- .

Honorable Roberts. Calvert .-OpinionNo. s-164

Comptroller of Public Accounts~ Capitol Station Re: Interpretatfon~ of Chapter Austin, Texas .a' 293; Acts of the-54th'Legis-Sature,

1955 (Article717j, V.C.S.).,asto,.fac- ,similesignatureson public pear Mr. Calvert: securities.

Yotirrecentrequest for an opinion of this office poses the ~following,questions:-

1.~ Is a cltg,‘town or villageincluded within,then permiss$ve~terms~of..Chapter 293, ~Aetsof the 5~th~Leglsliiture', 1955 (Art. 

### 7173, yVernon+sCivil Statntes)?~ 2. Do Section 2~and the Caption of theAct conform soas. to pergtit.~.the manual signature~~on.&zq,urities by onlpthe Campltroller-of,

PublicAccounts--uhere the Comptroller ts required to register the bonds?,
Your firsfl.question is .determined

bg the provisions of Section 1 of Chapter.295,which-ready as follous: 'The term 'publicsecurities' as used herein, shall mean bonds,, notes-or other obligations for thetpayment of-inoneg issued.by this State, by its political subdivisions,or by anP department,~agencgor other instrumentality of'thl.s

State or of any of its polltical subdivisions." The question as to.whether a city is a political subdivision,agency, or instrumentalityof the State has been consideredby the courts of Texas on a number of occasions. In City of Aransas Pass v. Reelin& 112 Tex. 339, 247 S.W. 818,820 (1923),we find the following:. -

Hon. Robert S. Calvert, page 2 

### (s-164)

"Citiesor counties furnish convenient. and~appropriate agencleh through which thG State, may,perform duties resting on the State, 'in the performanceof which the cities or counties have~a special Interest. The use of cities or countiesas agents of the,State in the dlsoharge of the State's duties iS in no wise inhibitedby the.Constitutionin Sec- ~.tion

### 51 of Article 

### 3

. . . (citingcases);" In City of Abllene v. State, 

### 113 S.W. id 

### 631,633 (Tex.Clv.App,.

,937; error dism.),we find the emphatic statement: nCounties;z.cities and to.uns

are mu&zips1 corporatlon.jii.

,Const.art. Xl'; They.,aPe po- ~.l~tlcal.subdiv~~ions of the St&e. Id. Corporation of San.FelipeDe Austin-v. of Texas 111 Tex.,

### 108; 229 S.W. 

### 845.". State

., : ..; exati..Ntitional

Quard~Armory.Board,v.'&Craw, 132 .,SijL 28 627,638(1?39);the~cotirt said:. "The State has ,avital Interest ltiIts c$$$.M3;fin .4tti

governmental cepacity a city ~is.a:political.~..subdivision of the state/and :'in~,'arany~.instances is consideredas an agent of the state;-and the state may use such agtint,lnthe disdharge~ofits, duties

. . ; (~cltiw cases).," _.
~..,See~~.also

the cases: Bx~mrte Ernest, 

### 136 S.W. 2d 595,597 (T~iCrim. 1940);.*Harris Counts Drainage Dist.~Ro. I.2 v. City of Roiiston,

### 35~ S.W. 26 118 (Tex.Comm.App.1931). Thus, the f&s&lle signaturebiil is applicable to the securities .issuedby cities, towns, and villages.

'Asp $0 your,&okd question,.thecaption of the bill reads, l.n;p&rt:~

11

. authorizing the execution of public sec<ies.by means of engraved, imprinted, lithographed or otherwise-re slgqature of all signaturesp"e~~~~"~$~%$ed for ,e%eention,authentication,,certificationor ,etidor$zment

of,such securities.

. e .'I,- .

Hon. Robert~S. Calvert, page 

### 3 (s-164)

The body of the bill reads, in part:

"All public securitieswhich hereafter may be issued

. . .may be executed with an engraved, imprinted, lithographed, or otherwise reproduced facsimile of any signature required or permitted to be recorded ~thereonin the execution, authentication, certification, or endorsement of such securities

. . . provided, however, that at least one signature required to be placed thereon shall be manually subscri,bed; and provided that as to public securities required to be registered by the Comptroller of- Public Accountes of the State of&Texas, only his signature (or that of a deputy
. . .) shall be required to be manually subscribed to such publFc securities."
Section 

### 35,Article III of the Texas Constitution, provides.

that "if any subject shall be embraced in an act, which shall not be expressed In the title, such act shall be void only as to so much thereof, as shall not be so expressed." Since the subject expressed in the caption of Chapter 293 is limited to signaturesreaulred for the execution, authentlca'tlon, certificationor endorsement of the eecurlties, the act is void insofar as it purports to authorize manual signatureby only the Comptroller on securities for which is signature is not reauired for one of these purposes.

It is, therefore,necessary to determine if the Comptroller's signature Is required for the "execution,authentication, certification or endorsement" of such securities. As to cities, the Comptroller's signature is required to be placed upon the bond by the provisions of Article 711, V.C.S. As to all other agencies, subdivisionsand departments, we are governed by the provisions of Articles 

### 4361 and 

### 4362, V.C.S., which provide that the Comptroller shall keep suitable books **8s~**a "bond register" and issue "certificatesof registration" of bonds.. -

Hon. Robert W. Calvert, page 4 (s-164)

The issuing agency has the coo tooz,;;e;b&ig g'o and contentsof the bonds It issues datory) and normally requires the Comptroller's execution of a certificate of registrationbefore the bonds are issued by delivery and .thereby become obligatory. Such certificate is normally in substantiallythe, following.

form:. , "I hereby certify that~ there is on file in my office a dertificate'ofthe Attorney,Gez&eral of ~theState of Texas, to the ~effectthat this, bond has beenexamined'~,by him as required.

by law, and that he finds that it has been issured in conformitg.uiththe Constitution and lawsof the State.oPTexas and that,it is a valid and binding (special(obligatlonuponand -saidbond.has this day -~.been~registered ~byme. Witness my hand and..- seal of office

. . *" Thus, where the law or the issuing agency requires a certificate, the obligationsmay be issued with only the~Comp-

. troller's manual signaturebeing placed thereonsince his slgnature is "requiredfor
. e . certification a . m of suchsecurlties" within the caption provision. Where there.18 no such requirement, however., one of the officials of the Issuing agency who is reauired to sinn the bonds would be required to do so with a manual signatGe.

: Very truly yours,

EM&S APPROVRD: Will D. Davis Special Reviewer Mary K. Wall Reviewer J. A. Amis, Jr. R~&ij$ev’Qr~ ~'1

: ,.~. John Atchison Acting Pirst:'Assistant John Ben Shepperd Attorney General

F JOHNBEN SHEPPRRD Attorney GeneraI
By ?d4. h--dElbert M.Morrow Assistant