OWNEB~ GENERAL 

OF-XAS 

Honorable G. D. Minick 

County Attorney 

Wood County 

Quitman, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. O-6348 

Re: The duty of the County Auditor 

to examine and certify monthly 

reports of the Tax AssessorCollector. 

Your letter of December 22, 1944, requests the 

opinion of this office as to whether it is the duty of the 

county clerk or the county auditor to examine and certify the 

monthly reports of the Tax Assessor-Collector of Wood County, 

Texas, 

parts, 

Your letter making this request, omitting the formal 

is here set out: 

"Enclosed please find our form of monthly report 

of taxes collected in use in this county since time 

immemorial, having heretofore been executed by the 

County Clerk, but which the County Clerk declines now 

to execute and, since we recently have acquired a County 

Auditor. determines it should be executed henceforth 

by the County Auditor. Without going into the facts 

you are simply reminded of the traditional functions 

of the County Clerk and of the functions of the County 

Auditor. It being stated the County Clerk, prior to 

this time, having at all times executed this form 

without any ckeck-up, without any information as to 

its correctness, without anyf acility, time or 

deputy to be spared or a deputy qualified to examine 

these records, simply,relying upon the tax oollectorfs 

responsibility to duty. For this service the clerk 

receives no compensation. At no time does the County 

Clerk ever examine or inspect the Tax Collectorrs 

records, At all times does the County Auditor examine 

and inspect these records, such being of course part 

and parcel of his functions of office for which he is 

paid. And may I state there is no disinclination on 

the County Auditorts part to perform this function if 

he should, as he is lead to understand his duty; nor is 

there any friction between any of these officials or 

among them. They all three simply desire the duty 
Honorable G. D. Miniok - page 2, O-6548 

performed in the right way by the proper official. 

"Therefore, we Propound to you that under the 

setup in Wood County, 

us what official, 

under the law, please advise 

Auditor, 

the County Clerk or the County 

report 

should execute the form No. 117 of monthly 

of State and County Taxes collected wnclosed, 

the certificate involved being marked off with a 

bracket in ink? Your prompt opinion will be much 

appreciated. 

"May I add, due to some six or seven oil fields 

in Wood County, recently developed, our tax assessment is enlarged some six times its former bulk in 

items and in valuation, thus indicating the onerous 

burden to examine all these records, as well as to 

note the weight of responsibility and liability for 

it." 

For answer to your question we refer you to 

Article 7260, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, the 

revelant provisions of which are here set out as follows2 

"At the end of each month the Tax Collector 

shall, on forms to be furnished by the Comptroller 

make an itemized report under oath to the Comptroller, 

showing each and every item of ad valorem, poll and 

occupation taxes collected by him during said month, 

accompanied by a summarized statement showing full 

disposition of all State taxes collected, provided 

that said itemized reports for the months of December 

and January of each year may not be made for twentyfive (25) days after the end of such months if same 

cannot be completed by the end of such respective 

months. 

"He shall present such report, together with the 

tax receipt stubs to the County Clerk, who shall 

within two (2) days compare said report with said 

stubs, and if same agree in every particular as 

regards names, dates and amounts, he shall certify 

to its correctness, for which examination and certificate said Clerk shall be paid by the Commissioners Court twenty-five (25) cents for each certificate 

and twenty-five (25) cents for each two hundred (200) 

taxpayers on said report; provided that in counties 

having a County Auditor the work men-n= xn this 

WCs ~e%tF ~$i?ZE%%sF lTXffer 

Similar provisions relating to the report of 

collections made for the county are found in Article 7261, 

Vernonts Annotated Civil Statutes. 
_ - 

Honorable G. D. Minick - page 5, O-6349 

In accordance with these provisions of the law, 

you are advised, that in our opinion the examination and 

certification about which you inquire should be made by 

the County Auditor. 

Very truly yours 

Attorney General of Texas 

s/ Robert F. Cherry 

BY 

Robert F. Cherry 

Assistant 

RFC:zd/cS 

APPROVED FEB. 8, 1945 

s/ Grover Sellers 

ATTORNEY GEN2RAL OF TEXAS 

APPROVED OPINION COUdITTEE: 

By BWB, Chairman