No. 3099
Holding that a county conmissioners oourt may rent a building in which to store food and clothing furnished by the Federal Goverment for d$sbributionto indigents,may employ cs~so

wzkers to assist in dstarmining those to whom aidmust be extended, and mly purchase a truck with whioh to distribute such ocmmoditias,if reasonablynewssay to provide support for those persons mentioned in Subdivision 11 of Article 2351, Revised Civil Statutes. Also holding that suoh aaaissionars' courts may rant office spaoe for old age pension investigators, the W.‘P. A. and other Federal Govertrment

projects, if such projects are engaged in the administration of relief to the unemployedand needy people of the county.

June 13, 1940
Honorable J. M. Allen , CountyAuditor, Hunt County Greenville, Texas
Dear Sir: Opinion No. O-2217

Inyour letter of recent data you request our opinion in response to the following questions:

*lo May the Cceuaissioners' Court legally lsres P buildingto be used 18 a-warehouse te store surplus oommoditiee, such a8 foods and clothing furnished by the Federal Government to be issued to the indigents of the aaunty, and pay 8lOO.00 ~~psr month rtial'for said building?Honorable J. Ido bllen, Page 2 - O-2217 Juno 13, 1940

*20 Can the Canmissioners'Court legallyprovide offioes, pay for utilities,purchase office furniture anp pay the salary of tw, men who are commonly called or designated as 'CaseWorkers' whose duties are to investigatevarious families af the county to detsrmine whether or not such familiesare entitledto reaaive the abovementioned commoditiss? "3s Cpn the CcmmissionarslCourt legally pay for a truak purchased by the oountywhich is used to distributethe abovementioned acanmoditiss and pay for gasolineand the upkeep of such truck?
-40 Kay the Ccmmissioners'Court legally pay office rent for sn old age pension investigator,and the IL P. A. and other Federal Gowrmnent projects?" Wile it is true, of course, that cgmni8sionerstcourts in this State are limited in their powers to those conferredby the Constitution or by constitutionalstatutes,,itis likewisetrue that such povmrs do not of absolutenece88ity have t0 be SXpmSS1y given but may exist by necessary implication. 11~Tex. Jur. 564; El Paso Countyv. Elam, 106 S.lTe(2d) 395; Rewardv. Henderson Co., 116 S.W* (2d) 4793 Ccmmissioners'Court of %dison Countyve Wallaos, 15 S.VL (ad) 335*

Article 2351, Revised Civil Statutes,provides:
*Each aommissionarscourt shall e ,,.

"11. Provide for the support of paupers and such idiots-and lunatics as cannotbe admitted into the lunatic asyllrm,

residents of their county,who are unable to support thsmselws. By the term resident as used herein, is meant a personwho has been a bona fide inhabitant of the countynot less than sixmonths and of the State not less than one year.

When the commissioners courtswere expressly giwn the power md duty to "provide for the supportof paupers," by nsoessary ixxplioation they were clothedwith the authority to do 01lths inoidentalthings necessary to provide for their support. Just asthe power to erect I courthouseand jail carrieswith it authority to aoquire a building site, Moore ve Alred, 277 SeHO 787e And, just as the power of general control owr all roads, highways,~ferriesend bridgesnecessarily implies authority to aonstructa drainage ditch to protect such roads, bridges and highnays from flood waters. El Paso Countyvo.Slam, suprae See dso Terre11Honorable J.M. Allsn, Fmge 3 (Jun8 13, 1940) O-2217

ve Spwks, 135 S.He 519

Authority to provide food 8nd alothing for 8uoh purposes necessarily includes the power to pessess, store and preservethe same to that end. Furthermore,itmay be more eoonamicrl and desirableto distribute such commodities,rather than h8ve the racipienC8 come or send for the sam8. Power to provide such food and olothingwould include the power to deliver 't, 8nd authority to aaquire the nsaessary means of deliverywould Cpllow.

When ccmrmissionsrs' courtswere burdenedwiththa #uviy of providing support for suchpersons,they wer8 giventhe sound disoretion of determiningthose nhcm they mwo required to provids for under the terms of the statute. By neoessary implioationthey 8oquired the pcmr to employ suchhelp 8smight be necessary to properly sift cut those entitled to such relief and to investigatsand ascertain the extent and amount of the need.

The f8ot that the Fedor Government prwid8s the oommodities doss not, in our opinion, render the authority sf the Ccsnmissicners' Court of Hunt %mty any less in the distribution thereof th8n would ha true if the County itselfwere furnishing suah provisions, so far as the Stats laws 8re conowned.

It goeswithout srying th8tthe disorsticn reridingin the ocmaissioners'oourts in snchmatten must be soundly exercised. If the recipient8 of such relief ar8 not so indigent as to fall nithin the tanus of the statute,the commissioners oourtwould be without authorityto do uly of the things you inquire about. &88uming however that the benefioi8ries of such relief are within the statute, that a storehouseis neoessary in providing then with support,that the county has no available spaaewithout ranting the rune, that the house rented is of size 8nd loeaticn cesunte with th8 **mod** and the rent reasonable,your first question is 8nswered in the 8ffizm8tiv8. Yeur third question 18 8nsrrsrad

in the sameway, 88well a8 that part of your Second qu88tioR uerlxiningto office furnitureurd the tag c8seworkers.

'Ilb now address ourselvesto your fourth question, md to that part of the seaond question relating ta the payment of utili% bills. We quote Section 1, Article 23720-2, Vernon's Civil St8tutes, 88 follows:

*Seso 1. The County Ccaamissioner8~ Courts and the City Commissionef any incorporatedtanm within said County of this State are hereby wthorized to lease or rent office space for th8 p,wpose of aiding 8nd cooperatingwiththe agenncie8 of the State and Fedor Geverrment engaged in the rdministrationef relief of the unetaployod pnd needy people of the State of Taxas, and te payths regularHcnoraUe J. M. Allen, Page 4 (6-13-40)Opinion O-2217

monthly utility bills for such offices, such a8 lights, gas and waters and when in the opinion of the majority of the Commissioners'Court of a oounty such office space is essentialto the proper administrationof such agencies of either the State or Federal Govarrm&&, said Courtsare hereby spaoifiaallyauthorized to payfor sax88 and for the rst;ular

monthly utility bills for suoh offices out of the County's General Fund by rrPrr8nts as is the payment of other obligation8 ofthe county.
. . .*
You will note that the authority extended by the preceding article is limited to the provision of off108 spaae for the purpose of aiding 8nd cooperatingniththe agencies of the St&e and Federal Government engaged in the administrationof relief of the unemployed 8lld needy psople ofthe State of Texas. 1ysto Federal agencies so engaged,your fourth question 8nd that part of the second relatingto utility bills is ansmred in the affinntiw. A Ccu8missionersCcurt couldnot extend such 8ssistmca to any Federal or State~agencymt 80 engrged.
Yours very tNly BlTORIiEYGEKERA.7,

OF TEX&S By s/Glenn R. Lewis
Glenn R. Levis 4**1*tm t GRL:EF:egW

This opinion has bwm consideredin conference,approved and ordered recorded. s/Gerald C. Mann Gerald C. Mann ATTORNEYGERERALOF TEXbS