JIM MATTOX 

Attorney General 

Supreme Court Building 

P. 0. BOX 12546 

Austin. TX. 76711. 2546 

5121475.2501 

Telex 9101674.1367 

Telecopier 512f475.0266 

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San Antonio. TX. 76205.2797 

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An Equal Opportunity/ 

Affirmatiw Action Employer 

The Attorney General of Texas 

August 31, 1984 

Honorable Erwin W. Barton 

Chairman 

Human Services Coa3xittee 

Texas House of Representatives 

P. 0. Box 2910 

Austin, Texas 7t769 

Dear Representative Barton: 

Opinion No. JM-201 

Re: Whether the city of Pasadena 

is entitled to representation on 

the Port of Houston Authority 

You ask us alwut the appointment of commissioners to the Port of 

Houston Authority ,f Harris County, Texas. Section 61.158(b) of the 

Water Code providc:s that 

[t]wo ol’ the commissioners shall be appointed by a 

majorit), of the city council of the municipality 

having zl population of 100,000 or more, and two of 

the coumd.ssioners shall be appointed by a majority 

of the wmmissioners court. 

You inform us that the population of the city of Pasadena in Harris 

County now exceed:3 100,000 and wish to know whether a majority of the 

city council of Pasadena is thereby entitled to appoint any 

conrmlssioners to the board. We conclude that it is not. 

The present authority was first created in 1909 as the Harris 

County Ship Channt!:. Navigation District by enabling legislation passed 

pursuant to article III. section 52 of the Texas Constitution. The 

legislature enact si. in 1921, Senate Bill No. 93. a general statute 

that applied to nrwigation districts that 

have bel!n or may be created for the development of 

deep w,a :er navigation, ~. having a municipality 

contain:ing or hereafter containing one hundred 

thousanti population or more as determined by the 

last prl:eding census. . . . (Emphasis added). 

Acts 1921. 37th Lzg.. 2nd C.S.. ch. 30, 51, at 53. Article 8235, 

V.T.C.S., the statute contained in the 1921 enactment providing for 

the appointment cf commissioners. was. in turn, codified as section 

61.158 of the Watl?:: Code and provides as follows: 

p. 884 
Honorable Erwin W. Barton - Page 2 (JM-201) 

Section 61.158. Appointment of Commissioners 

(a) If the provisions of this subchapter are 

adopted by a d:L.rtrfct. the district shall be 

managed, governed, and controlled by a commission 

composed of five commissioners, who shall be 

subject to the c;upervlsion and control of the 

board. 

(b) Tvo of the commissioners shall be 

appointed by a madority of the city council of the 

municipality having a population of 100,000 or 

more, and two ;‘f the cossuissioners shall be 

sinted by a majority of the commissioners 

court. 

(c) The chad.rman of the commission shall be 

the fifth member ;md shall be elected by majority 

vote of the city, council and commissioners court 

meeting in joint session called by the county 

judge.- (Emphasis added). 

It is suggested that the ‘above underscored language from Senate 

Bill No. 93 defining the s,:ope of the bill, i.e. districts having a 

municipality containing or hereafter containinrO.000 population or 

more, indicates legislattir~r intent that the governing body of 9 

municipality located within such district which reaches a population 

of 100,000 after the creat:ion of the district is entitled to appoint 

commissioners. We disagrea: for two reasons. 

When called upon to interpret a statute, we can offer only an 

interpretation 

which expresses only the will of the makers of the 

law, not forced nor strained, but simply such as 

the words of thti! law In their plain sense fairly 

sanction and will clearly sustain. 

Railroad Coxm~ission of Texas v. Miller, 434 S.W.2d 670, 672 (Tex. 

1968) quoting Simmons v. I:!=, 220 S.W. 66, 70 (Tex. 1920). At all 

times subseauent to its c!r.actment. an act should be given the same 

meaning that it had at tha! time of its enactment. Ma&y v. Robison, 

56 S.W.2d 438 (Tex. 1932); Townsend v. Terrell. 16 S.W.2d 1063 (Tex. 

1929). 

Section 61.158(b) of the code provides that 

[t]wo of the commissioners shall be appointed by a 

majority of the :ity council of the municipality 

. 

I 

! 

p. 885 
Honorable Erwin W. Barton - :?age 3 (JM-201) 

having a populatl~n of 100,000 or more. . . . 

(Emphasis added). 

The municipality to which r,ectlon 61.158 refers IS the municipality 

having a population of 100,COO or more set forth in section 61.151 of 

the code. Section 61.151 of the code provides the following in 

pertinent part: 

(a) A district, created for the development of 

deep-water navigation which includes a city with a 

population of more: than 100,000, according to the 

last preceding federal census, may operate and 

develop ports ard waterways inside the district 

and extending to the Gulf of Mexico. (Emphasis 

added). 

When the district was crea’:,! d the only city therein with a population 

of 100,000 or more was Houston. Clearly, the only city then entitled 

to appoint commissioners wz and remains Houston. 

Moreover, subsection (a) of section 61.158 provides for the 

appointment of only five crnmissioners. If the city of Pasadena were 

permitted to appoint commir~r;ioners. the number would clearly increase, 

an eventuality which the statute does not contemplate. If the 

legislature had intended ttat every municipality in such district be 

authorized to appoint commissioners once that municipality reached a 

population of 100.000, it would have so provided. The language of 

Senate Bill No. 93 upon whi:h you rely merely sets forth the brackets 

of the bill, determining the scope of the statute to districts with 5 

municipality containing 101,000 at the time of, or subsequent to, the 

bill’s passage. According.L:r, we conclude that the city of Pasadena is 

not entitled to appoint c~smissioners to the district in the manner 

set forth in section 61.158:b) of the Water Code. 

SUMMARY 

The city coun:ll of the city of Pasadena is not 

entitled to appc’int commissioners to the Port of 

Houston Authority of Harris County. 

JIM MATTOX 

Attorney General of Texas 

TOM GREEN 

First Assistant-Attorney General 

p. 886 
Honorable Erwin W. Barton - Page 4 (JM-201) 

DAVID R. RICHARDS 

Executive Assistant Attorney General 

Prepared by Jim.Hoellinger 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Rick Gilpin, Chairman 

David Brooks 

Colin Carl 

Susan Garrison 

Jim Moellinger 

Nancy Sutton 

p. 887