Honorable Jesse James Opinion No.M-962

State Treasurer Treasury Department Re: Whether the Parks and 131 State Finance Building Wildlife Commission has Austin, Texas 78711 by certain acts properly delegated certain of its officers to deposit and withdraw funds from the Dear Mr. James: State Treasury.

You state inyour letter requesting an opinion from this Office the following circumstance:

"Enclosed is a copy of an excerpt from Minutes of the Parks andWildlife Commission thathas been furnished this office relative to the authorization of officials and employees of the Parks andWildlife Commission to sign vouchers and other documents in reference to the deposit and expenditure and investment of fundsbelonging to that department and deposited in this office.

"Itwill be appreciated ifyou will advise this office by official opinion as towhether the Parks andWildlife Commission, by these acts, has properly designated Mr. James U. Cross, Executive Director, and Mr. Clayton T. Garrison, Director of Finances and Data Proces,sing,as the persons who have the authority to request and order the deposit and expenditure of any funds placed either with or in the State Treasury."

A study of the statutes establishing the Parks and Wildlife Commission and delimiting itspowers andduties, Article 978f-3a, Vernon's Penal Code, does not reveal the imposition of Robert's Rules of Order on the functioning of that Commission. Furthermore, except as indicated inArticle 438633,Vernon's Civil Statutes, infra, concerning the Special Game and Fish Fund, the Executive Director of the Department has ample power

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Honorable Jesse James, page 2 (M-962)

tohandle the affairs of the Department and delegate such financial authority ashemight, subject to thewill of the Commission.

The only specific verification required in the statutes relating to the State Treasurer and applicable also to the Parks andWildlife Commission is found in Section 6 ofArticle 438613,Vernon's Civil Statutes. This section concerns the Special Game and Fish Fund and reads as follows:

"All expenditures made by said Commission out of Special Game and Fish Fund shallbe verifiedbv affidavit to the Game. Fish and Ovster Commission and on the app ~' roval of such expendituresby theExecutive Secretary of said Commission, it shallbe the duty of the Comptroller of the State to draw his warrant on the Treasurer of the State for the amount of such expenditure in favor of the person claiming the same, such warrant tobe paid out of the Special Game and Fish Fund." (Emphasis added.)

The approval required in this statute ismade known to the Comptroller who, in turn, draws his warrant on the State Treasurer. We findnothing in this which would permit the Treasurer as aprelude to deposit orpayment to require notice tohim of any action takenby the Parks andWildlife Commission. In fact,Articles 4353-4359, incl., Vernon's Civil Statutes, set out indetail what the State Comptroller may require in theway of forms, authorization and verification forpayment or deposit of Statemonies. Article 6252-5, Sec. 1,Vernon's Civil Statutes of Texas, provides in
some detail what proof of authorization is required of administrative bodies in the designation of certain officers to approve vouchers forpayment. Such authorization "shall be filedwith the Comptroller of Public Accounts." (Emphasis added.)

The State Treasurer is authorized byArticle 4359, supra, to countersign warrants after receipt from the Comptroller, together with a copy oftthewarrant register. This authority implies a certain responsibility for the correctness ofwhat is signed. The extent of this responsibility is suggested by Article 4357, supra, which reads, inpart, as follows:

"Nowarrant shall be drawn against an appropriation of a special fundunless there is

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sufficient cashmoney in the fund in the State Treasury topay suchwarrant, andnowarrant, general or special, shallbe released or delivered to the Comptroller unless there is sufficient balance in the appropriation against which thewarrant is drawn topay suchwarrant."

Ithas previously been held that the State Treasurer may not be required topaywarrants, when, inhis judgment, todo sowould violate some constitutional provision. Corsicana Cotton Mills vs. Sheppard, 123 Tex. 352, 71 S.W.2d 247 (1934). Nevertheless, we conclude that, on its face, thequestion aspresented does not involve constitutional considerations.

As a consequence, this office isof the opinion that, based upon the facts and circumstances presented, only the State Comptroller may require proof of authorization of officials and employees of the Parks andWildlife Commission to signvouchers and other documents in reference to thedeposit and expenditure and investment of fundsbelonging to that Department and deposited in the State Treasury.

SUMMARY

Based upon the facts and circumstances presented, only the State Comptroller may require proof of authorization of officials and employees of the Parks andWildlife Commission to signvouchers and other documents in reference to thedeposit and expenditure and investment of fundsbelonging to that Department anddeposited in the State Treasury.
truly yours,

dk C.MARTIN ey General ofTexas
Prepared by James H. Quick Assistant Attorney General

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APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE

Kerns Taylor, Chairman W. E. Allen, Co-Chairman
Houghton Brownlee, Jr. Bob Lattimore Dick Chote John Reeves

SAM MCDANIEL Acting Staff Legal Assistant

ALFREDWALKER Executive Assistant

NOLA WHITE First Assistant

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