,’ ’ .* 

R-890 

OFFICE OF 

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

PRICE DANIEL 

ATTORNEY GENERAL December 12, 1947 

Hon. Glbb Gilchrist, President 

A. & M. College of Texas 

College Station, Texas CpinLon Ho. V-454 

Re: Authority of Board 

of Directors of A. 

and M. College to 

erect an employees 

residence with balance of Pure Feed 

Fund 

Dear Sir: 

We refer to your letter of recent date requesting the opinion of this Department as to whether 

the Board of Directors of Texas A. & #. College may 

erect an employee's residence at the Gonzales Agricultural Experiment Station out of the unexpended balance 

of the Pure Feed Fund under the terms of the current 

a 

2 t 6, 

proprlation bill for educational institutions, H. B. 

50th Legislature. 

Sec. 2 of said B. B. 246, provides, in part, 

that: "All balances In the institutional funds 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 apecifled hereinafter . . . are hereby eppropriated... to the several educational Institutions and 

other educational agencies named in this Act, for their 

support, 

ments." 

maintenance, buildings, operation and lmploveSec. 4 of said H.B. 246, contains, among others, 

the following provisions: 

"For the purpose of paging the expenses 

Incurred for administering the Pure Feed Laws 

. . . there Is hereby appropriated to the experiment stations of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas out of the receipts 
Hon. 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 shall be 

necessary for the efflci.ent administration 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 feeds by the Texas Agricultural Experiment Statlon, provided that any salaries paid or supplemented therefrom 

shall not 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 experiment station for 

Investigations and experiments in the study of poultry 

problems by Art. 149H, Vernon's Civil Statutes. Sec. 

2 of said Art. 1'19H provides, in part, as follows: 

"The Board of Directors of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas 

is hereby authorized and empowered to secure a suitable site for the location of 

said aericultural exnerlment station in 

Gonzales County, Texas, O . 3 The 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 

donations and appropriations which might 

hereafter be made for the erection of the 

necessary buildings and equipment e . if 

and after the lands necessarv for said'itatlon have been purchased or donated." 

(Underlining supplied) 

The Pure Feed Fund, which is the source of 

the moneys with which you intend to erect the emplagee's 

residence, is a special fund In which there are deposited the tag and certification fees collected by A. & M. 

College on all feeding stuff used or sold in thFs State. 

The fees are paid to the Directcr of the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station 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 the Approprlatim 

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-approprleted every two 

Jeers by the Legislature in order zhat they may be 

expended in performing the duties required by the 

pure feed statutes. However, aa a matter of leglslatlve practice we knov that the use of these funds bs 

been left largely to the discretion of the Director 

of the Experiment Station and the Board of Directors 

of-A. k M. College. 

We believe that one of the purposes of the 

appropriation for A..& M. College 1nH.B. 246 is the 

maintenance, operation and improvement of the Gonzales Experiment Station, as evidenced by Items 113 

through 117 of this Act. If In the sound discretion 

of the Board of Directors of A. dc M. College, an 

employee's residence Is a necessary building at the 

Gonzales Experiment Station, the Board may authorize 

erection of such a residence to be paid for from the 

unexpended balance of the Pure Feed Fund. 

SUMMARY 

The Board of Directors of the A. & M. 

College of Texas may erect an employee's 

residence at the Gonzales Experiment Stetlon from the unexpended -lance of the 

Pure Feed Fund, if In the discretion of the 

Board such residence is a necessary building 

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 

ATTORNEY GENERAL 

ATTORREYGElVERAL OF TEXAS 

By kA*