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$sbribution to indigents, may 

employ cs~so wzkers to assist in dstarmining those to whom aid must be extended, and 

mly purchase a truck with whioh to distribute such ocmmoditias, if reasonably newssay 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 

unemployed and needy people of the county. 

June 13, 1940 

Honorable J. M. Allen , 

County Auditor, Hunt County 

Greenville, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. O-2217 

In your letter of recent data you request our opinion in 

response to the following questions: 

*lo May the Cceuaissioners' Court legally 

lsres P building to 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 legally provide offioes, pay for utilities, purchase office furniture anp pay the salary of tw, men who are commonly 

called or designated as 'Case Workers' whose duties are 

to investigate various families af the county to detsrmine whether or not such families are entitled to reaaive the above mentioned commoditiss? 

"3s Cpn the Ccmmissionarsl Court legally pay 

for a truak purchased by the oounty which is used to 

distribute the above mentioned acanmoditiss and pay 

for gasoline and 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 cgmni8sionerst courts in this 

State are limited in their powers to those conferred by the Constitution 

or by constitutional statutes,,it is likewise true that such povmrs do not 

of absolute nece88ity have t0 be SXpmSS1y given but may exist by necessary 

implication. 11~Tex. Jur. 564; El Paso County v. Elam, 106 S.lTe (2d) 395; 

Reward v. Henderson Co., 116 S.W* (2d) 4793 Ccmmissioners' Court of %dison County ve Wallaos, 15 S.VL (ad) 335* 

Article 2351, Revised Civil Statutes, provides: 

*Each aommissionars court shall e ,, . 

"11. Provide for the support of paupers and such 

idiots-and lunatics as cannot be 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 person who has been a bona fide inhabitant of 

the county not less than six months and of the State not 

less than one year. 

When the commissioners courts were expressly giwn the power 

md duty to "provide for the support of paupers," by nsoessary ixxplioation they were clothed with the authority to do 01lths inoidental things 

necessary to provide for their support. Just as the power to erect I 

courthouse and jail carries with 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, ~ferries end bridges necessarily implies authority to aonstruct a drainage ditch to protect such roads, bridges and highnays from flood waters. El Paso County vo. Slam, suprae See dso Terre11 
Honorable 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 preserve the same 

to that end. Furthermore, it may be more eoonamicrl and desirable to 

distribute such commodities, rather than h8ve the racipienC8 come or 

send for the sam8. Power to provide such food and olothing would include the power to deliver 't, 8nd authority to aaquire the nsaessary 

means of delivery would Cpllow. 

When ccmrmissionsrs' courts were burdened withtha #uviy of 

providing support for such persons, they wer8 given the sound disoretion of determining those nhcm they mwo required to provids for under 

the terms of the statute. By neoessary implioation they 8oquired the 

pcmr to employ such help 8s might be necessary to properly sift cut 

those entitled to such relief and to investigats and 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 itself were furnishing suah provisions, so far as the 

Stats laws 8re conowned. 

It goes without 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 oourt would be without authority to do 

uly of the things you inquire about. &88uming however that the benefioi8ries of such relief are within the statute, that a storehouse is 

neoessary in providing then with support, that the county has no available spaae without 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 same way, 88 well a8 that part of your Second qu88tioR 

uerlxining to office furniture urd the tag c8se workers. 

'Ilb now address ourselves to 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 Commission ef any incorporated tanm 

within said County of this State are hereby wthorized to lease or rent office space for th8 p,wpose of aiding 8nd cooperating withthe agenncie8 

of the State and Fedor Geverrment engaged in the 

rdministration ef relief of the unetaployod pnd needy 

people of the State of Taxas, and te payths regular 
HcnoraUe 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 essential to the proper administration of such agencies of either the 

State or Federal Govarrm&&, said Courts are 

hereby spaoifiaally authorized 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 cooperating niththe agencies of the St&e and Federal Government engaged in the administration of relief of the unemployed 8lld 

needy psople of the State of Texas. 1ys to Federal agencies so engaged, your fourth question 8nd that part of the second relating to 

utility bills is ansmred in the affinntiw. A Ccu8missioners Ccurt 

could not extend such 8ssistmca to any Federal or State~agency mt 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 considered in conference, approved and 

ordered recorded. 

s/Gerald C. Mann 

Gerald C. Mann 

ATTORNEYGERERALOF TEXbS