## TEE 

# ATI-ORNEX GENERAL OF TEXAS

HonorableThcanae D. Blackwell Comty Attorney Travis colmty Auetln, Texas Opinion No. ww-692

DearMr.Blackwel.l: Re: Queetlone rel.atiuS to payment by the State to court reporters for etat*nte of faat in **OlYil** suite.
Wehave yOur letter of July U, 1959, +d mur ~uppl=+ental letter of AuSuet

## 5,1959, in which you request ow opinion on thrqe questloue relating to the paymeat by the S$ate to cow reporters for +at+me&e of iaot in oivlleulta.

Your firsts question la aa follows:
*1. Under‘Art. 2324, V.C.S., what form of certi- 4 flcation la peceeaary for a oourt reporter to get a statement ti ohergee for the preparationof a trauecript of the evidence in a oiVll6uit paid bywarrant leeued by the Comptroller of Public AccounteTY Artiole 2324, Vernon'e Civil Statutes, prescribing the oornpenaatlon of court reportera.for the preparation of transcripts of evldenoe reads in part ae follows:

*

. ~.. "Whenany party to any suit reported by any such reporter shall desire a transcript of the evidence in aald suit, q aid party mayapply for mmeend the reporter shall makeupeuoh tzimecrlpt and shall receive ae ccmpeneation therefor the em **of** not more then thirty oents per one huudred worde for the original thereof. In the event **aaid** &+neorlpt ehould be ordered andmade in narrative form,

### ‘)r--’ 3 ll1:L*2 Honorable ThomasD. Blackwell, page 2 (~~-692)

then such ~reporter shall makeupsameIn duplicate in narrative form, and shall receive a8 ocmpenaatlon therefor the~sumof twenty cents per hundred words for the orlglnal; “grovided, however, that nocharge shall be madefor the duplicate copy, andprovided ,further, that in case any reporter oharges more than the fees herein allowed he shall be liable to the Derson 0a.vlna the fmmea mmequal to four times the excess soc&d,‘* (Emphaele our8. )
Webelieve that the foregoing provision specifically authorizea the following:
1. Whena transcript is ordered andprepared in

narrative form, the reporter is required to prepare sameIn duplicate and ie prohlbited from makingan additional charge for the duplicate. Theauthorized oharge for both t&eoriginal andthe duplicate is

“the emuof twenty cents per hundred worde” in the original.
2. There ie no requirement that the reporter prepare a duplicate if the tranaoript la ordered and prepared other than in narrative form. If the tieporter le requested to makecoplea, there Is noprohibition against his charging for those 80made. There is no provielon a8 to howmuchhemaycharge for copies.
3. If the transcript is prepared In other than narrative form, the authorized charge la ‘not more than thirty cents per one hundred worde for the original thereof ”

. Here the charge la not prescribed In absolute term8but Is prbsented as amaximum. Thereporter must take precautlo~ to ineure that his claima for paymentare accurate and In compliance with the statute. TheCanptroller mayprescribe the forms to be used in presenting the claims andmayrequire such information a8maybe neoesaary for himto audit andprooesa the claim, as provided by Senate Bill 

### 308, Acts 

### 56thLegislature, Regular Session, 

### 1959. Should the Comptmller purport~to require a reporter to certify to matters other than as required byArticle 2324, Vernon’s Civil Statutes, hewould be imposing an additional.bnrden on the reporter8 and the agemy or depertmentrequesting the transcript. Wefind uoauthorization for the CamptiLler to alter or’vary the statutory requirements, nor to preocrlbe requirements i* exceee of those provided by etatute.Rouorable ThomasD. Blackwell, page 

