xte 

of 1/12th 5P the annual appr~;Xiation each month? 

“3. If Question No, 2 is answered in the negatfve, 

then please inform us what ~pmwi~ k!dwwf?ng er certiffcate will be required on the per ,s,Yern account 

of the members for this c~mpenaat'ron." 

Item 1 reaes as follows: 

"For the years Fndfng 

August 31, August 31, 

1958 1959 

"FOP Salaries and 

Wages: 

"1. Commissioners, at 

$15,000 0 D . D . * $ 45,000 $ 45,000” 
Honorable Penn J". Jackson, Page 2, (WW-494). 

Senate Bill 222 

Regular Session, Chapter 4 

Acts of the 55th Legislature, 

99, page 1454, amended the Texas 

Insurance Code by oreating the State Board of Insuranae and 

the new official position of Commissioner of Insurance. 

Subdivision (b) of Article 1,02 of the Insurance Code as 

amended by Senate Bill 222 provides as follows: 

Code 

"(b) All of the powers, functions, authorlties, prerogatives, duties, obligations and 

responsfbflftfes, heretofeTe vested In and devolving upon the Board of Insurance Commissioners as 

heretofore constftuted under prior statutes; the 

Chairman of said Board; the Life Insurance Commissioner; the Fire Insurance Commfssioner; and the 

Casualty Insurance Commissioner, shall hereafter * 

be vested in the State Board of Insurance as a 

body, and except as provided herein, they shall 

be exercised, performed, carried out, and administered by the Commisslone~ of Insurance as the 

chfef executfve ad admir.iat:?ative officer of the 

Board in aceordanoe with the pertinent laws of 

this state awd the rules and regulations for uniform application made by the Board and subject to 

eupervfsfon of the Roard. The duties of the State 

Board of Insurance shall be primarily in a supervisory eapacfty and the carrying out and admlnistering the details of the Insurance Code shall be 

prfmarfly the duty an& reapoasfbilfty of the 

Commissfoner of Insurar-nee acting under the supervfsion of the E!oa~d.~ 

Subdfvfsion (bj of Article 1.05 of the Insurance 

is amen,ded by Senate Bill 222 provides as follows: 

'"(bj The members of the Board shall receive 

compensation until August 

2 

1, 1958 at the rate of 

Fifteen Thousand Dollars ( 15,OOO.OO) per year and 

thereafter shall receive a per diem of Fifty Dollars ($50,09) per day for each clay devoted to their 

duties but the total amount of per diem for each 

Commissioner fn any year shall not exceed that 

amount set forth in the General Appropriation Bill. 

In addition to the per diem the members shall be 

entitled to thefr actual expenses but in no event 

more than allowed fn the General Appropriation 

Eill.'Y 
Honorable Penn J, Jackson, Page 3 (WW-494). 

On the very wording of subdivision (b) of Article 

1.05 it was contemplated by the Leglslaturo that the compensation provided for therein would be provided In the General 

Appropriation Bill, and in passing the General Appropriation 

Bill the Legislature reaagnized the provisions of Senate Bill 

222, since it appropriated money for the compensation of the 

Commissioner of Insurance, which position was ereated by the 

provisions of Senate Bill 222. 

WW-166 (1957). 

Attorney Ganeral*s Opinion 

Therefore, you are advised in answer to Question 

No. 1 that the compensation for the members of the Stat? 

Board of Insuranas may be paid by the Comptroller of Public 

Accounts out of moneys appropriated in Item 1 of the appropriation above quoted, 

After August 31, 1958, the provisions of subdivision (b) of Article 1.05, Texas Insuranoe Co,de, limits the 

amount of compensation that may be paid each member of the 

Board to $50.00 per day for each day devoted to their duties, 

not to exce@d the amount set out in the General Appropriation 

Bill. 

$15,000 

The General Appropriation 'Bill sets this amount at 

each for the fiscal year ending August 31, 1959. 

