-74

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Hon. Sam Bein 

county Attorney 

Leon county 

Contervllle, Texas 

Deer Mr. Ealnl 

Your regusoti ior an 

hsrciin &at& kaa been roo 

1. can ttle 

I&on county UJR se 

amttobopaidb 

t county Auditor for 

per manth, mm& Mlrarrantcr? 

a.u ludit.or .aa4 

Leon Ceuaty appelat 

ty karlllg a populatlen of tklxty000) hahablknts ar ooer, acMx&- 

ng Federal Camms, or haviag l far 

en Zpi~Lioa Dollars ($lS,OOO,S#,OO), 

to the last appiovod tar+ roll 

be county auditor, who shall hold Ma oiZioe i'ox two 

(2) p~fa, and who sEaI1 remita ae compsasatioa tar 

his t3sxvlcss One %m¶red Twenty-flea Dollars (*US) 

for qkach million dollars, or mpejor potiioc Cber4bof 0n 

the aanase%d v%h%tiO%, th8 annual salary to be OUaputed grm the last; appravad tar rell; Said lniattal 

salary frolp county funds ahall not ~XWM T-0 Thooi 

sand six Windred Dollars ($3,800). . ..* 
Hon. San Baln, Page 92. 

Arti 1640, Revieed Civil Statutso, provide8 that: 

TQhsn the Commleslonsro~ Court of e oounty, not 

mentioned and rnumeratsd In the prsoeding Article ahall 

detennlne that an auditor la a pub110 neoerslty in the 

dlspatoh of the oounty business, and ehall enter an 

ordar Upon the Eiinutea of said Court rully. eetting out 

the reaaona and neoerelty of an audltor, and shell 

Oatma raid order to be oertlfled to the Dietriot Judge8 

IVvlng jdrlsdlotlon in the oounty, said Judge8 shall, 

if suoh reason be oonsldersd good and suffloient, appoint a County Auditor, a8 provided in the 6uOOeeding 

ArtlOle, who rhall qualify and perform all the dutlee 

requlrad of County Auditors by the Laws of thlr State! 

provided, said Judee ehall have the power to dlroontinue 

the offloe of suoh County Auditor at any time after the 

rxQlratlon of one year when it Is olearly shown that 

ruoh auditor 18 not a pUbllo neoessltp and hla servioes 

are not ocnmnensurate with hia salary reoeired; . . .” 

.Artlole 1646a, Reviatd Civil Statutes, reade ae follows: 

“The Commlssloners~ Court of any oounty under 

twenty-five thoueand’populatlon~according to the last 

United States Censur nay make an arraneemsnt or 

agreenent with one or more other oountles whereby all, 

Oountiets, parties to the arrangement or agreement, 

me7 jointly employ and oompeneate a rpeolal auditor or 

auditors for the purpoees speolfled In ArtlOlen 164S 

and 1646. The oounty oommiasionere’ court of every 

oountg affsoted by thie article may have an audit made 

oi all the book@ of the county, or any of them, at 

any time they may deed& whather suoh arrawemenfe 

oan be m&r wlth other oountlee or not 1 provided the 

dlstrlot judge or grand jury 1x09 order said audit lf 

either BO deelres.w 

We are informed by the Comptroller’s orfioe that Leon 

County had a population of 19,tW3 inhabitants according to 

the la& United States oeneus, and a tax valuation under Fifteen Killion Dollars. 

. 

He bate been unablb to find any statute empowering a oom- , 

tiS8iOnfJrE court to employ a eltrk to keep all accounts in 

which the county le intereeted and have en auditor oheck them 

at regular perlode. Commlsoloners courte are oourts Of limited 

jurlsdlotlon, in that their authority extends only to matters 

pertaining to the general welfare of their respective counties 
.- 

. 

Hal. San Baln, Pago PS 

and that thelr ptmen ue only ttoae upready or lmplledly eonzrssd,uratihem by law, that 18, by the Constitution end ntatuter 

. Al80 800 the eaaea OS sun Vajmr Eleotrlo Ll&ht 

Co. t8. Deaea, SO SJ. 868; Ulll County t8. Hanllton 293 s.U.* 

292; beetle Umber CO. ~8~ Camaie8lonerm Court of 3abLe County, i 

2S9 3.W. 668; Comlssionarr Court TBO Uallaoe, l5 S.V. (26) 535; 

Sward w3. ?allm County, 246 S.U. 920. 

ArtAole l647, Revlso~ Civil Statute8, read8 as r0lhte: 

*The district Judges having jurlndlotlon in the 

oouaty, shall appoint the ownty audltat at a apeolal 

aeeting held ror that purpose, a aajorlty ruling1 protided, that if a nrajorltf oi.suoh Jud@8 iall to agree 

upon the 6eleOtiOrl of sane pes8oa as aUditoX then 

either or aaid judges tihall oertlfy suoh raoi to the 

Governor, who ahall thereupon appoint odlrs other 

tllatrlot $xQge to aot and rote with the al’vmaeld 

judge8 in the eeleotlon of suoh auditor. The aotlon 

ahall then be reoorded in the alnutea of the dlotrlot 

court or the county and the clerk theroot &alleertll'y 

theeants totheoonm&aelanere~~urt,wbloh shalloauee 

the mum to be reoorded in its minute8 togother with 

an order direotln& the paynmt of the aud1tor.a aalary.w 

: 

', 

\ 

la rlew 0r the rorf3g0bg atatuteu, you are respeotfuUy advised that it la the o&dnlon or thlrr dopartmreat that Iaou . 

Cauatymey wloy a oounty -tot under Art1010 1646, su 

by O- rith tbs phin rmaaQt0w ~XW~S~OM 0r ati0 r - 

a, 

0 

l647 by reoordiag la lts.rPlnutea the oertlfled copy of the 

mluutes of the Dlstrlat Court appolntlng the auditor and enterlag an order direct&g the payment of the auditor*a sUary each 

mopth as it mamaeat You ue rurther adoieed that ii Iaon 

cbianty appoints an auditor under the prcwislonr ot Article 1646, 

that.elther tha.Distrlot Judge or the Comlsaloners Court oannot l'lx the salary of euoh auditor, ae the Le&lature has rixed 

the salary or oounty auditors by the plain provision8 or hrtlole 

3.645. In that artiole la found a yardetlok by which-every 

oounty auditorts 6alnry may be derinitely determined, exoept 

thow Moose aalarles are rlred by numerous braoket amendcmts 

thereto, and by other brakket statute8 with whioh we are not 

.here conoerned,'beoause they do not apgly to Lecin County. 

Aa Leon county has a population under twenty--ilYe 

thoumanilnhabltanta, you are further advised that the oo;nisslonera oourt or Leon county nay nifika an arrangement by agreommt 
. . . 

Bon. 3nmEaln, page#I 

rith one or mare o&r aountlea whereby all oo\ldt$ea, part&a 

to the WI%QgWUUlt or ~reement,aay Jointlyenqloyand opsnrato a l peolal audltar or audltOr6~for the purposes apeolfled in Artlola 1645 md ~rtlolo 1646 or the Cdealonara 

Court or Zion xzounty may hate 'en audit aada or all the books 

or the oounty, or any or them, at any tlma thoy amy dealro, 

uhether mob ar~onsnta 0~1 be amdo with other oountlea qu 

not and the Cmm.la8loner~* Court may oontraot with suoh apeold auditar to pay him a reaBonabl0 ree tor hla l e~loea tor 

mnk lntg h o l peoial mdlt. 

wo remain 

Trusting thht the rorf%Oing answers your Imp&Y, 

Your0 very truly