OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Ron. Leo ?rennell 

County rittomey 

;:ptiut county 

Gilmr, Texns 

Dear Sir: ! 

a~populatlm3or mtleaa than 

Miami, one hundred ISa 10.00) 

twmty-tw6 thonaand, &rs bunaatmrdlng to the led prrcmb 

%n8U2 the 0oglai8eioner8t court 

of suah aeuntp is !mreby authmlsed to ieraue 

sash oimmi~oioiler the mm of i'ifty dollarm 

ilt50.00) p%r month for travelfag expeRs.s 

#hltle on ofiloial bunin6nn. @aid rmney to 
ROZI. Leo Tre5rmll, June 1, 1939, Pa&s Z 

be paid out of the muera fund ai said 

aounty. 

'580. 2. ?3lOr&8llO3'4 The fadt that 

ownty oadf~sion0rs in oertoin oouatlea 

nust travel ezteneively on official business 

and the fact that them l.s no appropriation 

made by lav to aare tar suoh expearres, create 

an amsrgenoy and en l~rcrtlve Dublio neoeasSty that the oonatitutlonal rule requiring 

bill8 to be read on thme sereril day8 in 

tmoh Ilouse be eu&!pended, and the 8emO is 

henbr suapended,aadthieaotshell tak8 

offeat and be In for00 l'rcm and after its 

pafmage, antI it 18 20 enaotad." 

L?pshur Cow&, Texas, aaaordlng to the last 

preoeding Federal Census or 19S0, has twenty-two thousand, two hundred and nine-8aVoa (e8,297~) inhabitants. 

Upshur GountT, Texas, is the only oount 

Withbi the QOpKIlatiOn braokets 8Ot Out In 

i&T$;l;pLng 

866 of th% 46th Legislature, above qtmted. 

At tha very outset ai ?.hLs opinlan,, we are eonrmdd with the qU88tiOR or'th@ oonstitutf.onalfty 0r 

Eowm Bill 866 or the 46th Legislature oi Tbxas, above 

quotea. 7%~ queetifm aria08 es to wh%ther ktr not thi8 

aot 18 a local or 6psOial law regulating the affair8 aC 

.oountiea in violation or Artiole 5, Section 86 or the 

comitut itan or Texas. 

T2m case af Altgelt ve* Cucelt, a01 6;r 100, 

hold8 that Beraf County nocld tiw, providing rW QIl hluIual 

28~1~ r0r 00~~1i8dtmwr8 0f 80unty r0or tmthg in all 

oapaoitlos, was unoonatitutianrrl, as an attmptifd regulatfan or aounty arralra by looal and epeaial lar. 

The O&80 oi 3&h ve. Stati 49 SW Znd 759, 

h0lb8 that the OonntltutionaI prOalb&on agaln8t special 

law8 oonmt be evaded by making law wplicable to a protended ola88 and that a etatute 0lattsirying nunlolpal.itles 

by population is %peaiel* ir populatkm doe8 not f&ford 
“A OOnsidrnttOn Of the Oh88iiiMtiM 

oreated by the sot involvea in the present 

., 0680 In the light or ArtIol* 3, sootlolt !sd 

0r the constitution, mi~~~rily calls r0r the 

6pQliocltiOa oi the rU& that th. L6&I8htUM 

ouuwt evade the prohibition of the Goastltutim by making a law applicable to a pretended 8h88, whloh 18 &8 mMit@atad by the 

sot, In hot, no o&w. Clark vs. Finley 

54 SIT 343, mlpn. &t40 Or th0 t%0t8 iOr 8+ 

termlnlng whother a pretended olass is nanItwtod by racab't are laid down by IWulllaa 

011 kfUDiOiJ4d COrpOrOtfOM, YOhlW 1, pa@8 

498,499. ne quotot *me olas8IfIoatIon adopted Bmst re8t ip real or subrtantlal distinotion wtiloh render-6 one olass, In truth, 

di8tfnot or dlffemnt from another 01688.*. 

mgu-e antat oxi8t a rsaflonable jwiri06tiorr. 

for tho olarslfieatlon~ that 18, the ba818 

ot the ol6s8iiloatIon Inv*ed must have a 

dlreot relation to tha purport of the law...tr 

In the ease of Uootl va. Earfm Indos?emlent Sob001 

Xetrlot, 123 SW end 4e0, the court used the iol.louIng 

,lalpWg*l 

*We take JudloIal knowledge that no 

other oounty in T-8 hue the qualIiIO6tfon 

of area and population dwanded by the rtatute8....ft &3 8*riaidi to say here that 

when M look to the praotloal operation of 

the aot ue are 1.d to the oomlusIon that 

beyond doubt It was the purpose or the 1%&r 

16turr ta 8ingla out Presidio County and s&e 

the aot a~pllcable tc that oounty alone. 

