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Honorable J.E. Winfree, Chairman Rules committee House ofRepresentatives Forty-ninth Legislature Austin, Texas
Dear Mr. Winfree: Opinion Roe.O-6617 Rer Wether ornot aproposed oonstitutional amendment authorized by H.J.R. Wo. ,13to be submitted on the fourth Saturday ofAugust, 1945, may be legally submitted at the General Election in 1946without further action on the part of the Legislature.

We beg to acknorledge receipt of your request for an opinion upon the above subject matter, as follows:
"w+%. "H.J.R.No. 13 relative to the $SS Yilllon Dollar ceiling on Old Age Pensions and othermatters has passed both the House and the Senate. ~.~This proposed Constitutional Amendment Is to be submitted to the people of Texas on the 4th Saturday ofAugust according to the terms and provisions of the Resolution itself.

"Itseems that a question has arisen since publication has not been made in all the Counties of Texas, and this question goes directly to thevalidity of the proposed election.
"Ifthis matter cannot be ,legallysubmitted inAugust 1945, can this proposed Constitutional Amendment be leeglly submitted to the people and voted onby themat theGeneral Election of 1946 without further action on the part of the Legislature,

It is-the -studiedopinion of this Department that your inquiry should be answered in thenegative.
Section 1 ofArticle XVII of the Constitution, insofar asHonorable 

## J.B. Winfree -page 2, O-6617

pertinent, reads as follows:
"MS. The Legislature, at any biennial session, by a vote oftwo-thirds of all themembers elebted to each House, to be entered by yeas and nays on the journals, may propose amendments to the Constitution, tobe voted upon by the qualified electors formembers of the Legislature, which proposed amendment shall be duly published once aweek for four weeks, commencing at least three months before an election, the time ofwhich shall be specified by the Legislature, in one we~eklynewspaper of each county inwhich such anewspaper may bepublished; 4w&."

In our opinion No. O-6612 this dayreleased to theHonorable Claude Isbell, Secretary of State, involving this Section of the Constitution with respect to the provision forpublication ofnotice, we held that the provisions of the Constitution were mandatory, for which we cited an opinion of this Department ofmore than twenty years' standing,when the late Judge Keeling was Attorney General of Texas, holding the same thing.

Itwill be seen from theportion of Section 1 above quoted that the time of the holding of an,election to determine the adoption ofa constitutional amendment "shall be specified by the Legislature." If in the present case the amendment should be submitted, at the general election tobe held throughout the State in 1946without further action by the Legislature, it would be at a time not "specified by the Legislature", and therefore at a timenot.authorized by the Constitution which provides the sole method for amending the Constitution. It is not ours to speculate as to the reason for this specific requirement, but it is ours to obey the plain unambiguous language of the Constitution itself. Ithas, we believe, been the universal construction of the.Legislature itself in submitting such amendments to specify the time of the election, whether the same be at a general or special election.~ Trusting thatwhat we have said satisfactorily answers your inquiry, we are Very truly yours
ATTORREYGENERAL OFTEXAS s/ Ocie Speer

, APPROVED MAY 30, 1243 'BY a/ Grover Sellers ATTORNEX GENERAL OF TEXAS Ocie Speer Assistant 

### OS-MR/cg Approved Opinion Committee By BWB, Chairman