IHE,~~~-~ORNRY GENERAL

OFTEXAS

Honorable Bascom Glles, Commissioner General Land Office Austin 14, Texas

Dear Sir: OpinionNo. O-6607 Re: Whether or not a levee lmprovement district may be created und,erthe provisions of Chapter 6, Title 128,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, in all or any one of the counties Fn question, notwithstandingthe fact that said countiesare Includedwithin the boundaries of the Lower Colorado River Authority.

We are in receipt of your opinion request of recent date, reading as follows:

"Iam lnformedthat theWar Department has plans for the post-war constructionof a flood control project in Colorado,Matagorda and Wharton Counties, Texas. The projectwill consist of protecting levees along the banks of the Colorado River, In Colorado County from a point below the town of Eagle Lake on the east side of the river to the Wharton County line, and on each bank of the river throughWharton and Matagorda Counties to themouth of the river, the project also calling for a ring levee around the town of Columbus and the town of Matagorda.

"Theconstruction cost of the project is to be paid by the Federal Government, conditioned on the counties furnlshlng the necessary rights-of-way.

"Iunderstand your department has held that a county has no authority to use county funds for the purchase of rights-of-way for flood controlprojects and similarpurposes. Therefore, it is necessary that some type of agency be created in the above named countieswith the right and authority to issue bonds and levy taxes for the purchase of rlght-ofway and formaintaining the levees after they are constructed.HonorableBascom Glles, page 2 O-6607

"The three counties named are includedwithln the boundaries of the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority
as createdby Acts 1934, 43rd Legislature, 4th Calles Session, Page 19, Chapter 7, which has the power and authority, among others, "toprevent or aid in the prevention of damage to persons or property from the waters of the ColoradoRiver and Its tributaries.!' I understand the L.C.R.A. is not in a position to purchase the right-of-way for the proposedproject and has no objection to the creation of a local agency with the power to do so.
"Willyou kindly advise whether or not a levee improvementdistrict may be created under the provislons of Chapter 6, Title 128, V.A.C.S., in all or any one of the above named counties notwithstanding the fact that said countiesare includedwithin the boundaries of the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority. * *" Replying to the above, you are advised thatwe have carefully read theAct of the Legislature creating the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority, and we find nothing in theAct of the Legislaturewhich gives exclusivecontrol of lands within the counties includedwithtithe boundaries of thatAuthority, with respect to the creation of other districts with similar purposes. In our opinionNo. o-66(85, we have very recently held that a water control and improvementdistrict may be createdwithin the territory comprising the Lower Colorado River Authority, and thisdepartment has approved the bonds of two water control and Improvementdistricts of Travis County created since the creation of the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority, thereby giving the approval of this department to the creation of water control and improvementdistricts within a county includedwithin the boundaries of the Lower Colorado River Authority.

Article 7972,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, reads
as follows:

"Theremay be createdwithin this State conservatlon and reclamationdistricts to be known as Levee ImprovementDistricts, for the purpose of constructing and maintaining levees and other improvementson, along and contiguous to rivers, creeks, and streams, for the purpose of reclaiming lands from overflow from such streams, for the purpose of the control and distribution of the waters of rivers and streamsby straighteningand otherwlse improving the sane, and for the proper drainage and other improvementof such lands, all as contemplatedby Section 59, Article 16,. -

Honorable Bascom Glles, page 3 0-6607

of the Constitutionof this State, for the conservation and development of the natural resources of this State, which saiddistricts shall have and may exerciseall the rights, powers and privileges given by thisAct and in accordancewith its limitations and provisions."
Article 7974,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, provides that:

"* * + when It Isproposed to create such a district to be composed of lands in two ormore counties, then a petition of the nature above lndicated, signedby the owners of a majority of the acreage of suchproposed district, designating the county of jurisdlctlon In respect to all matters concerning the saiddistrict,which county may be any county inwhich any part ofdistrict Is located, shallbe presented to the commissioners' court of such county, or, If the court isnot in session, to the county judge thereof; + * * '
which clearly authorizes the creation of levee improvementdlstricts containing territory inmore than one county. Levee lmprovement districts are authorized and empowered to make all the necessary levees,bridges and other improvementsacross or under any rail-embankments, tracks, or rlghts-of-way, or public
or private roads or the right-of-way thereof, or levees or other public Improvementsof other districts, or such other improvementsand rights-of-way thereof. See Article 7986, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes.

Levee improvementdistricts ere also given the authority to act jolntlgwith each other,with cities and towns and other political subdivisionsof the State, and with the Go?%nment of the United States in the performance of anv of the things permitted by Chapter 6 of Title 128. See Article 7986, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes.

Of course, a levee Improvementdistrict would not be authorized to curtail or In any way Interferewith any prior district that had been created by authority of law, and we see no reason for thinking that a levee improvementdistrict would interfere in any way with the authority and purposes of the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority.

You are, therefore,advised that it is our opinion that
a levee Improvementdistrict may be created so as to embrace lands in one or all of the Counties of Colorado,Wharton and Matagorda, notwithstanding the fact that said countiesare ln-- .

Honorable Bascom Giles, page 4 O-6607

eludedwithin the boundaries of the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority.

Yours very truly

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

By s/C.F. Gibson C.F. Gibson Assistant

CFG:EP:wc

APPROVED JULY 2, 1945 s/Grover Sellers ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS Approved Opinion CommitteeBy s/BWB Chairman