GERALD C. 

-I-_--_ -- 

Honorable Hill D. Hudson 

Mstriot Attorney 

109th Judicial mstrict 

Pecos, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion NO. 0-3056 

Re: County Health Officer must 

reside in county. 

your request for opinion has been received and carefully 

considered by this department. We quote from your request as 

follows: 

"I have been asked by the Commlsaloners~ Court of 

Loving County to request an opinion from your offioe 

on the follow~lng two matters. 

"In the first place, Loving County is a county of very 

limited population and having no resident licensed 

physician within Its boundaries. Evidently they have 

some need of a county health officer and have sought 

to make Dr. W. D.Black of Ward County, Texas, county 

health officer and to pay him as such. They are not 

sure that payment to him sould be legal since he does 

not reside within the county. I can find no decision 

wherein this question has been settled. Article 4423 

of the Revised Civil Statutes of 1925 places no llmitatlon as to residence. 

"The first question they desire your opinion on is: 

Can Loving County legally pay a county health officer 

who performs the duties of such office, whet that 

officer Is not a resident of Loving County? 

Section 14 of Article 16, Texas Constitution, reads as follows: 

"Sec. 14. All civil officers shall reside within the 

State; and all district or county officers within their 

districts or counties, and shall keep their offices at 

such places as may be required by law; and failure to 
Honorable Hill D. Hudson, Page 2, 0-3056 

comply with this condition shall vacate th office 

so held.” 

Article 2928, Vernon's Annotated Texas Civil Statutes of Texas, 

reads in part as follows: 

"Neither the Secretary of State, nor any county 

judge of this State, nor any other authority authorized 

to Issue certificates, shall Issue any certificates 

of election or appointment to any person elected or 

appointed to any office in this State, who is not 

eligible to hold such office under the Constitution of 

this State....." 

Article 4423, Vernon's Annotated Texas Civil Statutes, reads 

as follows: 

"The commissloners court by a majority vote In each 

organized county shall biennially appoint a proper 

person for the office of county health officer for 

his county, who shall hold office for two years. Said 

county health officer shall take and subscribe to the 

official oath, and shall file a copy of such oath and 

a copy of his appointment with the Texas State Board of 

Health; and, until such copies are so filed, said 

officer shall not be deemed legally qualifled. 

Compensation of said county health officer shall be 

fixed by the commissioners court; provided, that no 

compensation or salary shal+ be allowed except for 

services aotually rendered. (Underscoring ours). 

Article 2351, Vernon's Annotated Texas Civil Statutes reads 

in part as follows: 

'Each commissioners court shall: 

II . . . . 

"11. Provide for the support of paupers and such 

idiots and lunatics as cannot be admitted into the 

lunatic asylum, residents of their county, who are 

unable to support themselves. By the term resident as 

used herein, is meant a person who has been a bona 

fide inhabitant of the county not less than six 

months and of the State not less than one year." 

Article 4418f, Vernon's Annotated Texas Civil Statutes of 

Texas, reads as follows: 
. - 

Honorable Hill D. Hudson, Page 3, O-3056 

"It shall 

to accept 

be lawful for the State Department of Health 

donations and contributions, to be expended 

in the interest of the public health and the enforcement 

of public health laws. The Commissioners Court'of any 

County shall have the authority to appropriate and 

expend money from the general revenues of its County for 

and in behalf of public health and sanitation within tts 

County." (Underscoring ours) 

We think that a county health officer Is clearly a county 

officer and subject to the provisions of Section 14 of Article 

16 of our State Constitution. It is our further opinion that 

the Commissionersf Court has no authority to appoint a nonresident doctor to the office of County Health Officer. 

However, we wish to point out that the Commissioners' Court 

has broad powers wlth respect to the aid of resident paupe.rs, 

lunatics and idiots under subdivision 11 of Article 2351, 

supra, and also has broad powers with respect to the expenditure of general revenue funds of the county for and in behalf 

of the public health and sanitation within the county. Since 

Loving County does not have a resident physician within the 

county there could be no legally appointed de jure county 

health officer for said county; however, we think the 

Commissioners' court of Loving County would have authority 

to employ a non-resident physician (without appointing him 

County Health Officer) to give medical treatment to resident 

paupers, lunatics and idiots within the statute and could 

also emplpy him to perform various services they deemed 

necessary for and in behalf of public health and sanitation 

within their county, and could pay said physican for such 

services out of the general revenue funds of the county. 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

WJF:AW/cge By a/ Wm. J. Fanning 

APPROVED FEBRUARY 3, 1941 

a/ Grover Sellers 

FIRST ASSISTANT 

ATTORNEY GENERAL 

Wm. J. Fanning 

Assistant 

APPROVED OPINION COMMITTEE 

By BWB, Chairman