The Attorney General of Texas 

July 19, 1978 

JOHN L. HILL 

Attorney General 

Honorable Charles D. Houston 

County Attorney 

P. 0. Box 83 

Bellville, Texas 77418 

Opinion No. Ii- 1210 

Re: Nepotism: Whether commissioners court may amend 

salary provision of city-county 

contract where commissioner’s 

daughter is employed by city 

pursuant to contract. 

Dear Mr. Houston: 

You inform us that Austin County has entered into a contract with the 

City of Wallis, whereby the’ city agreed to operate the county-owned 

ambulance, and the county agreed to reimburse the city for all costs of 

operation. Under the contract, the city is to provide an ambulance supervisor 

at a stated salary. The city hired the daughter of an Austin County 

commissioner as ambulance supervisor without any vote or other action by 

the commissioners court. Due to the fact that another employee of the 

ambulance service has received a raise, the ambulance supervisor has also 

requested a raise. The Austin County Commissioners Court has refused to 

pass an order modifying the contract as to salary, believing that to do so 

would violate the nepotism statute, article 5996a,..y.T.C.S. You ask whether, 

01) the-facts you have provided, the action of the commissioners court to 

amend the agreement and reimburse the city for additional salary would 

violate the nepotism law. 

Article 5996a, V.T.C.S., provides in part: 

No officer of this State nor any officer of any 

district, county . . . nor any officer or member of any 

State district, county, city, school district or other 

municipal board . . . shall appoint, or vote for, or 

confirm the appointment to any office, position, 

clerkship, employment or duty, of any person related 

within the second degree by affinity or within the third 

degree by consanguinity to the person so appointing or 

so voting, or to any other member of any such board, 

P. 4852 
Honorable Charles D. Houston - Page 2 JH-1210) 

the Legislature, or court of which such person so appointing 

or voting may be a member, when the salary, fees, or 

compensation of march appointee is to be paid for, directly or 

indirectly, out of or from public funds. . . . 

In cases where the commissioners court authorizes a position but has no control 

over the person to be selected, we have said that article S998a, V.T.C.S., is not 

violated by the appointment of a commissioner’s relative to that position. See 

Attorney General Opinion H-697 (1975); Letter Advisory No. 79 (1974). Under= 

contract with the city, Austin County has no right to control the employment of 

the ambulance supervisor. Although the commissioners court sets the salary by 

approving the contract provision, it cannot require that the salary be paid to a 

particular person. Therefore, we do not believe the court’s action in amending the 

salary provision will constitute the appointment of the commissioner’s daughter or 

a confirmation of her appointment. Thus, their action will not violate the nepotism 

law, barring trading or other subterfuge designed to avoid its operation. See 

V.T.C.S. art. 5996c; Attorney General Opinions O-3718 (1941), O-2010 (1940), 0-m 

(1939). 

SUMMARY 

The commissioners court of Austin County may amend the 

salary provision of its contract with the City of Wallis, even 

though the amendment will raise the salary of a commissioner’s daughter employed by the city. Since the county 

cannot control the selection of employees by the city under 

the contract, the court’s action does not violate the 

nepotism statute, article 5996a, V.T.C.S. 

Attorney General of Texas 

C. ROBERT HEATH, Chairman 

Opinion Committee 

P. 4853