.?.: 

1 OFFlCEOFTJ+EATTORNEYGENERALOFTEXA~ 

AUSTIN 

~JAoYER SUERS 

#moIYcI GDtmuL 

*, 1 ; 

. I 

. 

Ronorablr John C. Marburger 

county Attorney .' ., 

Fayette county .' . 

La Orange, Teraa 

" I 

mar Six: Oplnlon~ 100. o-6968 ~~ 

,’ : R*s Authority of the 

Journal, which 1 

Ycur letter of .reornt 

i?oi~ this department OR the abov 

ri iollowrr 

tuatlon, could the .~ 

owner lsgallg file 

raot with the Comnia- 

, prevent it tron competing with 

era ror the furnishing ot orrio aupArticle 2688, v. A. c. s 

bntf Superintendent, provides1 

., cr6atlng tha 0rriOr of 

804’ 
::. 

,- 

Eomrab~lo John C. karburgdr, page 2 

~. The C~issioners~ -Court or every oountp 

hWl~!& three thnusand (3,000) eahalastio population or QOI% as ahoun by tha preoeding acholaati0 oehsuu, shall at a Geharal 4lsotlon provide 

for the eleotion of a Count 

mrte ior a term of rour (4 7 

Suparlntendent~ to 

years, .who i&all br 

a parson of educational attainraants, gocd maral 

oharaater, and executive ability, and I&O ahall 

be provided by the Commissioners* Court with an 

oiri08 in the court.i10us6, and with hecessary atricr rumiture and rtitum. He shell ba the 

holder of a teacher’s first grade oertliioate 

or teaoher’ a pemanant cer tirioata. 

county that ehall attain three thouss~$ y;“%O) 

saholaatio population or mre the Co&~&&s* 

Court ~sha11 appoint such Supcrln~tandcnt who shall 

psrrorm the duties or such ofrice until the elco- tion and qurilirioation 0r his suocesaor. Ih uoamties having lass than thre6 thousand (3,000) 

roholastio population whenever xore than tiestyfire per oent (255) or tha qualiried voters of 

#aid county aa sham b- the vote for Governox at 

the praoediag General Election shall petltion the 

Comnlssloners~ Couvt therei*ir, said Court shall 

order an elsotlon for said county ta datsrmine~ 

whether or not the oiiioe of’ County Superintendent 

shall be arsatcd in said oo’!aty$ and, If a najorltp 

I or the qualirfed property taxpaying voters voting aa 

said sleotioh shall vote ror ths creation or.the oftie0 or county Superintendent in said county, the 

Coiimiasioners~ Court, at its next rsgulsr tzrz 

artcr the holding ot said election, shall orate _, 

the off lae or Cnuhtp Superintendent, and mm a 

Cotmty Superint,zudsnt rho shall qualify under this 

Chapter and hold su?h offiae until ‘the nsxt Gensral 

;flaotion. ?2cvlded, that In all cou.aY ea having a 

population la exoess at three hundred and tlfty I thousand (350,000) iuhabitants aocor4tng to the last 

t ~available Federal Csnsus the County Superintendent 

~shall be a-pointad by the County Board of Education 

/ and shall hold o?flcs ior two (2) years, provided 

I father, that this provision shall not operate so 

1 

as to deprive any elaoted Superintendent oi his 

office pri,or to the expiration of the tam ior 

*hiah he has bean slcoted; provided further thst 

/ 

; 805 

. 

.- 
ffanordle John C. Llarburger., peg6 3 

:,. 

,:, 

fi oouutles having a scholastic population of batwoan three thousaBd (j,OOO) and five thousand 

(5,000) soholeatlcs, wherein the offica oi County 

Buparintandaht hes not been oraated end a Supariotaudant alaotad, than in such counties the question 

ab whathar or not such offloa is astabllsha& shell ba 

determined by tha qualified voters or said o’ouutp in 

o spaoial aleotion celled tharafcv by the comlsslon- 

,.aZs’ Court of said oounty, upoh petltlon tharafor a6 

horainebova apadtiad.” 

: ‘Avtlola 2689, Y. At C. S., is as tollotis: 

91s oounty superintendent shell iirst tek8 

the official oath eud ahell enter into a bard in 

the sum of one thousand dollars, with good end 

suffialant auratl~as, to be payebla to and approved 

by tha coamiseianara oourt, ooaditionad under the 

ialthiul psrfonenoe of his duties. Any suu oolleoted on a iorfelture of said bond shell beooma a 

pert of the avai&able cauntp sohool fund.,* 

* 

9 

. 

i ‘~ Artiole 2690, V.. A. C. .8., provider, 5.~ pea: 

e. 

aTha eountf suparintendt3t shell have, under 

the direction of the State S~.parihtandant, the lamedleta aupervlsion of 811 mttars pertainihg to 

publio aduostion’in his 60~1‘8. Ha shell confer 

.rith the teaohcrs and trust~ae end give thaem advice when needed, visit end examine sohools, and 

dellver ,lsotures that shall tend to oraate en interest in public ,aduoation. Ha shell spend four I 

d;:a;;;hmwaak visiting the eohools while they ere ,~ 

.i, - 

, ivhen It is possible. for hlia to do so.. 

Ha shell have authority ovar ell of the public 

schools within his county, axoept such of the independent school dletriata es have e aoholaatlo .~ 

populetlon of five hundred OT &ore. In such inda- .\ : 

pendant aohool districts es have lass then five 

hundred soholastio population, the raparts of the 

principals and traeeurera to the State Depert;lenU 

of .Eduoation shell be approved by tha OOLIhtY superlntandent before they are icswardad to tha Stat6 

Superintendcat. . . . .a 
pa 323i 

?W quota the follow from 34 Taxer Jurlaprudanoe, 

0 *Cfiioe* ambrac6r the ideas of tenure, 

dur&n; ;nolument and duties. Among tha criteria 

TV determlng whathar an employment la a pub110 offloe are the followingt tha delegation of 8 portion 

of the sovaraigu funotlons of the government3 the raQuirament at an offiofal oaths that the poware anCruatad era conferred by law and not by contreot. . .a 

Eased upon the foregoing, it 1s our opinion that a 

County 8Uperii3tCBdCBt ia a County ofrioer. 

We oell your attention to Artiole 373, V. A. P. C., 

uhioh reed8 86 iollowsr 

., 

*Xi any offloar of any oounty, or ol any oity 

or tarol shell become in any manner paounlarllp interested In any oontracts made by ~auoh county; 

aity or tomux, through its agents, or otharwlea, 

for the oonstruotlon or repair of eny brldga, reed, 

atract, alley or house or any other work under- 

.teken by suoh oounty, olty~ or towa, or shall become interested In any bid or proposal ior such 

work or in tha purehaae or eele or anything made 

’ for or on hocant of such county, city or town, 

or who ahsll ocntraot for or raoalva any money, 

or the raprasantative OS either; 01: 

$%%g'&t or advantaCa whateoaver In ooneidaration oi ewh bid, proposal, oontreot, puroheae 

or sela ha shall be fined not lose than Fifty 

50.00f'Dollera end notmgci than Five Hindred 

500.00) Dollerr.” 

Sinoa the County Suparlntaudant ia the owner bf the 

I.6 Orange Journal, it is the opinion of this department thet 

the La Grangr Journal or County Suparintandant is prohibited 

‘from tiling bids cod entering into LI oantraot with Feyatta 

Couqty by~.Arttiola 373, V. A. P. C. 

807