## TEEEA?~~Q,MNEY GENERAL QP TEXAS
AUSTIN. TEXAS 7S711 February 15, 1967

Hon. Charles H. Bolton County Attorney Bosque County Meridian, Texas Opinion No. M-25 Re: Construction of Senate Bill 392,Acts of the 59th Legislature, Regular Session, 1965, Chapter 302, page 610. Dear Mr. Bolton:

You have requested our opinion as towhether the provisions ofArticle 3897,Vernon's Civil Statutes, are applicable to Bosque County in view of the provisions of Senate Bill 392, Acts of the 59th Legislature,Regular Session, 1965, Chapter 302, page 610. Senate Bill 392, supra, reads as follows:

"Section 1. Paragraph (q),Section 19 of Chapter 465,Acts of the Second Called Session, 44th Legislature, 1935, as amendedby Chapter 205,Acts of the 54th Legislature, 1955, codified as paragraph (91,Section 19 ofArticle 3912e, Vernon's Civil Statutes, insofar as said provisions are applicable to countieswhose officers are compensated on a salary basis, ishereby repealed. "Sec. 2. Article 3897 of the Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, insofar as said provisions are applicable to countieswhose officers are compensated on a salary basis, is hereby repealed. "Sec. 3. The provisions of paragraph (q), Section 19 of Chapter 465, Acts of the Second Called Session, 44th Legislature, 1935, as amended,

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and the provisions ofArticle 3897, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, shall, from and after the effective date of thisAct, be applicable only to those countieswhose officersare compensated on a feebasis. "Sec.4. All laws or parts of laws in conflict with thisAct arehereby repealed. "Sec. 5. Due to the fact that the abovecited Statuteshave long sincebecome antiquated and meaningless due to the fact that the present reports are of no use or benefit to the officeholder or the personwith whom same are to be filed, and the additional fact that no official has authority to revise or question these reports, and the further fact thatmuch time and t'nousands of dollars are expended in preparing these needless reports,which are not used by the State Auditor, create an emergency and an imperative public necessity that the ConstitutionalRule requiring bills to be read on three several days in each Rouse be suspended, and this Rule is hereby suspended; and that thisAct take effect and be in force from and after its passage, and it is so enacted." Section 61 ofArticle XVI of the Constitution of Texas provides in part:

**“ All**  district officers in the State of Texas and all county officers in countieshaving a population of twenty thousand (20,000)ormore, according to the then last precedingFederal Census, shall be compensated on a salarybasis. In all counties in this State, the Commissioners Courts shallbe authorized to determinewhether precinct officers shall be compensated on a fee basis or On a salarybasis, with the exception that it shall be mandatory upon the Commissioners Courts, to



## -1.06 -;-Ion. Charles H. Eolton, page 3 (M-25)

ckpensate all constables, deputy constables and precinct law enforcement ozficers on a salarybasis beginning January 1, 1949: and in counties havinq a nonulation 02 less i"hantwentv thousand (20.0001, according to the tiienlast precedin ,- g pederal Census, the ConmissionersCourts shall alsohave the authority to determinewhether co,untyofficers shall be corn- - pensated on a feebasis or on a salary Sasis, with .rhe exception that it shallbe n mmisadded.) Eosque County has a population according to the last ;sreceding

Federal Census OE 10,809 inhabitants. Since Bosque County has a population of less than twenty thousand (2O,OOc)), under the provisions of Section 61 ofArticle XVI, supra, the Commissioners Court of Bosque County has the authority to determine whether the county officers shall be on a feebasis or a salarybasis with the exception that Section 61 places all sheriEs and county law enZorcement ocficers on a salarybasis. You state inyour let'tcrtlnatthe Commissioners Court has placed the county clerk, the county judge and the assessor-collector on a cccbasis. Tbcre.Zore,

the Commissioners Court of Bosque County has Ccternincd, in its discretion, not to compensate the county o:ficezs on a salarybasis within the meaning of Section 31 02: Article XVi 02 tine Constitution 0: Texas. Under the provisions 02 Section 3 02 Senate Sill 392, lictsof the 59tln

Legislature,Regular Session, 1965, Cha?ter 302, page 510, the provisions ofArticle 3297,Vernon's Civil Statutes, are applicable to Bosque County. It is noted that Section 3 roZcrs to counties rather than particular oi'cices. SUMMARY Article 3S97,Vernon's Civil Statutes, is applicable ,to

Eosque County, under the i'acts

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submitted, since the Commissioners Court of Bosque County, pursuant to the provisions of Section 61 ofArticle XVI of the Constitution of Texas, has determined that tine county clerk, the county judge and the assessor-collectorare to be compensated on a feebasis. v@y trulyyours,

A&orney General of Texas Preparedby John Xeeves Assistant Attorney General APPaOVED: OPINION COMMITTEE Hawthorne Phillips,Chairman W. V. Geppert, Co-Chairman Malcolm Quick James McCoy Gordon Cass Wade Anderson STAFF LEGAL ASSISTANT A. J. Carubbi, Jr.

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