### ‘zT”mE ,-~?IlFToI-ix~ ~c?Tma-ERAL OE’ Ts:s,l.% itL%X-XX.

TEXAS ZXY r>lc>-Tm.,

I.

hfarch 

### 8, 1950

Hon. W. C. Hancock County Attorney opinionHo. v-1019. Camp County Re: The dispositionto be Plttsburg, Texas made of feea paid to a Justlce of the Peace for actfng a8 a local
Dsar Sir: registrar of births and deaths.
Your request for an opinion reads in part as follous: "Pittsburg, Texas is an incorporated town which eccordlngto the last federal census has a populationFn excess of 2,- 500, and Is locatedwithin the boundaries of Justice of the Peace Precinct 1 of Camp County, Texas. J. Tom Laney4s the duly qualified and acting Justice of the Peace of Preclnot 1. "The Justice of Peace of Precinct 1 has for years aoted as the recorder of births and deaths for the entire aountg. He was appoLnt8dby the State Department of Health as the 138C0rd8l, for the City of Plttsburg upon the recommendation and aonflrmatlon of the mayor of the city of Pitts- .burg, Texas, and has ZWC8iV8d oompenaation as la provided for such services.

. . "Inasmuchas the Justice of the Peace of Precinct 1 is acting as the local registrar in the city of Plttsburgby ViFtU8 of his appointmentby the State Department of Health with the confirmationof the Mayor of said city, are the fees paid to hl.m for such services, r8eS 0r orrice aa Justice of the Peaoe of Preclnot 1, and should they be reported on his annual r8port as such?"
The State Comptrollerinforms us that the Justices of the Peace 0r Camp County are compensatedon aHon. Y. C. Eanoook, page 2 (V-1019)

r8e basis.

Rule %a of Article 4477, V.C.3., provides:
"Thateach loaal registrar Is hereby chargedvith the strict and thorough enforoement 0r the provisions 0r this Aot in his reglstratlon

district,under the supervision and direction of the state registrar. And he shall make an immediatereport to the state registrarof any violation of this law coming to his knowledge,by observationor upon complaintof any person, or otherwise.
"The atate.registraris hereby charged with th8 thorough, and efficientexecution of the provisionsof this eat la every part Or the State, and iS hereby granted Supervtsory power over local registrars,deputy local zwglstrars,and subregistrars,to the end that all of its requlrementsshall be uniformlycompliedulth. The state reglstrar, either personallyor by an accredited representative,

shall have authority to investigateoases of irregularityor violation of law, and all registrars shall aid him, upon request, in such investigatlona. When he shall deem It necessary,he shall report cases of violatlon0r any of the provlslons of this Act to the county attormey,with a statementof th8 facts and CiPcumstances; and when any swh case is reported to him by the state registrar,the county attorney shall forthwlthinitiateand promptly follow up the neceasarpoourt proceedings against the person or aorporationresponsible for the allegedviolation of law. And upon request of the state registrar, the sttorneygensral shall asslat In the enforcementof the provisionof this Act." Article 781a of Vernon's Penal Code provides in part: "

. . . or (e) being a local registrar, deputy registrar,or subregistrar,shall fail, neglect, or refuse to perform his duty 8s r8quiredby this Act and by the instructions, and directionof the state registrarHon. W. C. Hanccck, 

### page3 (V-1019)

thereunder,shellbe deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall for the rim offensebe fined not less than five dollars ($5.00) nor more than fifty dollars ($50.00), and for each subs usnt offense not less than ten dollars ( 7 10.00) nor more than one hundreddollars ($lOO.OO),or be~lmprlsonedin the county jail not more than sixty daya, or be both fined and lmprisoned."
In view 0r the fozwgolngwe assume that the appolntmentby the Stat8 Health Departmentof the JustiCe 0r the Peace of Preclnat1 as recorder 0r births and deaths for the City of Pittsburgwas In pursuanceof Rule 36a of Article 4477, V.C.S., which provides:

