Honorable R. A. MoElrath

County Auditor Cooke county Ga5.nesville, Texas OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

**AUSTIN**

Dear Sirr

that the oountr and **keep** a er? **And** related.

**0phi011 0r**  thla Dq stated

we

mm% repusstlng em ions as are **herein**

as **r0ii0n8:** 

# 570

-By\ady or introduotlon, ~111~say that the aubitore of Cooke County have not keptta aahool ladger 8inoe about 1927. Evidently the keeping or euoh aledger was abandoned about the t$me the opinion of the AttOrnOy General, book 62, page 337, wasreleased, whloh opinion saya, *

. . . school **tirraire or**  8~county, adminietratlve andfinancial, are under the supervielon of the State andnot the county

. . .*Honorable R. A. MfcElrsth, Rape 2

"I amteklng the liberty of discussing the proposition further, somewhat in detail, in the hope that youmaybe able to sac just what anauditor is up against whenhetries to keep the school ledger as provided for in article 1652 with the lImIted informatloh available for keeping such aledg.er. I amnot attempting 

## tGargue or to discuss the matter as a lawyer would disauss it, but rather from the standpoint of untlwhose duty it is tc put the law lneo effeative operation anddoea not know, in view of the oonflictlng olrcumatanoes, howto go about it.

':Theterm 'ledger' as

## USed in said article 1052 Is evidently meant to be an ordinary ledger such as Is used in business, aa it calls for an 'accurate account 

## 0r all funds received and disbursed.*

*Aledger in any business is abook, or books, lntended to reflect the flnanoial status of the business, and is set upandmaintained by passing through the office of the kee?er::of such aledger aoomplete report of receipts anddis~rscrmenta of every kind, lnoluding purchases, sales, and other items essential to the conduct of the business, thus enabling the keeper or such ledger to makethe proper entries and sk,owthe status of all acoounts.
"The ledger of the county aa abusiness oonoern is provided for in article 1607 andis knownas a 'Finance Ledgorc. It reflects the state of county finances, and must be kept bythe county auditor for the use and benefit 

## 0rthe commlssionere~ court. Information neoesssry fcr the installing andmaintainiw of this ledger Is provided for in part byarticle 1617which provides ttmt overy county official thrcxlgh whose hands pass any county funds, except the county superintendent, shall makea full re;Jort'of all monies oollected and present receipts sad vouohers showing what disposition hadbeen madeof such mcnles; said report to be madeto the commissioners* court at each regular term. These reports, receipts, vouchers, etc.., all of which must pass through the audltar's 

## off-ice, provides the auditor with all the data necegsary to instell andmaintain adapendablo ledger that reflects the flnancall status of each office lndividually and in its relationship to the general finanoo OfHonorable R. A. McElrath, Page 3

the county. In addition to these reports rroa the varioue ofriciale, alist or all funds deposited with the county treasurer to the credit of any county fund is submitted to the auditor with a duplicate reoeipt of each deposit. Also all olalms allowed by the comzlssloners* oourt, which claims represent all county disbursements, must pass through the auditor’s office. Thur he is furnished with a complete report of all receipts end disbursements or all county rude.

“The sat-up with refnrenoe to installing end maintaining aschool ledger la entirely dlffarant. No report 1s required to be madeto the county auditor by the county suparintendant or school truataes, or any other school official, or for the submibsion of reoaipts, vouchers, ate., se Is required or other orrloiala. Vhen there is a par oapbta apportionment of stata **fund8** made by the State Superintendent of Public Instruotlon to be placed to the credit of the available echool rund of the County, the money is sent direct to the oounty depository whoreports the reoalpt of such money to the county aupsrintendent together with the amount of such deposit. Likawiaa, aollaationa of special school taxes
are deposited bythe tax collector in ths aamemanner. In neither case is the State Superintendent, the oounty superintendent, the county tax oolleotor, or the county depository required bylaw to report these reoalgts to the oounty auditor.

“The samegeneral situation is trtie with raferenoe to d1sburr:ement.s. I quote from opinion O-1063 to which you refer which says ‘...%a are, therefore, of the opinion that the administration anddisburaemants of school funds **18** under the control of the school bodies andthat this authority should not be limited by auparvision of the county auditor and other county officiala whensuch supervision has not bean specifically authorized...’ so far ss I amable to learn, there has been
no **such** ‘specific sup+trvision’ authorized in Cooke County.

“Comparing the provisions provided by law for keaplng the finance ledger with those for keeping the echo01 ledger, wahsva the following:

“H-:CEIpT:::Honorable R. A. McElrath, Page 4

aPlnance Ledger - Report.8 or reoelpte of all monlea

received byall oouuty officials handling county moniee, except oounty rup4rlntendent. Report of county treasurer with duplicates of all deposits to county funds for all purposes.
Y'ohoo? Ledger - Noreports and noreaord of reoeiptr

or depoeite.

