.’

Honorable Ereston Smith

Governor of Texas CapitolBuilding Austin, Texas OpinionNo. M-505

Re: Construction of House Bill 895, Acts of the 6lst Legislature,Regular Session,

Dear Governor Smith: Chapter 

### 812,page 2425, relating to the Texas Civil Judicial Council.

Your request for an opinion asks the following questionsrelating to terms of office of members of the Texas Civil Judicial Council:

"1

. ,.. Does Section 2, in providing for four (4) year terms for two Justices of the Courts of Civil Appeals and two presiding judges of the administrative judicialdistricts violateArticle 

### 16, Section 30 of the Texas Constitution?

"2. If so, are the above four (4)year terms authorized by Article 

### 16,Section 30a of the Texas Constitution?


### “3. If there is a conflict with either of the above Constitutionalprovisions,may the above appointlvemembers of the Civil Judicial COunCil be aDDOinted for two the authority-ofArticle 

### 16, Constitution."
Section 2 of House Bill 895, Acts of the 61z.t#Legislature,Regular Session, Ch. 812, P. 2425, amends Section 

### 3 of Article 2328a, Vernon's Civil Statutes, so as to provide in part as follows:

"Sec. 

### 3. The ex officiomembers of the Council shall consist of the following: (1) the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, who shall remain a member as long aa he holds

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the position of Chief Justice; (2) two Justices of the Courts of Civil Appeals, to be designated by the Governor for overlapping four-year terms, one to be designated in January, 1971, for a four-yearterm and one to be designated in January, 1973, for a four-year term with the replacement in each case to be designatedby the Governcr in January of odd-numberedyears; 

### (3)two presiding judges of the administrative judicialdistricts, to be designatedby the Governor for four-year terms, one to be designated in January, 1971, for a four-year term and one to be designated in January, 1973, for a fouryear term, with the replacement in each case to be designatedby the Governor in January of oddnumberedyears; (4) the Chairman and the Immediate past Chairman of the Senate JurisprudenceCommittee; and (5) the Chairman and the immediatepast Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

. . .'
Ex-officiomembers of a board do not hold separate and distinct offices. Rather, the same constitutesadditional duties Imposedupon an officeholder. S-94 (1953)and M-47 (1967). AttorneyGeneral's Opinions
(1953), it Is stated: In Attorney General'sOpinion S-94

"Theex-officio duties of themembers of the Texas Highway Commission are additionalduties required to be performed by such officerswithout additional compensation. Therefore, acts of the exofficiomembers of the Board of Directors of the Texas Turnpike Authority are by virtueof the duties imposedon Highway Commissioners. The act does not createa separateand distinct office Insofar as it applies to suchmembers, and Sections 33 and 40 of ArticleXVI of the Constitution of Texas have no application. Jones v. Alexander, 122 Tex. 

### 328,59 S.W.2d 

### 1080 (1933); Eucaline Medicine Co. v. Standard InvestmentCo., 25 S.W.2d 2% Tex.Clv.App.error ref., 1930) Irwin v. State, 147 Tex.Crim. 

### 6, 177S.W.2d 

### 970 (i944). Therefore, the performanceof such exofficioduties would not violate the provisions of Sections 

### 33 and 40 of Article XVI of the Constitution of Texas.
"TheConstitutional oath required of the exofficioDirectors of the Texas TurnpikeAuthority is the same oath that such Highway Commissioners have already taken. Therefore, It would be a meaningless thing to require them to again take the same oathupon assuming their additional duties. Furthermore, as stated above themembers of the Texas Highway Commissionhold only one office."

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The sameprinciple applies to the ex-officiomembers of the Texas Civil Judicial Council. Therefore, in answer to your first and second questions, their term of office is not governed by the provisions of Section 30 or 30a of Article XVI of the Constitutionof Texas for the reason that the same is not a separateand distinct office.

In answer to your third question, Section 4 of Article 2328a, Vernon's Civil Statutes, as amendedby House Bill 895, supra,provides in part:

"Sec. 4. The appolntive members of the Council shall consist of nine resident citizens of the State of Texas, seven of whom shallbe members of the State Bar of Texas and two of whom shallbe persons not licensed to practice law, includingat least one who is by profession
a journalist. The Governor of Texas shall select the appointivemembers of the Council for sixyear overlappingterms, three to be appointed to serveuntil July 1, i975, three to serveuntil July 1, 1977,and three to serve until July 1, 1979,and thereafter their successors shallbe appointed for terms of six years; provided that appointivemembers of the Council holding office
on the effectivedate cf this Act shall continue in office for the balance of the term to which they were appointed,and their successorsshall be selected in themanner and for the term herein provided. Vacancies in the appointivemembership of the Council shallbe filled by appoint?entOf the Governor for the unexpired term only.
Section 30 of Article XVI of the Constitutionof Texas provides that the duration of all officesnot fixed by this Constitutionshallnever exceed two years. Section 30a of ArticleXVI of the Constitution of Texas provides:

"The Legislaturemay provide by law that the members of the Board of Regents of the State University and boards of trustees ormanagers of the educational,eleemosynary, and penal institutions of the State, and such boards as have been, ormav hereafterbe established by law,may hold their'respectiveoffices for the term of six (6) years, one-third of the members of such boards to be elected or appointed every two (2)years

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in suchmanner as the Legislaturemay determine; vacancies in such offices to be filledas may be provided by law, and the Legislature shall enact suitable laws to give effect to this section."

It is noted that Section 4 of Article 2328a as amended by House Bill 895 states that the appointivemembers of the Council shall consist of nine resident citizenswho hold their respective offices for a term of sixyears, one-third of the members to be appointed every two years, to wit: until July 1, 1975, July 1, 1977 and July 1, 1979. Therefore, Section 4 complieswith the provisions of Section 30a of Article XVI of the Constitution of Texas.

SUMMARY
The ex-officio members of the Texas Civil Judicial Council do not hold separateand distinct offices and therefore their terms are not governed by the provisions of Sections 30 and 30a of Article XVI of the Constitution of Texas. The appointive members of the Council serve for a term of six years, one-third of the members to be appointed every two years. The term of office of such appointivemembers therefore complieswith Section 30a of Article XVI of the CoTtitution of Texas.

Preparedby John Reeves AssistantAttorney General

APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE

Kerns Taylor, Chairman George Kelton, Vice-Chairman Harold Kennedy Houghton Brownlee, Jr. Sarah E. Phillips Bill Corbusier Jack Dil:ard

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MEADE F. GRIFFIN Staff Legal Assistant

NOLA WHITE First Assistant

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