### 3 (w-692)

Therefore, whensuch a trauscript 16ordered andprepared In other thannarxative form, the reporter preparing sameomplies with the statute if he oertiflee that the transcript is in "other than narrative form" adl oertiilea that the amountcharged is "not **over** the rate of thirty oenta per on8hmdred words forthe original thereof." Wefind **M** statutory authority for the Ctiptroller to require the actual word count of the transcript onthe stat8mePltof oharges or to requirethatthe reporter affimatively osrtify the trauacrlpt is in *question andanswer" form. If the transcript la ordered andprepared in narrative form, the reporter must oertify that the oharg8a hemakes ar8 "twenty cents per one hundred words for the original thsmof." Whenthe court reporter suhnits his bill in oclDpliance with the **fore&n&** it la the duty of the agency or department requesting the transori'pt to oheokacouracy as to ohargesmade. It is within the sole disoretion of that agency or departmant to determine whether suoh trauacript is ueaeseary to prop8rly carry out their assigned duties. It is the funotiou of the Ccmptrol**ler** to audit the claim from a "bookkeeping" atandpolnt. This is not to be oonstrued so as to authorlee the Comptroller to determine the wisdom,.neceesity or propriety of-the expenditure nor to go behind the certification and approval of the agency or department purchasing the transcript. See Attorney Oeneral'a OpinionV-lIll'(1950). 4ssuming the absence of proof of anerrozmous certification andfurtheraseuning moneys are avaiLable for its payment, it is the ministerial duty of the Conptroller to issue the warrsnt, andthe Oce~ptroll.8r is not authorized to require the court reporter or anyone else to certify to a word oomt of the transcript.

In the event excess charge6 are nade andpaid, the State iefully protect8d by.theprovieioneof 4rtloI.e 

### 2324WheMin itiiuihoriees the coYleotlon frm the reporter of four times the 8x0888 80paid. Furthermore, if imiiaated, the Comptroller can refer the matter to the GrandJury. See Psrker v. Bushep, 170**S.W.** 1042at 1044 (Civ.bpp. 1914).

Your second question is as follows:

*2. Is a court reporter aUthOriZ8d to 1tGlUdethe coat of binding, indexing, photostating of doounenta, postage, andthe preparation for filing in app8lLate oourts of original exhibits in the statement of chargss for the preparation of a transcript of evidence?" There is no statutory authority for court reporters to make eeparate charges for the items mentioned in your question; however, the Rules of CivilProcedure dictate the form In which such transoripts are to Eglnd whatthey are to contain. (Rules Civ. Proc., RuIe 371 and

.Honorable Thazae D.Bleckwell, page 4 (W-692)

It should be Pointed bat, hOweVer
, that the reporter 10 **authorized** to base hle oharge'on all the words in the original of the tranFmipt (both narrative andother~than mtiVe) which WOdld include the caption, index, testimony proper anddo&e&a madeapart 

### ofthe transcript.

Your third question ia as followa:
*3. Doea a State agenay or deparhuent have authority to pnrohaae a caA0.I copy of a transcript of the evidence in any oase?"
In anrrwer- this question, weshall ssaumeyou are inquiring about a carbon oopy other than the duplioate of a atatenent of facts if in narrative fonz. Ofcourse, this question turns on the authority of the agenay or department to purchase the copy andnot on the authority of the 

### repor.$er

to makeor eellthe oopy. If the purohaser ha8monies available for au& purpose, it is amatter entirely within the diecretlon of that agenoy 

### ordepartment as to whether the copy is necessary to carry out their dutiee.

The CC&Zol.l.ti &es Mt have the **aUtih0rit.y** t0 determine the wisdomor necessity of euch

### purchase except whenhe la makinSthe purchase. Therefore, you are advised that wh8neVeran agenoy of the State ordere a oarbon copy~of a tranaorlpt andhas approved the voucher, it 16the minieterial duty of the Ccauptroller to issue the warrant.

Article 2324, VeiPon'e Civil Statutes, authorizes a"&irge of not more than thirty oenta per one hundred words in the original 

### ofa statement of facta Prepared in other than narrative form and the mmof twenty cents per one hundred words if in narrative'form; the reporter need not certify to aword oount. There la no authority for a court reporter to chargetheState for binding, indexing, postage, etc., in oonneotion with preparation of a q tatement of facts. ,' TheStatemaypurchas8 oarbonooples of statementa of faot if the particular a~enoy purohaeing ha8 the authority and the moneyavailable for such purohase.
Yours very truly, WILLUIISOR Attorney General of Texas

TIM:mg:mfg:me TanI.l4cEzrlinS AeeietantHo~rableThcmaeD.Blackwell, page 

### 5(1iW-692)

OPnIoR cEomRmE Geo..P. Blackbarn, Chairman
John **Beeves** L.P. Id.lar Riley EugeneFletcher RalphBash RMlXUEDFOR!EKAlT~- By: W.V. Geppert