"DIZBUR5B.4ENTS:

"Finance Ledger - Reporte OSdisbursements madeby

all county officlala handling county roniea togsther with reoelpta, vouchers, eto. Examining and paealng upon all claims preeented to the ~~mrnlaslonera' court, which claims
oover all dlaburaements madeby aounty.
"School Lodger - Noreports of aounty superintendent

or trustee6 to county auditor authorlzed. Paaalng on school dlebureements by auditor prohibited by law.

"1 not.4 that in your answer to question No. 9, YOU-7, *Theauditor has aooesr to andauthority to oxamine all booka, accounte, **reesipts,** vouchera, and other reoorda of all oounty offlclals, and to examine all vouahore &van by trustees of commonaohool dfatriate...', and from this you oonclude that it la a basis for inetalllng andmaintaining a eahool ledger andbase your oonolueion upon ertiola 1653which aapa

,...he shall havs continual aoaeae to and shall 4Xamine all the booka, aooounte, roporte, vouchers, and other records of any offloer, the orders of the Cornmieelonere' oourt relating to the flnanoes Ofthe county, and all vouohera given bythe Vtru4te41 Of all commonschool districts of the county and shall inquire Into the correctneea of same...'

“It appears to methat the above mentloned article to which you refer as authorizing the county auditor to obtain the neceaeary information to Install andmaintain a school ledger Is in the main only ablanket authority~ to auditors to examine (or audit) the books of an ever deemed advisable,eti;ot,"z ;zg:;e;h$-Honorable R. A. McRlrath, Pago 5

providing aaourc4 of information for setting up endmaintaining a school ledger. Furthermore, th4 referenae to the examination of vouohera given by trustees or commonschool diatriots ia not erfectlvo, since in the opinion of the Attorney Gbrmral, book 62, Peg-e331, to which previous reference haa beon made, it is hold that *

...school affairs of acounty, adminiatratlve and financial, are under the mpervislon of the etbte and not the oounty...'

-In your answer to question4 4and 5to wit *Is the aounty school superintendent of Cook4 County roqulred to keep the ledger mentioned In artiolo 1652,
or Its equivalent?* and, '15 the school depo@ltory bank of Cooke County required to k44p the ledger mentioned In article 1652 or ita equivalent?*, 4aoh queetlon we4anawared in the negative. Pleaee permit the followlng observa tlon: If the school ledger mentioned in article 1052, or a similar ledger, were not kept by both the depository bank andthe oounty sup4rintsndent, andwere kept bythe county auditor, all ofwhich would boin line with your construction of the law, then neither the dopoeitory bank nor the oounty 4uperintendent could give any infonmtfon whatever as to the flnanoes of any school district In the county until the aud%tor*r ledger hadbeen consulted, and thia in the fac4 of the faot that, every item of reoelpts and diebureemQnts pertaining to school funds paae through the depository bank and the orrioe of the county superintendent In the **regular** order of buelnoss, while none of them pas4 through the ofrlos of the oounty auditor. **A8** amatter of feat, both the depomltory bankand the county superintendent muet keep, and dokeep, euah nledger. They oould not teka oar4 of busineaaee of their otrloer without It, nor oould thsy makethe annual report Brequired of thornbythe etate superintendent. They are provided with every item of information necessary to keep such aledger, and so far as I amable to learn, anauditor is not authorized bylaw to demandareport of receipts anddisbursements of school funds, either from the depository bank of the county or the county superintendent or any other school officlal.

“In **view** of the foregoing mesa Oroonflioting eircumatanoes, your opinion Is deslrsd as to whether, unbar the tema of article 1852 andoth4r etatutes pertaining to school matters, it is mandatory upon mea8 CountyHonorable R. A. ILcElrath, Fags 6

auditor of Cooke County to *lnatall~ such alodger regardless of the fact that no provision la mad4 for supplying mewith the Information neaessary to ksep such Yledger.

