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Honorable 0. H. Gilmer, Chairman Committee on Judiciary and Uni:omm State Laws House ofRepresentatives Austin, Texas Dear Sir: Opin.ion No. O-3654

Your letter of June 1.0,1.941,,request:.ng the opilt.innef this department onthe above stated q,uesti.on.has been :receked.

We quote from you:??etkr as fol,lows: “Ihand you here copy ofS. B. No. 346by Sen,at:cSpears, which i.spending in.the House Committee on Judiciary and Un,l.form Skate Laws, and requ.est. thaj: you advise me, as Chairma ofthis rommE’Zew, whether OP not this bill is u.ncoc,,~.il:,rOioarah as a l,ocal 6~ sp~t:i,a!. bill. under the authoriky ofthe :?ecent case rCJ.RaMj.!.kc, et al. v. the CounQ of El’
.Paso, Texas, et al,.” **Senate** Bi1.PNo. 346 pads as fol,lows:

‘“ABILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT (Captioned Omifed)

‘BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEX.AS:

“Section 1. In,all,counties of **Texas** havkxg %popn,.l.ation ofnot less than three hun.dred twenty-fi?e thowan,d (325,000) inhabitants and not more than three hua.dsed fifty thousand (350,000) Enhabitan,ts, as shown.by the ,Federa1 Census of 1940, or any succeeding Federal, Cexsw,Honorable 0. H. Gilmer, Chairman, Page 2, O-3654

a direct tax ofnot over twenty-five (25$) cents onthe valuation of One Hundred ($100.00) Dollars onall property in said counties, may be authorized and levied by the Commissioners’ Courts of such counties for the purpose oferecting buildings and other improvements and for equipping, maintaining and operating hospitals for the treatment and cure ofpersons suffering from any affliction, dise,ase or injury, and 

### for the purpose ofestablishing, maintaining and operating with or without the co-operation ofthe Government ofthe United States ofAmerica or agencies of such government, shelters, storehouses and workrooms, and for supplying paraphernalia, mate,rial and utilities for the unemployed, indigent and destitute, and providing for the direct relief of paupers. “Sec. 2. Before any such tax shall be levied, there shall be submitted tothe qualified taxpaying voters of such counties the proposition whether or not such tax shall be levied by such Commissioners’ **Court, at**  **a regular**  **or** at a special election called for such purpose by said Commissioners’ Court. Whenever any such proposition shall receive a majority ofthe votes ofthe qualified property tax-payers voting at such election, said Commissioners’ **Court** shall be authorized tolevy such tax or any portion thereof as may be necessary and expedient. ~“Sec. 3. If any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence or word ofthis **Act** be held i.nvalid, such holding shall not affect the validity ofthe remaining portions ofthis Act. “Sec. 4. Al.1Acts, laws or parts of laws in conflict herewith are hereby repealed, to the extent of such conflict only. *Sec. 5. The fact that counties now have insufficient funds to erect, equip, maintain and operate hospitals and have had no direct legislative authority to establish, maintain and operate shelters, storehouses and workrooms and to supply paraphernalia, material and supplies for unemployed, indigent and destitute persons in such counties, and the fact that there are thousands ofneedy persons in such counties entitled tothe benefits ofthis Act, creates an emergency and an imperative public necessity that the Constitutional Rule requiring bi1l.stobe read onthree several days in each House be,and the same is hereby suspended, and this Act shall be in force and take effect immediately upon its passage, and it is so enacted.”Honorable 0. H. Gilmer, Chairman, Page 3, O-3654

Section 56, ofArticle III ofthe State Constitution, provides as follows: “The legislature shall not, except as otherwise provided inthis Constitution, pass any local or special law.

. . . regulating the affairs ofcounties, cities, towns, wards or school districts;

. . .and inall other cases where a general law can be made applicable, no local or special law shall be enacted; provided, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit the legislature from passing special laws for the preservation ofthe game and fish ofthis state in certain localities.”

Chapter 5, Title 71, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, is the general law authorizing the commissioners’ court of any county to establish a county hospital and to enlarge any existing hospitals for the care and treatment of persons suffering from any illness, disease or injury, subject tothe provisions set forth in said chapter.

After carefully considering Senate Bill No. 346, supra. inconnection with the opinion handed down by the Supre,me **Court** on April 23, 1941,in the case ofMiller, et al v. County of El Paso, et al, and the authorities cited therein, we are ofthe opinion that said Senate Bill No. 346 is a local or special law and therefore unconstitutional and void.

We also call your attention toSection 3,Article VIII, ofthe State Constitution which provides: “Taxes shall be levied and collected by general laws and for public purposes only.” The above mentioned Senate Bill, being aspedal or local bill contravenes this provision ofthe Constitution as well as Section 56, Article III, ofthe Constitution.

Trusting that the foregoing fully answers your inquiry, we are Yours very truly ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

FIRST ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL AW:LM Approved Opinion grnm Chairman Ardell Williams Assistant