Hon. Reagan S. Wyche

County Auditor Gregg County Longview, Texas

Dear Sir: Opinion No. 

### O-6473 Re: Does the Commissioners’ Court of Gregg Count have the authority under Section 2: Article 2368a, issue time warr&s for the conto struction of an administration building for the County Airport,, or would it have to hold an e.lection as prescribed in Article 

### 701,Revised Civil Statutes? Weare in receipt of your request for an opinion reading as follows:

“Gregg Countryowns anAirport. It is propose~d that the Commissioners 1Court construct anAdministration Building, financing the construction by the issuance of TimeWarrants.

“Section 2 of Article 2368a, (Acts, 

### 1931,42nd Leg., page 

### 269,chapter 

### 163)provides in part as follows:
tt’Nocounty acting through its Commissioners’ Court, andno‘city in this State, shall hereafter makeor enter into any contract or agreement for the construction of anypublic building or the prosecution and completion of anypublic w&k re uiring or authorizing any expenditure in excess of iI2 ,000.oo) creating or imposing an obligation or liability of any nature or character upon such county, or any subdivision of such county, or upon such city, without first submitting such proposed contract or agreement to competitive bids. a
. .I

“Section 

### 3provides as follows: litWhenit shall be the intention of the Commissioners* Court, or of the governing body, to issue time warrants for the payment of all or anypart of the proposed contract, the notice to bidders required under Section 2 of this Act shall recite that fact, setting out the maximumamountof the proposed timeHon. Reagan S. Wyche, page 2

warrant indebtedness, the rate of interest such time warrants are to bear, andthe naximum maturity date thereof.1

‘!Section 4 provides for a referendum on petition by ten per cent of the qualified voters of the County whose namesappear onthe last approved tax rolls as property tax payers,and then, the concluding paragraph of Section 4 provides as follows:

“IIf such petition is not so filed with the County Clerk then the Commissioners1 Court or the governing boy mayproceed with the final award of

4 the contract andwith the issuance of said warrants, but in the absence of such petition, the Commissioners’ Court or governing body mayat its discretion also submit such question to a vote of the people.’

“Section 2(a) of Article 1269h (as amended) (Acts, 1941, 47th Leg., 1) provides as follows: page 1345, chapter 609, Sec.

l’tFor the purpose of condemning or purchasing, either or both, lands to beused andmaintained as provided in Section 1 hereof, and improving and equipping the samefor such use, the governing body of any city or the Commissioners Court of any couuty, falling within the terms of such Section, may issue negotiable bonds of the city or of the county, as the case maybe, andlevy taxes to provide for the interest and sinking funds of any such bonds and levy and collection of such taxes to be exercised in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 1 of Title 22 of the Revised Civil Statutes of 1925. t

“Article 701 22, referred to !Ibeing a part of Chapter 1 of Title

a ove, provides as follows:

“‘The bonds of aCounty or an incorporated city or town shall never be issued for anypurpose unless a proposition for the issuance of such bonds shall have been first submitted to the qualified voters who are property tax payers of such county, city, or town.’Hon. Reagan S. Wyohe, page 

### 3

"QUESTION: Does the Commissioners Court of Gregg County have the authority under Section 4 of Article 2368a, quoted above, to issue TimeWarrants for the construction of an administration building for the County Airport, or would it have to hold an election as prescribed in Article 7011"

In our opinion No. 

### O-4357,we said: "It is awell established rule of law in this State that a county, subject to the express restrictions imposed by the Constitution andgeneral laws, has the implied power to issue time warrants in paymentfor improvements it is expressly authorized to construct, provided the applicable regulations relating to the issuance of such warrants are observed. SanPatricia County v. McClane, 

### 58Tex. 243. Lasiter v. Lopez, 217 S.W. 

### 373;Adamsv. 

### 332." McGill, 14b S.W. 

### (2a)

Courts to Section 1, Article 1269h, authorizes Commissioners'

"acquire, maintain and operate" tracts of lands within the limits of the county as an airport.

Section 2 of Article 126911authorizes the issuance of bonds for the purpose of condemning or purchasing lands and improving andequipping the samefor such use. The construction of an Administration building is anecessary part of the equipment of an airport.

Article 2368a provides the necessary procedure for the issuance of time warrants, and byfollowing the provisions thereof, Gregg County mayissue time warrants to construct the building mentioned byyou.

Of course the County mayissue bonds if their issuance is authorized t, y the qualified property taxpayers at an election held as provided in Chapter 1, Title 22, Revised Statutes. Thetax to support either bonds or warrants must be levied out of the twenty-five cent tax authorized for permanent improvements, andmust be levied at the time the debt is created. APPROVED

MAR 

### 27,1946 /s/ Grover Sellers ATTORNEY

GENERAL

OFTEXAS APPROVED:

OPINIONCOMMITTEE BY: CFG:EP:wbBWB,CHAIRMAN Yours very truly ATTORNEY

GENERAL

OFTEXAS By/s/ C. F. Gibson C. F. Gibson, Assistant