*In vier of the further fact that the county superintendent of Cooke County muot keep and doe4 keep such i ledger andeecribed in article 1652, your opinion is desired as to whsther such alsdger ahould be paid for out of the school fund4 a4 provided for in article 2700D-1, seotion 2, vhloh act reacis as foilows: 'Tin4county board of trustees rhall annually on or before the first day of August hareaftar crder a scholastic per capita aeeeeement against eaoh school district within ths county In aufficiant amount to provide for the payment of the salary and office expense8 of the county superintandent andany office assistants hemayhave, ae is nowprovided bylaw, or mayhereafter be pro

### vided. Andthesaid asersement whenlegally made and certified to the school dletrlctn of tha county shall be 

### paidbythemfor the purpose herein 4p401-, ited.*

"Or shall semebe paid out of county fund4 a4 provided for In article 3099-b section 2, whioh aaye, 'Suitable offices and stationery andblank4 neee4sary In 

### theporfornmnceof their dutlee mayIn the dlrcretlon of the commlsslonere~ oourt also befurnished to resident 

### districtjudges,resident district and county attorneys, county superintendents, and county surveyors, 

### md my 50p.%ld

foron order oL'the commissioners* court out of the county treasurer?’

*Ormust'it be paidibr out of the private funds Or 

### thecounty superinLsndent?n



### Article1552,Ternonfadmotatsd CivilStatutes, reads as follows:

"The auditor shall install in his office a sohool lodger showi.nCanaccurate account of all tunde rocaivad anddisbursed bythe comon school distrlcts of hi@ county; abond regi.ster showing all the echo01 bond6 isausd bythe commonsOho districts Ofhi4 county, 

### theirrateof interest, date laeusd and matulitg date; and he ahall also keep anintereat and ainking fund account of such sohool bond."Honorable R. A. McElrath, Page 7

Article 1653, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, provides that:

”

. . .-* Fe shall tiave continual accasa to and shall examine all the books, accounts, reports, vouchers and other recorde of any offioer, the orders of the commissioners court, raleting to the flnanoe of the county, andall vouchers given bythe trustees Of all commonschool districts of the oounty and shall inquire into the corractnasa of the same.*

In our Opinion No. O-2734, addressed to you, It was held that the school ledger mentioned in Utiola 1652, aupra, must be kept bythe county auditor. Webelieve that our Opinion No. O-2734 la correct 

## endspecifically answers your flrat question presented in the above mentioned latter. Therefore, you are respectfully advised that it is our opinion that it is mandatory that the county auditor keep the school ledger referred to in Article 1652, aupra. Youalao raise the question
aato howyou are to secure the information neoeasary to keep
a school ledger as above mentioned. Article 1653, aupra, among other things, provides thet the county auditor shall have oontinual access to and shall examine all the booka, aooounts, reports, vouchers and other records of any officer

. . . and all vouchers given by the trustees of all commonschool diatricts of the county andshall inquire Into the correctness of the same. As stated in our Opinion No. O-2734, ndatalls for such axamlnstlons maydoubtless beworked out between the auditor and auoh officers.n Themanner Inwhloh such details
are to beworked out is within the dlacratlon of the auditor and cannot be passed upon by this Department.

It is stated in your latter “that the auditors of Cooke County have not kept aschool ledger since about 1927. Evidently the keeping of such aledger was abandoned about ,the time the opinion of the Attorney General, Book 62, page 337,
was released which opinion says *

. . . sohool affairs of a oounty, administrative and finanolal, are under the supervision of the state and not the aounty

. . .tn It is true that ,&haabove menticned o,oinlon holds as just atatad. However, this opinion, which is s conferanoe opinion, amongother things, further holds in effect that the county auditor is required to keep aschool ledger, showing all school funds received and disbursed by trustees or county school districts in his county, anda record of all school bonds Issued by said districts and that he (the county eudltor) 15required to exemlna all vou-Honorable R. A. UcElreth, Fags 8

ohara given bytrustees of commonschool dfstriats of the oounty andto inquire into the oorreotneas of the same.

Xethink that there 1smuchmerit in the position you take. However, Article 1652 wasadded to the statutes in!..1917 andwecan sea nogood reason for Its existence sinoe, as stated byyou, such ledger is kept bythe oounty suparlntandant and alike ledger is kept by the oounty dapoaitory, but the Legislature has madethe requirement set out in Artiola lBS2, supa, end imposed such duty upon the oounty auditor.

Artiole 3@99b, mentioned above, authorizes the oommisslonars~ oourt to purchase blanks end stationery whenthe court in its discretion decides to do so. However, wedo not believe that this statute authorizes the aourt to purohaaa books such as ledgers.

In vlaw of the lest above mentioned statutes you are advised that it la our opinion that the ledger kept by the county superintendent should be paid for out oi the sohool funds as provided in Article 27006-l andArticle 2827a. The county suparlntandent is not required to paytha ooat of the above mentioned l++Qgerparsonelly.

Trusting that the foregoing fully enawera your inquiry, weare
Yours very truly

ATTORNEY

Cl!NEFUUQB’TXAS

AH’:BBB BY Ardell williams

A=;,, Assistant

ATTORNEY CX%ZRAL OE’TZXAS