Hon. JamesR. Strong

County Attorney Opinion No. V-l?79 Panola County Carthage, Texas Re: Bees of the oounty clerk for preparing certified copies of reoopds of his Dear Sir: office.

You have reque$ted an opinion of this OffiCe in which you ask:

Whatfee must be oharged by a county clerk for making oertlfled’ooples of deeds, deeds 

### of trust, and mechanics’ liens recorded In that office? Is there any difference in this fee when said copies are madeby photoatat machine that is oountyowned and used for recording purposes,ln the county clerk’s office? Artlolee 6591 and 6595, V.a,S., require the county olerk to record all deeds and deeds of trust filed with him. Article 5453, V.C.S., provides for, the reoordatlon of meohanios’ liens by the oounty clerk. Article 6600, V.C.S., provides:

“The county clerk ah.811 give attested copies whenever demanded. of all,papers recorded 

### In hia office; tindhe shall receive for all suoh oopies, suoh fees as maybe provided by law.” Article 3930 provides in part that: “Clerks OPthe County Court shall reoelve the following feea: ”

. . .

“Copies cf interi$@atoribe, or’os* Interrogatories and al2 :&ther papers OF i’

. records required to,be dopled by him, %Sr including oertifloate and~seal, uhere’theHon. JamesR. Strong, page 2 (V-1479)

copy does not exceed 200words, for each 100words .15 "Where the copy exceeds 200 words, for each additional 100words In excess of 200 words 015" There Is no specificprovision for a fee to be chargedby the county clerk for making certified copies of deeds, deeds of trust, and mechanics' liens. Therefore, the general provision of Article 3930 quoted above Is applicableand the county clerk must charge 15 cents foreach 100words for certified copies of deeds, deeds of trust, and mechanics' liens.

In Logan v. MississippiAbstract Co., 190 Miss. 479, 200 So. 716, 720 (19411,it is stated:

"Conditionschange;new and improved devices are invented,and the law, to liveand serve,must adapt itself to changing conditions, if therebyno fundamentalprlnciple is sacrificed. The word 'copy'In the statute includesphotographiccopy. Tobln v. Knaggs, supra. Indeed, perhaps the most accurate copywhich could,posslbly be mate would be a photographof the records.

. . . Also inNomikos v. Petroutsis, 60 N.Y.S.2d 802 (1946) the Supreme Court of N York held that a photostatic copy of a court order*Easa "copy'within the meaning of a statute requiring that a certified copy be served on the defendant.

Article 3930 does not provide any specific method for making copies of records in the county clerk's office. Therefore,we agreewith you that the same fee shouldbe chargedby the county clerk for making copies of records In his office, regardless of whether they are made by hand, typewriter, or by a device for photographingthe records.

SUMMARY Article 3930 requires the county clerk to charge 15 cents for each 100words for certified copies of deeds, deeds of trust,Ron. James R. Strong, page 3 (V-1479)

and mechanics' lien on record in his office. The same fee should be charged whether the copies are made by hand, by typewriter, or by a device for photographing the records,
Yours very truly, APPROVED:
J. C. Davis, Jr. County Affairs Division E, Jacobson Reviewing Assistant PRICE DANIEL Attorney General

Charles D. Mathews First Assistant Assistant

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