,’’ .* R-890

OFFICE OF 

# THEATTORNEY 

# GENERAL

PRICE DANIEL ATTORNEY

GENERAL December 12, 1947

Hon. Glbb Gilchrist, President A. & M. College of Texas College Station, Texas CpinLonHo. V-454

Re: Authority of Board of Directors of A. and M. College to erect an employees residencewith balance of Pure Feed Fund

Dear Sir:

We refer to your letter of recent date requesting the opinion of this Departmentas to whether the Board of Directors of Texas A. & #. College may erect an employee's residenceat the GonzalesAgriculturalExperiment Station out of the unexpendedbalance of the Pure Feed Fund under the terms of the current a 2 6, t proprlationbill for educational institutions,H. B. 50thLegislature.

Sec. 2 of said B. B. 246, provides, in part, that: "Allbalances In the institutionalfunds of the several State institutions named in thFs Act

. . .are hereby appropriated for the support,maintenance, operation and improvement of said State institutions

. . ." and Sec. 3 provides, in part,. that 'the several sums of money apecifledhereinafter

. . .are hereby eppropriated... to the several educationalInstitutionsand other educationalagencies named in this Act, for their support, ments." maintenance,buildings, operationand lmploveSec. 4 of said H.B. 246, contains,among others, the followingprovisions:

"For the purpose of paging the expenses Incurred for administering the Pure Feed Laws

. . . there Is hereby appropriated to the experiment stations of the Agriculturaland Mechanical College of Texas out of the receiptsHon. Glbb GllchrLst - Page 2 (V-454)

accrued to the credit of the Pure Feed Fund for each of the fiscal years endin& August 31, 1948, and August 31, 19 9, such amounts thereof as shallbe necessary for the efflci.entadministration and operation of said Pure Feed Laws. The unexpended balance in said fund msg be used for any of the purposes herein appropriated for the Agrlcul.tural and Mechanical College of Texas, or for the purposes of conducting experlments with feedsby the Texas AgriculturalExperiment Statlon, provided that any salaries paid or supplemented therefrom shallnot exceed those paid for the same or similar services in the Maln College."
The Board of Directors of A. & M. College was authorized to establish and maintain in Gonzales County, Texas, an agricultural experimentstation for Investigationsand experiments in the study ofpoultry problems by Art. 149H, Vernon's Civil Statutes.Sec. 2 of saidArt. 1'19H provides, in part, as follows:
"TheBoard of Directors of the Agriculturaland Mechanical College of Texas is hereby authorized and empoweredto secure a suitable site for the location of said aericultural exnerlment station in GonzalesCounty, Texas, O

. 3The said Board of Directors is authorized to accept donations of land, water, equipment,money or anything of value for the establishment and maintenance of said statton and to use donationsand appropriations which might hereafterbe made for the erection of the necessarybuildings and equipment e
. if and after the lands necessarv for said'itatlon have been purchased or donated." (Underliningsupplied)
The Pure Feed Fund, which is the source of the moneyswith which you intend to erect the emplagee's residence, is a special fund In which there are deposited the tag and certification fees collectedby A. & M. College on all feeding stuff used or sold in thFs State. The fees are paid to the Directcr of the Texas Agricultural ExperimentStation at A. & M. and by him deposited in the State Treasury. Art. 3875, V.C.S.Hon. Glbb Gllchrlst -,PEigs 3 (v-454)

The quoted provisions of theApproprlatim Bill do not undertake to limit the Bonrd of Mrectors in the expenditure of the balance In the Pure Feed Fund. It is true that the moneys Ln seid fund are public moneys which must be re-approprletedevery two Jeers by the Legislature in order zhat theymay be expended in performing the duties requiredby the pure feed statutes. However, aa a matter of leglslatlve practicewe knov that the use of these funds bs been left largely to the discretion of theDirector of the Experiment Station and the Board of Directors of-A. k M. College.

We believe that one of the purposesof the appropriation for A..& M. College 1nH.B. 246 is the maintenance, operationand improvementof the GonzalesExperiment Station, as evidencedby Items 113 through 117 of this Act. If In the sounddiscretion of the Board of Directors of A. dc M. College,an employee'sresidence Is a necessarybuildingat the Gonzales Experiment Station, the Board may authorize erection of such a residence to be paid for from the unexpendedbalance of the Pure Feed Fund.

SUMMARY
The Board of Directors of theA. & M. College of Texas may erect an employee's residence at the GonzalesExperiment Stetlon from the unexpended -lance of the Pure Feed Fund, if In the discretionof the Board such residence is a necessarybuilding at this station. Art. 149R,V.C.S.; Sees. 2 and 3, H.B. 246, Acts 50th Leg., R.S. 1947.

Yours very truly

APPROVED:

% cdi!dJ ATTORNEYGENERAL ATTORREYGElVERALOF TEXAS

By kA*