OWlCE OF THE ATTonNEV GENERAL. STATE OF TEXAS 

JOHN CORNYN 

August 30,200O 

The Honorable A. J. (Jack) Hartel 

Liberty County Attorney 

P.O. Box 9127 

Liberty, Texas 175759127 

Opinion No. JC-0276 

Re: Appointment and powers of a deputy 

treasurer (RQ-0224-JC) 

Dear Mr. Hartel: 

You have asked this office whether a county treasurer may appoint a deputy, and whether 

such a deputy may perform all acts which the treasurer may legally perform. We conclude that the 

treasurer may do so, provided the appointment is made in conformity with the employment 

provisions of chapter 15 1, subchapter A of the Texas Local Government Code; we further conclude 

that such a deputy is “a person appointed to act for another, a substitute, a delegate, an agent,” and 

as such “may do anything that his principal can do.” Nail1 v. State, 129 S.W. 630,63 1 (Tex. Crim. 

App. 1910). 

As a preliminary matter, you inquire about section 83.005(a) of the Local Government Code, 

which provides that “[i]n a county in which the county treasurer does not have a deputy, the county 

treasurer may appoint a person, subject to the approval of the commissioners court, to act in the 

treasurer’s place. The appointed person may act in the treasurer’s place only if the treasurer is 

absent, unavoidably detained, incapacitated, or unable to act.” TEX. Lot. GOV’T CODE ANN. 

3 83.005(a) (Vernon 1999). Section 83.005(a), however, does not address your concerns. The 

purpose of the section is the appointment of a temporary replacement for the treasurer, not a deputy. 

As the Senate bill analysis of the measure which became section 83.005 explains, “Currently, in 

many counties, the county treasurer is the only person authorized to execute certain financial 

responsibilities. As a result, if the county treasurer is unable to perform these duties, the county’s 

obligations may not be met on a timely basis. H.B. 1475 would authorize the county treasurer, in 

a county without a deputy county treasurer, to appoint a person to act in the treasurer’s place if the 

treasurer is absent, unavoidably detained, incapacitated, or unable to act.” SENATE COMM. ON 

INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS, BILL ANALYSIS, Tex. H.B. 1475, R.S. (1997). The person 

appointed pursuant to section 83.005, in short, is merely appointed to perform certain tasks for the 

period in which the treasurer is unable to do so. For that period, he or she is “[dlressed in a little 

brief authority.” WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, MEASURE FOR MEASURE, act 2, SC. 2, In. 118. 

The appointment of a deputy treasurer is governed by chapter 15 1 of the Local Government 

Code. Section 151.001 provides that “[a] district, county, or precinct officer who requires the 
The Honorable A. J. (Jack) Hartel - Page 2 (JC-0276) 

services of deputies, assistants, or clerks in the performance of the officer’s duties shall apply to the 

commissioners court of the county in which the officer serves for the authority to appoint the 

employees,” TEX. Lot. GOV’T CODE ANN. $ 151.001(a) (Vernon 1999) (emphasis added), and 

further specifies the contents of such an application. The commissioners court determines the 

number of such appointments to be made, and authorizes the appointments. Id. $ 15 1.002. The 

commissioners court may not, however, attempt to influence the appointment of any particular 

person. Id. 5 15 1.004. The power to make the appointments is lodged in the officer who applied 

for them. Id. 5 151.003. 

The county treasurer is a county officer for the purposes of chapter 151 of the Local 

Government Code, and as such has the power to appoint a deputy treasurer if the provisions of that 

chapter are complied with. See Tex. Att’y Gen. Op. No. O-4454 (1942) (county treasurer had power 

to appoint deputy under statutory predecessor of chapter 15 1). 

A deputy treasurer, once appointed, has the powers of his or her principal. A deputy is “a 

person appointed to act for another, a substitute, a delegate, an agent.” Naill, 129 S.W. at 63 1. As 

distinct from an assistant, a deputy “may do anything that his principal can do.” Id. “That one is 

called a deputy carries with it the fact that he is an alter ego for his superior, being charged with all 

the duties as well as the responsibilities of his superior, and empowered to perform the acts and 

discharge the duties of such superior, and to that extent becoming the superior himself in his 

superior’s absence.” Bigham v. St&e, 148 S.W.2d 835, 840 (Tex. Crim. App. 1941). 

The statutory restrictions imposed by section 83.005 of the Local Government Code on the 

temporary substitute for the treasurer, namely that such a person may act “only if the treasurer is 

absent, unavoidably detained, incapacitated, or unable to act,” are irrelevant to the proper 

appointment of a deputy treasurer pursuant to chapter 15 1. A deputy treasurer so appointed may 

exercise all the powers of the treasurer. 
The Honorable A. J. (Jack) Hartel - Page 3 (X-0276) 

SUMMARY 

Section 83.005 ofthe Local Government Code concerns only 

the appointment of a temporary substitute for the county treasurer 

when the treasurer is “absent, unavoidably detained, incapacitated, or 

unable to act.” TEX. Lot. GOV’T CODE ANN. 5 83.005(a) (Vernon 

1999). The appointment ofa deputy treasurer is governed by chapter 

151 of the Local Government Code. A deputy treasurer properly 

appointed pursuant to chapter 15 1 of the Texas Local Government 

Code may exercise all the powers of the treasurer. 

Attorney General of Texas 

ANDY TAYLOR 

First Assistant Attorney General 

CLARK KENT ERVIN 

Deputy Attorney General - General Counsel 

SUSAN D. GUSKY 

Chair, Opinion Committee 

James E. Totntelott 

Assistant Attorney General - Opinion Committee