THEATTORNEYGENERAL 

OP TEXAS 

October 17, 1958 

Honorable Bill Pemberton 

County Attorney 

Hunt County 

Greenville, Texas 

Oplnlon No. ww-513 

Re: May the County Commissioners of Hunt County 

drive and operate motor 

vehicles owned and maintained by the county in 

the performance of their 

duties and also draw the 

monthly expense allowance 

authorized under Section 

2, Article 2350n, Vernon's 

Civil Statutes, and relatDear Mr. Pemberton: ed questions. 

You have requested an opinion on the following questions: 

"1. May the County Commissioners of Hunt County, 

Texas drive and operate motor vehicles owned and malntained by Hunt County, Texas In the performance of 

their duties as road commissioners In the building and 

maintaining of roads In'Hunt County, and at the same 

time draw each month the $75.00 per month expense 

allowance authorized under Article 2350 n Section 2, 

which 1s allowed to them as County Commissioners for 

expense In operation and upkeep of their private automobiles while on official business within the county? 

"2 . Is the $75.00 per month allowance for traveling expense and autbmnbllc depreciation, which 1s 

authorized under Article 2350 n Section 2 considered 

as an expense of office, or Is such allowance consldered as salary, and If so, would the voting by the court 

of such $75.00 per month allowance to themselves be 

the equivalent of a raise In salary?" 

Hunt County ha8 a. population, according to the 1950 

Federal Census, of 42,731 lnhabitantr. Therefore, the traveling 

expense of county ~~ommlasloners la ggverned by the provisions of 
Honorable Bill Pemberton, page 2 (WW-513) 

Article 2350 and Section 2 of Article 2350n, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes. Section la of Article 2350 provides as follows: 

"Sec. la. The Commissioners Court In each 

county is hereby authorized to pay the actual traveling expenses Incurred while traveling outside 

of the county on official county business never to 

exceed Three Hundred Dollars ($300) in any one year 

for each said official." 

Sections 2 and 4 of Article 2350n provlde as follows: 

"Sec. 2. In any county in this State having a 

population In excess of twenty-one thousand, five 

hundred (21,500) but not In excess of one hundred 

twenty-four thousand (124,000), according to the last 

preceding or any future Federal Census, the Commissioners Court Is hereby authorized to allow each 

member of the Commissioners Court the sum of not 

exceeding Seventy-five ($75.00) Dollars per month 

for traveling expenses and depreciation on his automobile while on official business within the county. 

Each member of .such Commissioners Court shall pay 

all expenses in the operation of such automobile and 

keep same in repair free of any other charge to the 

county." 

"Sec. 4. The provisions of this bill shall 

apply only to those counties not furnishing an automobile, truck, or by other means providing for the 

traveling expenses of its commissioners, while on 

official business within the county." 

It has been held by this office on nr'merous occasions 

that under Section la of Article 2350, county commlssloners are 

entitled only to actual and necessary traveling expenses while 

traveling outside the county on official buslr.ess. Attorney 

General's Opinions V-1344 (1951), V-200 (1947) and 0-7438 (1946). 

The basis for such a construction is on the language "the actual 

traveling expenses incurred while traveling outside the county." 

The traveling expenses provided for In Article 2350n are not 

limited to traveling expenses actually Incurred. 

General's Opinion V-1344. 

Attorney 
Honorable Bill Pemberton, page 3 (WW-513) 

In Attorney General's Opinion V-1344 it was held: 

"It has been held that under Section la, county 

commissioners were entitled only to the actual and 

necessary traveling expenses while traveling outside 

the county on official business. 

V-200 (1947) and O-7438 (1946). T~~t&~~nfo?~uch 

a construction was the language 'the actual traveling 

expenses Incurred while traveling outside of the 

county.' Senate Bill 13llcontalns no such language. 

On the contrary, It Is stated that the commissioners' 

court is authorized to allow each member of the commissioners' court a sum not to exceed $100.00 per 

month 'for traveling expenses and depreciation on his 

automobile.' No formula is prescribed in Senate Bill 

131 for determining the amount of automobile depreciation each month. Furthermore, the traveling expense 

Is not limited to traveling expense actually Incurred. 

It is therefore our opinion that it was not the lntentlon of the Legislature that the members of the commissioners' court would be required to show that traveling expense. allowed them had been actually Incurred 

before payment could be made. 

"Some statutes allowing travel expense to officers on-the basis of expenses ac~tually Incurred or 

distance actually traveled ~expresaly require sworn 

statements from the officer makin 

8 

the claim. 

for example, Articles 6877-l and 88gc, V.C.S. 

See, 

However, there is no provision In Senate Bill 131 

requiring the members of the commissioners1 court to 

furnish a sworn statement relative to travel expense 

incurred by them." ; (Empahsia ours). 

In Attorney General's Opinion S-44 it was held that 

county commissioners could receive the maximum provided under 

Article 2350n for traveling expenses within the ,county, If during the same period of time, they were not being furnished a 

vehicle by the county or were not actually receiving traveling 

ex enses within the county under’ the provisions of Artlcie 2350 

(67 and Article 2350 (7):' It la noted'that Article 2350 provides 

for traveling expenses outside the county, while Article 2350n 
Honorable Bill Pemberton, Page 4 (NW-513) 

provides for traveling expenses hithin the county. 

You state in your request that the commissioners' 

court of Hunt County voted to furnish their own privately 

owned automobiles for their use while on official business 

within :he county and allowed each member of the commissioners' 

cqurt the sum of $75.00 per month to cover traveling expenses 

and depreclatlon on each.of their automobile& while used on 

official business within the,county. However, .your questions 

assume that the.county commlssloners are furnished motor 

vehicles owned and maintained by the county, rather than using 

their private automobiles. This results In a conflict In the 

f-ctual basis upon which your request Is made. Thus, we can 

only answer your questions In the alternative. 

If the commissioners are furnished motor vehicles 

owned by the County for use and the necessary traveling incurred 

within the county, the provisions 0f'Section 4 of Article 2350n 

would prohibit the payment of traveling ~expenae allowance allowed insection ,2 of Article 235On. If, on.the other hand, 

the commissioners use their private vehicles while traveling 

on official business within the county, the commlssloners would 

be entltled..to receive $75.005;per month as expense allowance 

under the provisions of Section 2 of Article 2350n. 

In answer to your second question, the allowance 

provided in Section 2 of Article 2350n constitutes allowance 

for traveling expense and automobile depreciation, and not 

salary or compensation. Attorney General's Opinion V-1344. 

SUMMARY 

County connnl~sloders may recieve 

the traveling allowance expense 

provided in Article 2350n for 

traveling on official business 

within the county, provided the 

county commlssioners~ are using 

their privately owned motor. 

vehicles for traveling on official business within the county 

mther than the county furnishing 
Honorable Bill Pemberton, page 5 (WW-513) 

the commissioners with countyowned motor vehicles for such purpose. 

The allowance provldgd in Section 

2 of Article 2350n, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes, constitutes allowance,for 

traveling expense and automobile 

depreciation and does not constltute salary or compensation. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

Assistant 

JR:mg 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman 

Wallace Flnfrock 

Llnward Shivers 

John B. Webster 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY 'GENERAL 

BY: 

W. V. Geppert