EATTORNEYGENERAL 

OF TEXAS 

W’ILL WILSON 

ATTORNEY GENERA=- 

August 24, 1960 

Mr. Frank M. Jackson 

Executive Secretary 

Opinion No. WW-912 

Teacher Retirement System Re: 

Austin, Texas 

Questions relating to the 

payment of the State matching contribution to the, 

Teacher Retirement System 

occurring during the fiscal 

Dear Mr. Jackson: 

year ending August 31st, 

1959. 

Your request for an opinion reads in part as 

"During the fiscal year ending August 

31, 1959, the teachers' contributions of the 

Teacher Retirement System of Texas exceeded 

the estimate of contributions of members by 

one million, nine hundred eighty-eight thoufollows: 

sand, two hundred fifty-five dollars and nine 

cents ($1,988,255.09). On September 1, 1959, 

a letter concerning said deficit in the State's 

matching contributions was received from the 

Honorable Robert S. Calvert, Comptroller of 

Public Accounts, and reads in part as follows: 

II 

. . . . . 'House Bill 5, First Called 

Session, 56th Legislature charged the 

allocations from the Omnibus Tax Fund, 

with the result there is no money available to transfer to the System'. 

"Ke respectfully request your opinion concerning the following questions: 

"1. Is the C.omptroller of Public Acc,ounts 

req~uireci to pay tne 'l'eacher Retirement System 

the above deficit in State's matching contributions? 

"2. If the answer to question number one 

is in the negative, is House Bill 5 in conflict 

with Article 3, section 48-a of the Constitution of Texas?" 
Mr. Frank M. Jackson, page 2 (w-912) 

Subsection (3) of Section 2 of Article 7083a, Vernon's 

Civil Statutes, as amended by House Bill 5, Acts of the 

56th Legislature, First Called Session, chapter 1, page 9 

at page 10, provides: 

"Beginning with the fiscal year starting 

on September 1, 1959, and annually thereafter, 

there is hereby allocated and appropriated to 

the Teacher Retirement System of Texas in accordance with the provisions of Senate Bill No. 47, 

Acts of the Regular Session, Forty-fifth Legislature, 1937, and any amendments thereto, a sum 

each year equivalent to the contributions of the 

members of the Teacher Retirement Svstem during 

said year. Said annual allocated and appropriated amounts shall be paid to the Teacher Retirement 

System in equal installments during the months 

of November, December, March, April, June and July 

of each fiscal year beginning with the year starting September 1, 1959, based upon the annual estimate by the State Board of Trustees of the Teacher 

Retirement System of the contributions to be received from the members of said System during each 

such fiscal year; provided further, that in the 

event said estimate of the contributions of the 

members of the System shall vary from the actual 

amount of the teachers' contributions during the 

year, then such adjustments as may be required shall 

be made on the first day of the following fiscal 

year with any moneys in or due the General Revenue 

Fund." 

Subsection (2) of Section 11 of Article 2922-1, Vernon's 

Civil Statutes, provides: 

"The depositing of the State's contributions shall be made as follows: 

"(a) On or before the first day of November, 

next preceding each Regular Session of the Legislature, the State Board of Trustees shall certify 

to the State Comptroller for his review and adoption the amount necessary to pay the matching contributions of the State of Texas to the Teacher Retirement System for the ensuing biennium. This 

amount shall be included in the budget of the State 

which the Governor submits to the Legislature. The 

State Board of Trustees shall certify on or before 
Mr. Frank M. Jackson, page 3 (W-912) 

August 31st of each year to the State Comptroller of Public Accounts and to the State 

Treasurer the estimated amount of contributions to be received from members during the 

ensuing year. 

"(b) All monies allocated and appropriated by the State to the Teacher Retirement 

System shall be paid to the Teacher Retirement 

System in monthly installments as provided in 

House Bill No. 8, Acts of the Regular Session, 

47th Legislature. ,Each of said monthly installments shall be paid into the State Contribution 

Fund." 

