Gerald C. Mann 

X-Y 

AUSTIN 11. -r~xaS 

Hon. Fred Norris Opinion No. O-3132 

County Auditor Re: Can a county of 20,635 population, 

Polk County according to the 1940 Census be charged 

Livingston, Texas with commissions or fees for the county 

treasurer, and another related question7 

Dear Sir: 

Your letter of February 5, 1941, requesting an opinion 

of this department, later modified by your recent letter of May 

24, presents the following questions: 

“1. Can a county of 20635 population, according’to the 1940 Census, charge commissions or fees 

for the County Treasurer? 

“2. Should the treasurer in the above mentioned County deposit his fees into the officer’s Salary 

Fund? 

Xe have restated your first question in the caption 

set forth above as we understand it. 

Article 3943, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, in 

part, provides: 

“The commissions allowed to any county treasurer 

shall not exceed Two Thousand Dollars ($2000,00) annually; *** .I’ 

. . 

Section 13, Article 3912e, Vernon’s Annotated Civil 

Statutes, in part, provides: 

“The Commissioners’ Court in counties having a population of twenty thousand (20,000) 

inhabitants or more, and less than one hundred 

and ninety thousand (190,000) inhabitants according to the last preceding Federal Census, 

is hereby authorized and it shall be its duty 

to fix the salaries of all the following named 

officers, to-wit: sheriff, assessor and collector of taxes, county judge, county attorney, 

including criminal district attorneys and county attorneys who perform the duties of district 
Hon. Fred Norris, page 2 

attorneys, district clerk, county clerk, treasurer? hide and animal inspector. Each of said 

officers shall be paid in money an annual salary 

in twelve (12) equal installments of not less 

than the total sum earned as compensation by 

him in his official capacfty for the ffscal 

year 1935> and not more than the maximum amount 

allowed such officer under laws exfsting on August 24, 1935; ***." 

Section 7, Article 3912e, Vernon’s Annotated Cfvil 

Statutes, reads, in part ) as follows: 

‘*All monies drawn from said Officers’ Salary 

Fund or funds shall be pafd out only on warrants 

approved by the county auditor in counties having 

a county auditor; otherwise all claims against 

said fund shall first have been audfted and approved by the Commissioners’ Court of said county 

and the monies shall be disbursed on such approved claims by warrants drawn by the county treasurer on said fund.‘” 

Section 5, Article 3912e, of said statutes, in part, 

provides: 

“It shall be the duty of all officers to 

charge and collect in the manner authorized by 

law all fees and commissions which are permitted 

by law to be assessed and collected for all official service performed by them. As and when 

such fees are collected they shall be deposited 

in the Officers’ Salary Fund, or funds provided 

fn this Act. ****‘I 

Section 3, of Article 391.2e, of said statutes, provldes: 

“In all cases where the Commissioners’ 

Court shall have de.termined that county officers 

or precinct officers in such county shall be 

compensated for their services by the payment 

of an annual salary 

f 

neither the State of Texas 

nor any county shal be charged with or pay to 

any of the offfcers so compensated, any fee or 

commission for the performance of any or all of 

the dutfes of their offices but such officers 

shall receive said salary in lieu of other fees, 

commissions or compensatfon. which they would 
Hon. Fred Norris, page 3 

otherwise be authorized to retain; provided, 

however, that the assessor and collector of 

taxes shall continue to collect and retain for 

the benefit of the Officers! Salary Fund or 

funds hereinafter provided for all fees and 

commissions which he is authorized under law 

to collect; and it shall be his duty to account 

for and to pay all such monies received by him 

into the fund created and provided for under 

the provisions of this Act; provided further, 

th.t the provisions of this Section shall not 

affect the payment of costs in civil cases by 

the State but all such costs so paid shall be 

accounted for by the officers collecting the 

same, as they are required under the provisions 

of this Act to account for fees, commissions 

and costs collected from private parties." 

The county treasurer, being specifically named in 

Section 13, Article 3912e, supra, the method of fixing the 

county treasurer's compensation formerly prescribed by Article 

3941, Revised Civil Statutes, 1925, has been superseded by the 

foregoing provisions of the Officers' Salary Law as they apply 

to countfes of twenty thousand (20,000) inhabitants or more, 

The law provides that a county treasurer in such counties shall 

draw all warrants on the Officers" Salary Fund, which must be 

approved by the county auditor. 

Relative to your first two questions, the foregoing 

statutes require the officers designated to deposit all fees 

and commissions collected for all official services performed 

by them in the Officers' Salary Fund. Since they are prohibited 

from makfng any charge to the county9 such commissions as prescribed in Article 3941, Revised Civil Statutes, are no longer 

"permftted by law to be assessed and collected" as provided in 

Sectfon 5, of ,Article 3912e, supra. 

It is, therefore, the opinion of this department that 

your questions in the order presented should be answered in the 

following manner: 

1. Question No. 1. is answered in the negatfve. 

2. Commissions authorized by Article 3941, Revised 

Cfvil Statutes, 1925, can no longer be charged to the county in 

those counties with twenty thousand (20,000) inhabitants or more, 
Hon. Fred Norris, page 4 

therefore are not to be deposited in the Officers8 Salary 

Fund. 

Yours very truly 

LTTORNEY GENERfi OF TEXAS 

By /s/ Wm. J. R. King 

Wti. J. R. King, Assistant 

APPROVED JUL 8, 1941 

Is/ Grover Sellers 

FIRST ~ASSISTtiT ATTORNEY GENERAL 

This opinion considered and approved in limited conferenceWJRK:RS:wb