## THEATTO@NEY GENERAL Ol?+rExAS

AUSTXN ~~,'T-EzxAs PRICEDANIEL ATTOIINEY

GENERAL
Jule $1, 1949
Eon, SamLee Opinion Rio,V-841. CoumtyAttorney Brasoria County Re: Authority oi Commleeionerr~ Angleton, Texas Court to meats a drainage district in a conservation and reclamation dietriot, Dear Sir: Werefer to your letter in whlahyew

### l wb%t the ro11onin.g queetion:

Y!he Commlsrlomors~ Court of Brazorla County, Texas, has entertainsd a petftim presented to It pursuant to the mithority granted in Articles 809'7and 809l'&R.C.S, for the purpose of creating a drainage aletriat in a portion of Braaerir Oounty, *Rra+oria County ia apart Of the Bratos River Conservation andRealemetlon District. Thewhole of Braeoria County, Including the proposed area out of which it is desired to create a drainage dietrlct, is a part of the Brazes River Conaemation QndReolamatlon Dietrlct. Thie diatriet WLSareated by the Leglelature oi the Stats o? Texae by the Aotm of 1929, 4Irt Lsgislatu~e, Seaondcalled aesbion, 

## am wnad atid the text of the law $8 round ls&footwate under Section 2of Artio&e 

### m TheA,ot

*(~a ma+4 IrJ

tfka M&ad uglrSatur0 $9Its first call& S*m3lon, Page a9ahapter 5.0s the Cfeneral *ad Spw aial Seaslori La%r, @ndthe lm& ,oSthe mehdunt i,s fc&& in the 

### Rwisbi CM1 Statutes in the poaket part, lstiola 8'1971, Seotlon 5, "Therefore, myquestion to you is as r0ii0r4:Eon, SamLae - Page 

### 2 (V-841)

I.

. “Does the Commtesionorb~ Court of Braaorla County, undar Article 8182 and 8103, have the power to form a newdrainagr district out of a part of the terrltory lomted in Braaoria County rhero 

### tho~(bis ncpresent 

### uaamirtinq 

### drainage dl8triot and reolmtlen dlbtriot, In the 4vbnt ,that all af Bra34ria County is a part of the BraProsRiver Comarvatfon and Reclamation District aa pwvlded by Beatloa 5, Title 128, chapter 8, R.C,S, .shom
a4 rootnate Mder Article 81971, B.c.s.w

‘your question lnvolv4e the construotion OS Aoti 1945, 40th Leglrlature, pago 186, Chaptqr 143, whfoh i4 4140 Seotionn l-8 of Article 8193-l of V4rnon’s Civil Statutes. Ths caption or th4 Act readst

"AnAct to provide for the abolition
4f araiw4 districts in all 00untle8 in tnlr Stat0 whom cl3019rhallh4vr been ar4et.d OFmayheraaftor be amat4d by the kgirlnture, ar under it4 

### l ihOrity, a il4.d e4ntrol distrlot or aonsenation 4r realemotion aiatrict compoa4d of 4ll er a portion of the territory of suoh counties, pursuant to the provlslone pna under authority of Section 59 of Article XVI of the Constitution, rhoso territory Includes such drainage dlstrlate; providing for the pagrent of the outatanalng bonded andother lndebtednbsees of such districts; authorIsing andrequiring actiona by the Commlnsiolasrsf court; providing ror eleatlons, for the paymnt of.outstandlng bonaoa and other indebtedness, for the l4vy and collection of taxes; and dealarlng an emergentye‘I (Esnphaslsadded throughout) Thesubject in the caption la the abolition of drainage districts on all counties where there have been or mayhereafter be created by the Legislature or under Its authority, flood control, conservation or reolamation dietriots. Prohibiting the creation of new drainage dietricts is not mentioned in the caption,

Article 8193-1, Section 1 reads:HO% Samlie46- Page3 (V-841)

‘Ia all counties in Texas, where there ahall have been oreated, or ahall here&top be Oreated.
, IIa flood control diatriet; or conaervatlon ana Ceolamation aiatriot,

- retofore ed unaer the authority beea organieof and pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 7, Zltle 128, Revised CIvIl Statutes, 1925, &rtIcles 8097, et seq., which lib wholly wItsin the boundaries of such flood control district, or oonaervatlon and reclamation district, such drainage districts maybe abolished in the

manner provided by this Act; andwhenao abolished, no auoh drainage district shall thereafter be organized which shall inoluae within its boundaries any portion of any territory theretofore incorporated within the boundaries of suah flood control diat;:E;igr conservation and realamation aias&ion 2provides-that-upon pet+tion of reeldent that taxpaying voqere 111baon arainage dietriot praying anelection be ordered for the prpoae of detemin-

