August 18, 1961 

Honorable H. R. Nleman, Jr. Opinion No. WW-1120 

Executive Director 

State Building Commission Re: Authority of the State 

State Office Building Building Commission to 

Austin 1, Texas obtain services and 

enter Into contracts 

with other State 

Dear Mr. Nieman: Agencies. 

You have requested an opinion as to the legal 

authority of the State Building Commission to obtain 

services and enter into contracts with other State 

Agencies or Departments of State Government regardless 

of the approval of any other State Agency. 

The factual background of this request is 

as follows: The Comptroller of Public Accounts returned 

a State of Texas Purchase Voucher submitted to it by 

the State Building Commission, and requested that such 

purchase vouch,er be approved by the Board of Control. 

The payee under this purchase voucher was the Texas 

Highway Department, and the services rendered to the 

State Building Commission by the Texas Highway Department were for soil testing and analyses for the State 

Building Commission in the Capitol Area Expansion Plan 

Program and for copies of logs and tabulation data 

pertinent thereto. 

to $435.00. 

The charges for such services amounted 

These services were rendered by the Texas 

Highway Department pursuant to a contract previously 

entered into by and between the State Building Commission and the Texas Highway Department. The purchase 

voucher contained upon it, as authority for such 

contract and the payment for the services rendered, a 

reference to Section ,$I of Senate Bill 134, Acts 54th 

Legislature, Regular Session, such bill being codified 

as Article 678i1, Vernon's Civil Statutes. 

Section 5 of Article 678~1, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes provlces that: 

'The Commission is authorized 

to take any action and enter into s 

contracts necessary3 providxr the 
Honorable K.R. Nieman, Jr., page 2 @W-1120) 

Statutes, 

obtalnlng of sites m Q,R planning, 

&&puning dIlg construction of the 

building a 

-- 

memo rlals provided for 

by Section 51-b, Article III of the 

Constitution, and the Commission la 

also authorized to take any action 

R@# enter Into any gontra;;: tii;btain 

sites which it deem% nece ry 

order to provide for the orderly 

future development of the State Bulldlng Program which is contemplated by 

this Act, Insofar as appropriations 

permit. . ~~omtnisslon M call 

w &he +eias Hlahway DeDartment to 

& aDDroDrlate tests and analyses 

-- of the natural materials at the site 

of each bulldlnu constructeq 

to insure that foundations of’siid 

buildings will be adeqtate for the 

life of the buildings. 

added ) 

(Emphasis 

Section 8 of Article 678~1, Vernon’s Civil 

provides that: 

?he Commlssion shall have the 

authority to call on any DeDartment 

of State Government & assist 14 &R 

carrvu out the duties of the Commission. And particularly, It shall 

be the duty of the Board of Control 

to do and perform such acts and functions In connection with this Act as 

the Commission may direct; and to that 

end any portion of the money appropriated to the Commission may be 

allocated by the Commission to the 

Board of Control and expended by it 

under the direction of the Commission 

in carrying out the provisions of this 

Act." (Emphasis added) 

The above quoted provisions of Article 678m 

would constitute sufficient authority for the State 

Building Commission to obtain the services of and enter 

into contracts with other state a encies. In Attorney 

General’s Opinion No. W-349 (1958), this office held, 

In passing upon the validity of a proposed contract 

between the State Bullding Commission and the Texas State 

Historical Survey Committee in which the Texas State 

Historical Survey CommIttee was to provide certain 
. I 

Honorable H. R. Nleman, Jr., page 3 (W-1120) 

services for the State Building Commission, that there 

was authority for such contract under the provisions of 

Article 678~. 

The provisions set forth in Article 678111 do 

not designate as a requirement that such contracts be 

approved by the Board of Control. Consequently, we are 

of the opinion that contracts pursuant to Article 678~ 

are not required to be approved by the Board of Control. 

SUMMARY 

Contracts entered into by the 

State Building Commlsslon with 

other State Agencies pursuant to 

the p,rovlsions of Article 678111 

do not require the approval of 

the Board of Control. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

PB:lgb 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Elmer McVey 

Morgan Nesbitt 

Bob Eric Shannon 

Thomas Burrus 

REiVIEWl3DFORTHEAT'I0RNFXGENERAL 

BY: Howard W. May8