‘Il’arE AT-l-OlRNEY GENERAL 

OF TEXAS 

GERALDC.lUNN Au.emriw az. TExas 

Hozibribie George H. Sheppard 

Ccai#irbll&‘6f Publio Aooouato 

oear sir: 

Pram your letter of January 26, 1941, alorgrith oerbaim other da* 

sulxrdttrd, and the’letter of @lonation &-v&a US 18 the State Highmy EngW 

eec OR January so, 1941, we gather the follolcirg faofrr: 

By Rinute No* 17869 oa Deoember S, 1940, the Terna State H ighway 

_. ._ . . . 

opi88ilxlio. 05097 

Be8 Camptr~ller*s Wthority to issue 

wUiant, foi.refundiag domatloan 

- -’ tidd @ oerbaia ootiles am3 

chambera ~f’eoikio~~o~8tat&EiglrnrJr ‘ 

Fund for defraying experes of a 8urmy. 

CaPanission dasigimted a oertain bighuay e!Xbmdl~ 80UWUWYd aaroa~ we 

Brasos’ River at or neax’ltimball~a Bead, ordeied looatioi stqdies tb be nndi, 

ditieoted the State El&may Eagimer fd prooeed with qo@itioa of plam ud 

redeipt of bids for ‘thb &oast+oti& of a bTid&ard ~pproabhbs’at the 

Brazes River, ard Mmg other thiags not moemary to mmtion, the,,Conmisaion alao ordered returned several donation6 in the total sum of #S,SCC.CC 

to the aourea~ fromwhioh they own& Said sum had’besa deposited in the 

gtafe Ej,ghwqp\lrd v Ellis County, Johmson County, Fort lIbrth Chambei “f 

Cozimkiob, Dal*8 t%mber of Commeroe, and F&mer6* 8vte Ba&, Yeridiu, 

T&as, for’tbe pixrpoea of M’raying neoe~aary rxp,sases to %a incurred w the 

g+mta Highway Da~r+nemt im determini8g where ororsing the Brasoa River shwld 

be made* These donatioas’havirsg been mado ia purwunob +o uaute me 1s~ 

Of the mw Cd8~i0~, dated Hommber 24, 1936 and, aa we understand, 

immediafrly thoreaf’ter. 

The HighnrJl,S?@aeer adW!e# that itraa not asoo8aary to apead 

any part of the fund of #S,SCC.OO, and that’it ia the derire of the Bighry 

Cc8m8iraiorr fo rstura the mm to the doaorr. Aooordingly the W&a Highway 

Deparat has prom&d It8 olaim to your Depar+ment in the rum’of 

)S.SOO.OO for rsimbaraemaat of said oouaties, okamber of oameroe, and ths 

beak. You request okr opiixioa 81 to whether or not you are authodzed to 

issue the requested warramb. 

Irtiole 8, Beotion 6 of the Texar Coriatitution, reada a8 follows: 

%o. $. No money ehall LXJ drawn fi-om the Troacruxy but fa pursAioe ol 

rpeoifio appa,priationa mace by lawt Bor’shall aw appropriation of mosey 

be msde for a loager term thaa txu ysari, exoopt bythe first Legirlatura 
Hon. Geo. H. Sheppard, page 2 (0-3097) 

to assamble under this Constitution, which may make the necessary approprlations to carry on the gererrrmsnt until the assemblage of the sixteenth 

Legislature." 

Article 6694, Revised Civil Statutes, provides8 

"All funds coming into the hands of the Commission derived fromthe registmtion fees or other sources provided fop in this subdivision, as oolleoted, 

shall be deposited vritb the State Treasurer to the nredit of a special fund 

designated a3 'The State Righway Fund,' and shall be paid only on warrants 

issued by the Comptroller upon vouchers drawnby the chairman of the Com&ssion end approved by one other member thereof, such vouohers to be aocompanied by itemized showrn s~tatements of the expenditures.3E 

APtid@ 6674d, Revised Civil Statutes, contains the following? 

"All further improvement of said Btate Highway System with Federal aid shall be 

made under the exclusive and direct control of the State Bighway Dey#IPtment and 

with appropriations made by the Legislature out of the State Rlghway Fund. . . ." 

Article 66i'4e, Revised Civil Sta%utes, reads: 

“All moneys mw CP hereafter depi:sited in the State Treasury to the credit of 

the *Stats Righway Fslnd,* including al:1 Federal aid moneys depcasited to the 

oredit of said fund under ~the teas of tba Federal Hlighway A& and all oountg 

aid moneys depo&ted to the aredft of said fund under the terms of this Aot 

shall be subjeat to appropriation for the specific purple &the improvement 

of said system of the State Highway Dep2rrhnerrten 

Whether by general 8~t?atxtie the LagisXj;turo csuld have pEvi.ded for 

the aollention andexpenditure of thie 'vast fund without the neoessity of 

Legislative appropriations ifa a question me need not dntnrmineo For the 

Legislature did not make any suoh attempt. A reading of' the above &atutes, 

particularly Articles 6674d and 66'74e* shows quite alearlythab the Legislature 

intended-that the State Highway F'wd should simB$ be a special fund in the 

State Treasury, and subje& to ,the approp~iat on .by the Legislature. We are 

borne wilt by Atkins vs. Highway Dept., 20: S.W. 22.6~ Johneon vs. Ferguson, 

55 S.W. (Zd) 155. The Legisl&xe :ragularly m&es ep~opriu.tions of thizl 

fund in tho~same wq Ynnat-it malo% ap$opri&:ions ou<-&the general and 

other special .fLwjfs in &e State Treaxwy. 

We do not oonsidere here the question as to whether an appropriation 

for the payment of these items would be valid or not. It is sufficient for 

tne purposes of this opinion to point out that the Legislature has-made no 

appropriation v&oh could be oonstrued to aover this claim. Hence, we are 

constrained to answer your question in the negative. 

GRLsjs:egW 

APPROVED FEB 4, 1942 

/4 Gerald C. Mann 

ATTCREEY GEEERAL OF TEXAS 

Yours very truly 

ATTORNEY GEREBAL OFTEXAS 

By /k/ Glenn R. Lewis 

As&. stant