GDhALDC.MANN 

June 15, 1939 

Honorable Walter C. Woodward 

Life Insurance Ccmmissioner and 

Chairman of the hoard 

Board of Insurance Ccmmissioners 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Sir: OpinionNo. O-647. 

pep Disposition of oertain fees oolleoted uiider Article 3020, as 

emended bythe 46th Legislature; 

S-B. ao..404. 

we have for aeknodedgment your letter of June 6th, 1939. It ap 

pears from your letter that Article 3920, as amended by the 46th Legislature, in Senate Bill No. 404, provides for the oolleotion of certain 

fees by the Board of Insuranoe Commissioners, and until August 31, 1939, 

appropriates such fees "to 'the use and benefit of the Eoard of Insurance 

Ccsmnissioners tobe used in the payment of salaries and other expenses 

arising out of and in connection with the examination of insurance ccmpanies and/or the licensing of insurance companies and investigations of 

violations of the Iznsuranoe Laws of this 2tate.q 

You advise that the Board has several special funda out of which is 

paid the cost of examination of insurance companies, certain expensesin 

connection with licensing insuranoe companies, and the oost of invemtigating the violation of Insurance Laws, and you ask the opinion of this 

Department upon the question whether the fees collected under Article 392l 

may be deposited bythe Board in any of these special funds decided upon: 

by it and dislmrsed from such special funds in oarxying out the provisions 

of the Article. 

You are advised that it is the opinion of this Department that the 

fees collected under Article 3920 should be deposited in a special fund to 

be maintained for the purposes specified in Smate,Bill No. 404, and that 

moneys from this special fund may be transferred by the Board of Insurance 

Commissioners from time to time, as in ifs discretion appears neoessary, 

to supplement the funds available in the other special funds maintained 

for the purposes of defraying the cost of examination of insuranae ocmpanics, defraying the expenses in connection with licensing of insurance 

oompanies, and defraying expenses inaident to the investigation of the 

violation of inaurenae laws. 

.So far as the use of these moneys to defray the expenses of examining insurance companies is concerned, it does not appear that it is the 

intention of the Legislature to amend Article 4690, as amended, so as to 

relieve the insurance companies examined, to the extent of the fees 
Honorable bklter C. Woodward, Page 2 (O-847) 

available under Article 3920, from the payment of assessments for the 

expenses of examinations sufficient to meet all of the expenses and 

disbursements necessary to comply with the provisions of the laws of 

Texas relating to such'exandnations of insurance companies. Tt would 

therefore seem that the use of the fees under Article 3920 should b-s 

limited to expenses not properly chargeable to and collectible from 

insurance companies by assessment under the provisions.of Article 4690. 

This is not to say that the fees collected under Article 3920 

may not be used for the purpose of defraying examination expense, but 

merely to require that the use of such fees collected under and by 

virtue of Article 3920 shall not relieve the insurance company from 

the duty of reimbursing the .fund by the assessment required to be 

levied and collected by Articld',4690. 

,. ','. 

Yours very truly 

‘ 

ATTORREYGEWEFZU OF TEXAS 

~. .' :, " By /s/:R.W. Fairchild 

R. W-Fairchild 

Assistent 

1. 

RWF;PBP:egu ~' ..' 

APPRovEDI 

/s/Gerald C. k~nn APPROVED 

ATTORNEY GEEERAL OF TEXAS IT '~ 'Opinion. Cof-ti~ttee 

'ByCOB 

" Chairman' 

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