E P GENERAL 

April 17, 1962 

Representative Don Kennard 

4032 Eldridge 

Opinion No. NW- 1312 

Ft. Worth, Texas Re: Authority of the Interim 

Committee on Migrant 

Labor to expend State 

funds for the employment 

of Legal Counsel, research 

Dear Mr. Kennard: staff or clerical help. 

Your request on the above subject matter asks the 

following questions: 

"1 . Under the provisions of H. S. R. No. 

164, is it legal to expend state funds for the 

employment of Legal Counsel, research staff, 

or clerical help? 

"2. In addition, is it legal for state 

funds to be expended for travel or other expenses for Legal Counsel, research staff, or 

clerical help?" 

H. S. R. No. 164 attached with your request creates 

a special Interim Committee on Migrant Labor and the resolving 

clauses read as follows: 

"RESOLVED by the House of Representatives 

of the State of Texas, That there is hereby 

created a special Interim Committee on Migrant 

Labor with membership as follows: Five (5) 

Members of the House of Representatives, to be 

appointed by the Speaker; and, be it further 

"RESOLVED, That the Committee shall hold 

public hearings in Austin, Texas, shall study 

and consider both interstate and intrastate 

aspects of the problems of migratory labor, 

the co-ordination of agencies' services in the 

State and between states, and the co-operation 

between local, state, and national governments; 

and, be it further 

"RESOLVED, That the Committee shall give 

special attention to the basic educational needs, 
Rep. Don Kennard, page 2 (WW-1312) 

work skills and/or lack of such skills and the 

retraining and vocational education of adult 

workers; and, be it further 

"RESOLVED, That the Committee shall present 

its report resulting from the study, together 

with findings and recommendations, to the 

Legislature at its next Regular Session; and, 

be it further 

"RESOLVED, That no State funds from any 

source will be expended on the expense of 

House Members." (Emphasis added) 

Section 7 of House Bill 289, Acts of the 57th Leglslature, Regular Session, Chapter 303, page 654, known as the 

Legislative Reorganization Act of 1961 and codified in Vernon's 

as Article 5429f, Vernon's Civil Statutes, reads as follows: 

"Each House of the Legislature acting 

individually, or the two Houses acting jointly 

shall have full power and authority to provide 

for the creation of special committees to perform such functions and to exercise such powers 

and responsibilities as shall be determined in 

the Resolution creating such committee. During 

the life of a special committee it shall have 

and exercise the same powers and authority as 

are herein granted to standing committees, subject to such limitations as may be imposed in 

the Resolution creating such special committee, 

and shall have such other and additional powers 

and authority as may be delegated to it by the 

Resolution creating the committee, 

the limitations of law." 

subject to 

It is our opinion that the committee created by 

H. S. R. No. 164 constitutes a special committee within the 

meaning of Section 7 of House Bill 289, Acts of the 57th 

Legislature, Regular Session, 1961, Chapter 303, page 654 

quoted above with full authority to perform such functions and 

exercise such powers and responsibilities as set out in the 

Resolution. 

provides: 

Subdivision 6 of Section 8 of House Bill 289, supra, 
. . 

Rep. Don Kennard, page 3 (WW-1312) 

“The Committee shall have authority to 

employ and compensate assistants to assist 

In any Investigation, to assist In any audits, 

and to assist In any legal matters where, for 

any reason, It Is necessary to obtain such 

services in addition to the services of the 

State Auditor, the Texas Legislative Council 

and Attorney General’s Department, and the 

Department of Public Safety; and It may employ 

and compensate clerks, stenographers and other 

employees In order to conduct Its InvestlgatlonE. 

and hearings and to make proper records thereof. 

However, it Is expressly provided that no 

employment or compensation shall be authorized 

until It has been first submitted to the Speaker 

of the House or the President of the Senate, 

as the case may be, and he has authorized it in 

writing.” 

It Is noted from the foregoing that subdivision 6 of Section 

8 of Article 5429f authorizes the committee to employ assistants 

and other help provided that such employment Is first authorized 

by the Speaker of the House in writing. On the other hand 

H. S. R. No. 164 states that “no State funds from any source 

will be expended on the expense of House members.” 

A similar question was 

t! 

assed on by this office In 

Attorney General Opinion WW-1223 1961), concerning the traveling 

expenses of the special House Committee on Eecheat Laws. H. S. 

R. No, 16 (involved in Opinion WW-1223) was amended by striking 

out the portion of the Resolutlon speclflcally authorizing the 

reimbursement of the commlttee~s actual and necessary expenses, 

In Opinion WW-1223, It was pointed out that Section 20 of 

Article 542gf, Vernon’s Civil Statutes, authorized the payment 

of the expenses of the committee and held that the committee 

could be reimbursed for the actual and neceseary expenses fncurred while engaged In the work of the committee under the 

provisions of Section 20 of Article 5429f, Vernon’s Civil 

Statutea specifically polntlng out: 

"It might be contended that since a 

portion of House Simple Resolution apeclflcally 

provides for the payment of travellng expenses 

was deleted from House Simple Resolution No. 

16 prior to passage shows a legislative Intent 

that such expenses should not be paid. Since 

House Simple Resolution No. 16 could not have 

the effect of amending Section 20 of House Bill 

289, Acts of the 57th Legislature, Regular 
Rep. Don Kennard, page 4 (WW-1312) 

Session, 1961, the deletion from House Simple 

Resolution No. 16, above noted, cannot affect 

the payment of traveling expenses to the 

committee." 

It is our opinion that the same construction is 

applicable to the provisions of subdivision 6 of Section 8 

of House Bill 289, Acts of the 57th Legislature, Regular 

Session, 1961, Chapter 303, page 634, codified In Vernon's 

as Article 5429f, Vernon's Civil Statutes. You are therefore advised that your committee has the authority to employ 

Legal Counsel, research staff, clerical help and to pay the 

expenses for such Legal Counsel, research staff and clerical 

help provided, of course, that no employment or compensation 

is authorized until it has been first submitted to the Speaker 

of the House of Representatives and the Speaker has authorized 

such employment or compensation in writing as provided in 

Article 542$Jf, Vernon's Civil Statutes. 

SUMMARY 

The special Interim Committee on Migrant Labor has 

the authority to employ Legal Counsel, research 

staff and clerical help and pay for travel and other 

expenses for the Legal Counsel, research staff and 

clerical help provided the Committee first submits 

such employment to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Speaker has authorized it in 

writing as provided in subdivision 6 of Section 8 

of Article 5429f, Vernon's Civil Statutes, 

Very truly yours, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

JR:mkh 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

J. C. Davis, Chairman 

Robert McGee 

Grady Chandler 

W. 0. Shultz 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Houghton Brownlee, Jr.