"For the purposesof this Act the State shall bs divided lnto Primary Registration Dlstrlcts as follow: Each Justice of the Peace Preoinct and each lnoorporatedtovn of two thousand, fiV8 hundred (2,500)or more population,aocordingto the last United States Census. shall constitute a Primarv R8gistratfonDistrict, rovided the State Board of Health may corn in8 two or more RegistrationDlstrlots.or may dlvlde a Primary i?egistration

Df XX&t Into-tvo or more parts, so as to facilitater8p;iStratiOn, and in the Justioe of the Peace PXWCinCt, the Justice of the Peace shall be Local Renlstrar.and In cE&es 0r two thousand,rive hundred (2,500) or more, accordingto the last United States Census reports,the City Clerk or City Secretary shall be the Local Registrar of Births and Deaths.
"It Is hereby declared to be the duty of the Justice of the Peace in the Justice of the Peace Prectnct,and the City Clerk or City Secretergin the city of two thousand, five hundred (2,500)or more population, to secure a complete record 0r each birth and death that occurs within their respectfve jurisdictions, and have same zwcorded In the County Clerk's office In their respectivecountieson or befOr8 the tenth 0r the rollowingmonth." (Emphasisadded)

### Hon.If. C.Hamock,page4 (V-1019).

In thla event It beoom88 the duty of the Jnatic8 of the Pease of Precinct 

### 1 to record said births and deatha Of the City of Plttsburga8 We11 a~ those outside the city 1lmit8. In otherwords, there has been a consolidationor combining of the two registrationdlstrlots of which the Justice of the Peace has been designated as the Looal Registrar of said district.

It was stated In Attorney General Opinion No. o-1963 89 r0ii0w8:

?ie think it proper to here point out that the State Board of Health is given the right and authorityto combinetwo or more registration

districts under the above quoted Rule 

### 36a,

which, If don8 by the Board would relieve one of th8 local registrars 

### rrom his duties. This, however,Is a matter resting solely within the discretionof the Board and in the absenceof the exercise of such discretiona justiceof the peace is requiredto serve." Article 

### 38% of Vernon'sCivil Statutes, which is applicableto county and precinctofficerswho are compensatedon a fee basis, providesIn part:

"The compensatl6p,llmltationsand maximumsherein fixed shall also apply to all fees and compensation whatsoevercollected by said officers In their official iii!E%&;~:~~~c,,~t~2: Betdf:: %, genera1 or special, to the contrary Is hereby expresslyrepealed. The only kind and character of compensationexempt from the provisionsof this Act shallbe rewards reC8iV8d by Sherlfrs for spprehenslon of crlmlnals or fugitives from .iustlce and for the recovery of stolen property,and moneys pecelved by County Judges and Justices of the Peace for performlnumarriageceremonies. which sum shall not be accountab18for and not required to b8 reportedas fees of office." (Emphasisadded)
In a letter opinion to Hon. Tom C. King, Stat-e Auditor,dated August 11, 

### 1938, this offlce held that fe8S collectedby a JUStiCe Of the Peace, compensatedonHon. W. C. Hancock, Page 5 (V-1019)

a f88 basis, for acting as Registrar of Vital statistics are fees of office and acoountable as such.

In view of the foregoing it is our opinion that all f88S COll8Ct8d by the Justice of the Peace of Precinct No. 1 as Local Registrar of the City of Plttsburg should b8 reported and acoounted for In his annual report.
SUMMARY

Wh8r8 **tV0** r8giStratiOn districts have b88n combined, the Justice Of the P8aC8 who has been designated as Local Registrar In such consolidated district should report and account for all fees collected by him as Local R8giStrar. Rule 

### 36a, Art. 

### 4477,and Art. 3891, V.C.S.
Yours very truly,

APPROVED: PRICE DANIEL Attorney General

J. C. Davis, Jr. County Affairs Division
Charles D. Mathews gxecutive Assistant Assistant

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