Therefore, the members of the State Board of Insurance are 

limited to a per diem of $50.00 per day, not to exceed 300 

days during the fiscal year ending August 31, 1959. Sinae 

the provisions of Article l.C5 supra speeifieally pravfded 

for an annual salary for the fiscal year ending August 31, 

1958, and a per diem thereafter, you are advised in answer 

to youp secmmd question that the members of the State Board 

of Insurance cannot be paid at the rate of 1/12th of the 

annual appropriation fop thcfr compensation, but are entitled 

to be paid their per diem provided in A~tfcle 1.05. 

In holding that the provisions of Article l,e5 limit 

the amount of compensation that may be paid the members of 

the State Boar,3 of InaEranoe, we ape not unmindful of the provisions of Senate Bill 58, Acts of the 55th Legislature, 1957, 

Regular Session, Chapter 4, page 5, which suspends the salary 

laws for State officers and State employees for the period 

beginning September 1, 1957, and ending August 31, 1959. 

Senate Bill 58 was passed by the Legislature on February 13, 

1957, while Senate Bill 222 was passed May 23, 1957. Senate 

Bill 222 being the later enactment of the Legislature. must 

control over the provisions of Senate Bill 58. 

Jesus de la 0, 227 S.W.2d 212 (Tex. Grim. 1950); 

Broeter, 

Terrell, 

145 Tex. 142, 196 S.W.2d 82 (1946); Town 

118 Tex. 463, 16 S,W.2d 1063 (1929); Stevenson'v. 
Honorable Penn J. Jackson, Page 4 (WW-494). 

State, 159 S.W. 505 (Tex. Grim. 1913); Parshall v, State, 

m.W. 7.59 (Tex. Crlm. 1911). 

part: 

Article 4359, Vernon's Civil Statutes, provides in 

"It is hereby provided that a department, 

court, school, or other state agency may prepare 

and present payroll claims to the Comptroller 

prior to the end of the payroll period, which 

said payroll claims shall be verified by affidavit 

as to services theretofore actually performed 

within such payroll period prior to the date of 

such payroll claims; and such payroll claims need 

not be verified by affidavit as to any services to 

be performed during such payroll period subsequent 

to the date of such payroll claims. Such claims 

when so presented shall be prepared and approved 

as otherwise provided below. The Comptroller shall 

accept such payroll claim when presented and prepare warrants in payment thereof prior to date such 

claims become due and payable, and hold such warrants for delivery until the claims become due and 

payable. Such warrants shall be dated as of the 

due date of the claim and shall not be delivered to 

the claimant until the end of the pay period. 

The Treasurer Is hereby authorized to countersign 

such warrants and to make such entry as to properly 

take them into account. In order that such warrants may be ready for delivery at the end of the 

pay period the Comptroller Is authorized to make 

such rules and regulations as may be necessary for 

filing payroll claims in advance of the pay period, 

and for the preparation and writing of warrants in 

payment thereof to adequately and properly achieve 

such purpose." 

We know of no provision which would prohibit the 

members of the State Board of Insurance from being carried 

on the payroll of your Department. Therefore, the provisions 

of Article 4359 would authorize you to have prepared and present payroll claims of your Department to the Comptroller, 

inoluding the claim for the compensation of each member of 

the State Board of Insurance. The only additional fact that 

must be shown on the payroll is the number of days claimed 

by each member for the particular payroll period. As stated 

above, the only limitation in the amount of compensation is 

$50.00 a day, not to exceed 300 days for the fiscal year 

ending August 31, 1959. 
Honorable Penn J, Jackson, Page 5 ('N-494). 

Each member of the State Board of Insurance 

after August 31, 1958, may be paid $50.00 

per day xxnperxation for each day &voted 

to h%a &ties not to exceed 300 days for 

the fiscal year ending August 31, 1959, and 

such wm~ensation may be paid out of the 

appr6priat,fon contained Jn Item 1 OP the 

appro;:r:a,tfcc? ,under the heading "Beard 'CC 

Inzw~ame Commisslonere" in House Bill 133, 

Aczts of the 55th LegiCature, Regular Ses385, pase 870, at page 

You-c ver-y trul,y, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney aineral of Texas 

/$a- d7@+ 

0’ 

BY 

John Reeves 

Assistant