. .. . _-_ -_ _. ing wnewer or not sum aras.nags Qiatrlct or districts had.% OUtatandina bond indebtedness be abollahed. the Gomaibioners~ Coiirt ahall order anelection to be liiia within the flood control or conae,rvatIon aha reclamation 4%triot for the purpose of a t rmI in ii&im hth t

inage dietriot otidia&&ts”ah%~ te $i~lPie~~d nndthe outstanding bonded andother indebtedness ehall be amumed by auoh flood control or conservation andrec1aPution dlatrlct within the boundaries of which &uch 3Setrlcts 11 Then follows provisiona for posting or ptiblfohlng n&ct,s of election In the county where such Uettriets bre situated. Hoprovision is made for an l le@tiea in anr ether County in the flood control or conl ervatian andreclamation district.

Se&ion 3providee that the CommIaeIoners~ Court mayabolish drainage dlatrlcta hav.ingnobonded indobteduosa after notiw andthat all prapertg of the ,iWaiaage Uhtrlot ahakl pa** into oontrol mfthe flood control er conaemation and reolwtlon district, When the Court act&, all of tbo propert of the drainage dlstrlet prcrsss to the flood oontrol or waaervatlon and reslamation dlrtriet*. :,

Hop. SanLee - Page 4 W-641)

Section 4 provlaee that the eleotlons provialed for in Section 2 shall be held In the flood oontrol or oonaervation andreolamatlon dlatriet and that only qualified voterr whoowntaxable property In the flood 

### oontrolemoonsenatlon andreolamation distriotr Ma whohave rmaered it for taxation #hall be qualified to vote in rush eleotion andthey ahall vote In the’ sleetion preolnot of their reridenos.

Section 6provides for return8 of the eleotlon to the Danai8rlonerr~ Court, deoLarlng the remilt of the election, an&levy of tam8 to pay drainage district indebtedness. Clearly, au& an eleotion mayonly be held In the oounty In whiob the Ommirrionl r8’ Court warauthorized to not.

Section 7provide8 that upon the effeotivr date of muchelection all of the property of the dralnage district shall pass into the control and Jurladlotlon of the officers of the flood oontrol or oonaervatlon anareclamation dirtrict.

Sootion 8 **roabs**
NAfter the abolltlon of ruch drainage districts, as hereinabove provided, no other drainage dintriots shall be oreate rlthln the boundarlee of the flood control diatriot.or oonservation andreolamatlon district e Thepr6vZslons of this law’shall oontrol in the oountles to which it applied over the provision8 of any other laws authorMIng **or** regulating drainage districts. Aeta 1945, 49th Leg., p. 186, oh+ 14Sait
Weare of the opinion that Article 8193-l applies only to the abolitioa of draiaagedlrtriotr in fi00a control or oonservation andreclamation aimi0t8 oompo~sd of all or aportion of the territory of oaPb oount1 anddoes not prohibit the creation of 

### drafnagb’ ai#tr cts in such flood control or conservation and reolmaation districts whloh are oompoaed of more than one county; or whloh does not embrace territory of a drainage die~triot whloh hambeen abolished.

Alarge numberof countlelr andparts of counties are oontalned In the doecrlptlon of Brazes RiverBon. SamLee - Page 5 (V-841)

Conservatfon and Reclamation DIstrIat, (Acts, 1929, Forty-first Legislature, 

### se00nd caned sea8lon, page 22, Chapter 13#as amendedIn Acta, 19310Fortg-eeoandLegislature, First Called Session, page BuChapter 5, Seotlon 1) andweassume that no

### fi00a control district 0mp0taa of Brasorla County OPa portion of it has been created, by **reason** of which Sraeorla County ia **not** wlthin the ~ovIsIons of Article 8193-l of Vernon’8 Civil Statutes,

ASIt appears In Subsection (d) of Section 9in Vernon's Civil Statutes, Volume21, page 539, the lawunder which Brazoria County Conservation and Reolsmation District exists and operates, the creation of dlatrlcts such as Drainage Dfstrlcts, wIthIn said Brazorla County are expressly authorized, It reads: 

### g(a) It Is, however, 

### further provided that If the eleotors of any defined area within this district desire they may become aWater Control andImprovement DIstrict for the purpose of Independently pro

### viding, operating, anamaintaineng improvementa designed peculiarly to aerpe such defined area- such contained 

### defined area maybe so constituted under the appliuable

operation thereof shall be constructed and operated In such manneras will conform to thie district plan to the greatest practlcable degree, (As amendedActs 1935, 44th Leg., pe 56, oh, 19, sec. 4),"

Article 8193-1, V.C.S, provides only for abolishing drainage districts situated wit&In the boundaries of flood control or conservation andreclamation districts composed of all or aportion of the temitoq: ’

. .