Bsxar County ~8. TYMZI, 97 SS Znd 407. For 

that reason the sot lb a local aot and one 
Ron. Lw Fresnell, June 1, 1959, Page 4 

which It vae beyond the power of th? Legislature to mbaot. ?CWtlCUl'8 lrnnotatedCIYI1 

StatUt48, Texas Constitution, Art1010 3, SeatlOn 56; L??Wnfi%ld VI* ~htL4WJ 109 SW ad 

382; city 0r Port ivorth vs. Bob&tt, 56 8R 

&idt 470g Fritter ta. Went, 65 SR and 4l4; 

Austin -?rOS. ?8. ~?attOn, wS?l lfJ2f Snlth 

VI). State, 49 SW 2nd 7S9.% 

~Thi8 dmpartmmt held in it8 oplnlon ??o. O-18 

02 Uhmh 6, 1939, that Arti01s8 23726-1 S&3 522lbdS 

Rmvlsed Civil Statutes or Texas, 1926, the former b&g 

applioable to oountle8 having a population 0r not 1488 

than forty-eight thouaond, nine hundred (40,900) and 

not mom than ?orty-nlnm thouand (49,000) aad the latter 

applying to oounttms with a population of not lea8 then 

rorty-%ISht thousand, al.50 hundred (48,900) and not mom 

thnn rorty-el@t thousand, nIue hundred and seveaty-iIv@ 

(4f&975) aad'oountIee with a populaticm 0r not 1488~ than 

ten thousand, three hundred and s@Yenty (10 370) and not 

mrm than ten thcuesnd, three hundred and e!gbty (lO,SSO), 

aoeordlng to the last prmoedlng Federal Cen8W, u6re unoonstitutlonal and voldeae spealal law8 under Sootion 56, 

~rtIol@ 3 or the stats Constltutlon, olting the oese of 

the City oi Port Worth ve. Bobbitt, 96 SU En& 470. 

This department held in Its ginion 30. O-364, 

on mroh 1, 1939, that Article 3902, seotloa 3a themor, 

Revised Civil Statutes or Texas, 1926, Providing ror an 

off;08 aaalstant, bookkeeper and ateno6rsPhor In &Ka4ntfb8- 

havlng a population or not leea than rcrty-elsht thousand 

nine hundred (48,900) and not more than rorty-nine t.hou8and 

(49,000) inhabitants, aooording to the last preoedln& Feda2-d C*naus, ww raid under miole 3, section 66, 0r.the 

State ConatltutIonr 

This department held in Its opinion Xo. O-462, 

on Pearah 21, 19939, that EOUO Cl11 652, 46th Le~81aturmt 

whleh prov1am8 rar the ettaohmont or adjaaent terrItay 
458 

Ron. Leo I'rem.11, June 1, 1939, 

three huadredthausand (300,000) 

three hundred and fifty thousand 

Page b 

and not noro than 

(350,000) inhabitants 

aaoordlng to the laot preoeaiq Fodoml census, me untxmstltutlonal in that It att4rapWd to maot a looal 

law and isllnlthl~ ths prohibition of Artlalo 3, Seo- 

\tlOA !M oi the Con5tltutloA of Tosas. 

‘CQ ere of the oglAlon tlmt Eouae 9111 No. 866 

of tbe 46th T,eglnlatun of Taras, quoted abore, Is olear- 

'ly UAOOn&itUtdOAa~ aAd viOlat ~4atiOA 56 Of aticti 

3 or the Canstltutlon of Tmaa. 

Therefore, you am ros~4oMully advised thst 

it 1s the opinion of this dopartwnt that T?ouae Bill R&W 

866 of the 46th Le&lslatum of Te%as 1s uAconstltutloM1. 

You an furthar ro~?tfully adrleod that it Is the OpiAion of this demrtmimt that the coml5aloner~~ Oourt 

would not bo justified in payl~.g the con!~issio~4ra any 

owns of laoney as traveling expe~nos under t!zls unoorrtltutIma law. 

TNatlae; that this a~mer5 your Inquiry, we ar4 

very truly yours