E ORNEY GENEOF TEXAS 

AUSTIN ~.TEXAS 

FVILL WILSON 

AlTORNEYGENERAL 

February 20, 1961 

Mr. Wm. J. Burke 

Executive Director 

State Board of Control 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Mr. Burke: 

Re: Whether Acts Fifty-sixth 

Legislature, Third Called 

Session, 1959, Chapter 23, 

page 442 prohibits the changing in the air duct connections of the air conditioning system in the State 

Office Building when such 

changes are necessary to insure proper functioning of 

such system. 

You have requested 

tion: 

an opinion on the following ques- 

"Does Section 40 of Article V, 'General 

Provisions' H.B. 4, enacted by the Third 

Called Session of the Fifty-sixth Legislature, In 1959, by the following language 

'Building Alterations Prohibited. None of 

the funds appropriated in this Act may be 

expended for removing walls, partitions or 

any other permanent part of the New State 

Office Building or the Supreme Court Building' prohibit a change in air duct connections supplying fresh air to the air conditioning system of the New State Office 

Building when such change is necessary to 

insure proper functioning and continuous 

satisfactory performance and adequate air 

conditioning effect from certain individual 

air conditioning units serving the first and 

second floors of the said State Office Building? 

Opinion No. NW-996 

"Does Section 40 quoted above prohibit 

the installation of the necessary and proper 

air duct to supply an adequate and dependably 

constant amount of fresh air to the individual 

air conditioning units serving the west end of 

floors one and two of the State Office Building 
Mr. Wm. J. Burke, page 2 (m-996) 

to be connected with a new outside air intake 

opening constructed through the basement wall 

of the State Office Building near the southwest 

corner of said building? 

"If your answer to the above question is 

in the negative, is the Board of Control prohibited from paying the cost of such new duct 

installation and necessary correction work from 

funds appropriated to the Board of Control from 

Budget Item 69 of said H.B. 4 entitled, 'Air 

Conditioning Maintenance, including maintenance 

contracts, professional fees, materials and 

supplies, special tools and plant equipment'?“ 

The facts on which your question is based are stated 

in your request as follows: 

"Changes in the air supply ducts and connections are necessary because the large fans 

supplying the fresh air for all floors above 

the second floor develop a suction on the common 

air intake duct (from which the units serving 

the first and second floors also are supposed to 

obtain their fresh air supply) sufficient to 

prevent smaller individual units serving the 

said first and second floors and especially 

those in the west one-half of the building from 

receiving an adequate amount of fresh air to 

permit proper functioning, adequate performance 

and satisfactory air conditioning; and, furthermore, at times completely overpower the intake 

capacity of the smaller units with the result 

that air flows are reversed to the extent that 

the return air grilles actually discharge hot, 

contaminated air under pressure instead of sucking it in for reconditioning through filters and 

the cooling units. 

"The effect of the above described occurrence on offices, conference and meeting rooms is 

such that inside temaeratures cannot be controlled 

by the thermostats and the air conditioning units. 

"The proposed, and most feasible, solution 

of the problem is the separation of air intake 
. . 

Mr. Wm. J. Burke, page 3 (w-996) 

connections and/or air sources serving the 

large fans and the small air conditioning 

units so that the respective small fans and 

units may have separate and independent fresh 

air intake sources to insure that one cannot 

interfere with the satisfactory operation of 

the other. 

"In order to provide the separate air intake to supply fresh air to the units serving 

the first and second floors (west end) of the 

State Office Building, it becomes necessary to 

disconnect the air intake, serving the small 

units, from the main large air intake, serving 

the main fans that supply air to floors three 

to ten, inclusive, install a new fresh air intake for the small units (serving floors one and 

twos) through the basement wall at the southwest 

corner of the State Office Building below ground 

level protected by an area-way and appropriate 

cover structure. Such installation of the necessary new duct would require an opening to be 

cut through the basement wall which would in 

effect remove a small portion of a 'permanent 

part' of the New State Office Building basement 

wall. 

"Had the effect of the earlier described common source main air duct on the smaller units 

(serving floors one and two) been anticipated and/or 

possible of calculation at the time the duct system 

for the air conditioning was designed, there is no 

doubt that separate ducts would have been installed 

when the building was constructed. The building has 

been completed, occupied, and the air conditioning 

system has been in operation more than one year, and 

It is now apparent that the conditions described above 

could become worse resulting in more unsatisfactory 

operation and improper and inadequate air cbnditionlng than we now experience." 

Section 7 of Article 678m, Vernon's Civil Statutes, provides: 

"The Commission shall obtain title for the 

State and retain control of the real property 
. 

Mr. Wm. J. Burke, page 4 (W-996) 

acquired for sites and of the buildings 

located thereon until final construction 

is completed and the buildings are occupied by the State agencies to be housed 

therein, at which time the management and 

control of said buildings shall be transferred to the Board of Control. Except as 

otherwise provided in this Act, the initial 

occupants shall be those State agencies 

agreed upon by the Commission and the Board 

of Control." 

In view of the provisions of Section 7 of Article 678m, 

it is the duty of the State Board of Control to keep the 

State Office Building in proper maintenance and repair. Ther+ 

fore, it is the responsibility of the ,Board of Control to expend available funds to maintain the proper functioning of 

equipment initially installed by the State Building Commission in the construction of the State Office Building. 

Section 40 of Article V of House Bill 4, Acts of the 

Fifty-sixth Le islature, 

ter 23, page 4 8 2 

Third Called Session, 1959, Chap- 

(General Appropriation Bill) provides at 

page 732: 

"None of the funds appropriated in this 

Act may be expended for removing walls, partitions or any other permanent part of the new 

State Office Building or the Supreme Court 

Building." 

It is our opinion that the foregoing does not prevent 

the Board of Control from expending appropriated funds to 

provide for the proper functioning of initial equipment in 

the State Office Building. This is particularly true under 

the facts outlined in our request, since the Legislature 

in House Bill 4 in Item 69 (page 517) of the'appropriation 

to the Board of Control made~specific appropriation for 

air conditioning maintenance. 

You are, therefore,,advised that you are authorized to 

expend monies appropriated in Item 69 for the purposes outlined in your request. 

------- SUMMARY 

The State Board of Control is authorized 

to spend monies appropriated for air 
. . 

Mr. Wm. J. Burke, Page 5 (m-996) 

conditioning maintenance for making changes 

in the air supply ducts and connections necessary to the proper functioning of the air 

conditioning equipment installed in the State 

Office Building. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

JR:ms 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMI!l?l?EE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

William T. Blackburn 

Leon F. Pesek 

John C. Steinberger 

‘hi&v-& 

John Reeves 

Assistant 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Morgan Nesbitt