The current appropriation to the Teacher Retirement System reads as follows: 

"1 , 

"2. 

"TEACHER RETIREMENT SYSTEM 

There is hereby appropriated and 

the Comptroller and Treasurer are 

For the Years .Ending 

_ .'- 

authorized and directed to trans- August 31, 

1960 

Au,gust 31, 

fer into a special trust account 1961 

in the hands of the Treasurer, the 

unexpended balances as of August 

31, 1959, of the various funds of 

the Teacher Retirement System, estimated as follows: 

Teacher Savings Fund No. 133... $1,200,000 

State Contribution Fund No. 134 1,000 

Retire+ Reserve Fund No. 135... 105,000 

Interest Fund No. 136.......... 1,000,000 

Expense Fund No. 137........... 

Investment Fund No. 138........ 

75,000 

975,000 

There is hereby appropriated and allocated out of the Omnibus Tax Clearance Fund to the Teacher Retirement 

System the State contributions necessary to match member contributions, 

estimated to be . . . . ..w.............. 31,700,OOO $32~,800,000 

TOTAL ESTIMATED APPROPRIATIONS, 

TEACHER RETIREMENT SYSTEM...........$~~,O~~,OOO $32,800,000~~ 

From September lst, 1959, all funds in the Teacher Retirement System constitute a separate trust account with the State 
Mr'. Frank M. Jackson, page 4 (WW-912) 

Treasurer as custodian rather than funds in the State 

Treasury 

+ 

Attorney General's Opinions wwT65 (1959) and 

~~-600 1959). Thus, it is necessary to issue a warrant 

on the State Treasu- to transfer money to the Teacher 

Retirement System out of the State Treasury into a special trust fund of the Teacher Retirement System in the 

custody of the State Treasurer. 

We are informed by the Comptroller's Office that all 

the sums appropriated to the Teacher Retirement System for 

the fiscal year ending August jlst, 1960 have been paid to 

the Teacher Retirement System. While the Legislature authorized the payment of the deficit mentioned in your request 

from the General Revenue Fund, no appropriation for this 

deficit was made to the Teacher Retirement System. Therefore, 

you are advised that the Teacher Retirement System has a 

claim against the General Revenue Fund of the State of Texas 

for this deficit, which may be paid when such sum is appropriated by the Legislature. Article III, Sec. 48a, Texas 

Constltution, H.B. 5, Acts of the 56th Leg., 1st C.S., 1959, 

ch. 1, p. 9. In this connection, it is noted that the appropriation contained in Item 2 of the appropriation to the 

Teacher Retirement System was made out of the Omnibus Tax 

Clearance Fund and did not appropriate any additional sum 

from the General Revenue Fund. As is noted above, this fund 

has been completely exhausted for' the fiscal year ending 

August 31st, 1960. 

In answer to your first question, you are therefore 

advised that the Comptroller of Public Accounts is not authorized to issue a warrant atthe present time payable to the 

Teacher Retirement System for the deficit of the State's 

matching contribution, for the reason that no money has been 

appropriated for that purpose. 

In answer to your second question, the provisions of 

House Bill 5, Acts of the 56th Legislature, First Called Session, are constitutional. Attorney General's Opinion WW-640. 

SUMMARY 

No appropriation to the Teacher Retirement System for the payment of any~deficit 

in State matching contribution having been 

enacted, the Comptroller of Public Accounts 

is not authorized ,to issue a warrant for the 
Mr. Frank M. Jackson, Page 5 (WW-912) 

payment of the deficit in the State's 

matching contributions resulting from 

the teachers' contribution of the Teacher 

Retirement System exceeding the estimate 

of contributions made by the System. 

Such deficit'constitutes a claim which may 

be paid when an appropriation Is made to 

the Teacher Retirement System for such 

deficit, as provided in Article 70&a, 

Vernon's Civil Statutes. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

Assistant 

JR:ms 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMI'E'PTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

F. C. Jack Goodman 

Phocion S. Park III 

W. Ray Scruggs 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Houghton Brownlee, Jr.