Honorable George H..Sheppard 

Comptroller of Public Accounts 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Mr. Sheppard: OpinionNo. 0-5367 

Re: Appropriation from the 

Permanent School Fund - 

validity. 

We quote your letter of June 4, 1943: 

,"I am enclosing photostatic copy of House 

Bill No. 514, Acts of the Regular Session of 

the Forty-eighth Legislature, appropriating 

b452.60 from the Permanent School Fund for the 

purpose of reimbursing D. B. Eades, of Dallas, 

Texas, for funds paid by him as bonus and 

rental upon certain vacancies in public school 

lands. 

"Since this appropriation Is made from 

the Permanent School Fund, I respectfully request your opinion as to whether the appropriation is valid."' 

The nature of House Bill No. 514 is described 

in the caption thereto, said caption reading as follows: 

,"A?~,ACT making an appropriation of Four 

Hundred and Fifty-two Dollars and Sixty Cents' 

($452.60) from the Permanent School Fund for( 

the purpose of reimbursing D. B. Eades of'Dallas, 

Texas, for funds paid by him as bonus and rentals 

upon certain lands being described in State of 

Texas mineral leases Numbers 24090, 24091 and 24092; 

said lands having been claimed to be the property 

of the State of Texas and part of the public 

school lands, but by the terms of a final judgment of the District Court of Travis County, 

Texas, said lands were adjudged to be not the 
Hon. George H. Sheppard, page 2 (o-5367) 

property of the State of Texas; therefore, 

the sums paid as rentals and bonuses on 

said lands were improperly received; said Act 

further providing that the Comptroller of the 

State of Texas be directed to issue warrant 

'to reimburse the party named herein in the 

amount specified herein; and declaring an emergency. " 

The body of the bill contains the following appropriation: 

"To pay D. B. Eades of Dallas County, 

the sum of Four Hundr d and Fifty-two 

%1"k and Sixty Cents ($458.60) as reimbursement for rentals and bonuses paid by him into 

the Permanent School Fund on State Mineral 

Leases Nos. 24090, 24091, and 24092 of lands 

located in Duval County, Texas, which said 

lands were not the property of the State of 

Te~xas and the leases were for that reason 

void"~and of no effect; the State Permanent 

SEboo&: 'Fund not being entitled to receive 

or: retain said money . s . $452.60." 

As is apparent from the portions of the bill quoted 

above, the act does not purport to appropriate moneys rlghtfully belonging in the Permanent School Fund, to uses and 

purposes other than those to which the fund is dedicated by 

constitutional provision; but the purpose of the approprlation is to require the Permanent School Fund to account for 

moneys not rightfully belonging to it which in equity and 

good conscience it cannot retain. Such an appropriation, 

in our opinion, does not violate the terms of Article 8, 

Section 7, of the Constitution, prohibiting the diversion 

of special funds. You are therefore advised that such an 

appropriation from the Permanent School Fund is valid. 

Similar appropriations have heretofore been approved by this department: 

See the opinions listed in the following volumes of 

the letter opinions of this department --Volume 377, page 980, 

page 939; Volume 371, page 594, page 711; Volume 367, page 38. 

Yours very truly 

RWF:JP:bt 

APPROVED June 11, 1943 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Gerald C. Mann 

Attorney General of Texas By s/ R.W. Fairchild 

Assistant 

APPROVED OPINION COMITTEE By BWB,Chr.