OFFICEOFTHEATTORNEY GENERALOFTEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable John A. Blienefee 

County Attorney 

upton Gounty 

Rankin, Texas 

Dear Sir: 

n from their liarequesting the oplmad question reads in 

of the coma he facts are as folounty failed to rile 

enditures of his 

asloners cow% of 

Now outside 

expenditures not.filed in monthpproved by said oommissloners 

"TEE f&fETION: Can the present commissioners 

court laartully approve expenditures run& by the 

sheriff in the year 1941 and release the sheriff 

and his bondsmen from their liability. 

". . . ." 
Honorable John A. Menefee, page 2 

The sheriff as well as all 

of Upton County was oompensated on a 

1941. 

other oounty offioials 

ree basis for the year 

section (a) of Article 3899, Vernon’s Annotated 

Civil Statutes, applicable to fee offices of the.county, 

requires each offioer named in the ~maxirum foe law (now 

.ArtfCles 38839891, Vernon*8 Annotated Civil Statutes, as 

amended) to make a?monthly Itemized and sworn statement of 

all of the actual and necessary expenses incurred by such 

officer in the conduct of hia office. 

The case or Pierson v. Galveston County, 131 S.W. 

(2) 27, among other things, holds that a justice of the peace 

was not entitled to recover from the county items of expenses 

olaimed ror postage, traveling expenses and messenger service 

during oertain years in offloe, where the justiae of the peaoe 

did not render monthly statements of such expenses as required 

by Article 3899, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes. In’this 

case the justice of the peace merely riled annual reports estimatlng the expenaes in lump sun amounts. We quote from 

this case as iollows~ 

=. . . . Pierson made mo monthly statements 

as required in the followingportions of B.C.S., 

Article 3899: At the close Ott each month of his 

tenure of such offloe eacrh officer whose fees are 

aileated by the provisions of this law shall make 

as a part of the report now required by law, an 

itemized and sworn statement of’ all the aotoal and 

neceeaary expenses inourred by him In the oonduot 

of his orrloe such as stationary, stamps, telephone, traveling expenses and other neoesaary expense. If suah expenses-be lnaurred in connection 

with any partic.ular aase euoh statement shall name 

suoh case. Such expense aooount shall be subject 

to the audit of the county auditor, ii any, and ii 

it appears that any Item, of such expense was not 

incurred by such officer, or that such Item was 

not neoessary thereto, such item nay be by such 

auditor or court re jetted. In which case the correotness of suoh item may be adjudicated in any 

court of competent jurisdiction. . . . 

“The manifest purpose of this statute was to 

provide a means of asoertalning the correctness of 

expense items eaoh month as they are incurred. The 

actual expenses paid or incurred constitute the 
Honorable John A. Menefee, page 8 

measure of the orflcial*s right to recoupment. 

The monthly Itemization is for the protection of 

the county by affording a means of ascertaining 

the faot and the amount of such claimed item of 

expense and whether it was properly chargeable 

as such. It is manirest from the annual reports 

and confirmed by the evidenoe that these expenses 

were merely estimated and a lump sum given eaoh 

year. The statute would be of no value if its 

salutary provisions could be evaded In this manner. We hold the Items properly disallowed by 

the commissloners~ Court, and the trial court’s 

judgment oorrect in denying recovery therefor.” 

In view of the foregoing you are advised that it 

Is our opinion that the oommlssioners* court of Upton County 

cannot legally approve and allow expenditures made by the 

Sheriff in then year of 1941 where the Sheriff railed to file 

sworn monthly statements of all of this actual neoessaryexpensew Incurred by hira in the oonduct of his offioe a8 provided by law. 

Yours very truly 

BP /s/ 

AW: nip 

APPROVED APR 19, 1949 

Grover Sellers 

FIRST ASSISTANT 

ATTORNEY GENERAL 

AFPPOVED OPINION COMMITTEE 

BY BWB CHAIEmaAa 

WJF 

lrdell Williams 

,AfJsietant 

AW: mw