OFFICE OF THE A’27ORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

~riorable Joe. B. Dart 

uounty Attorney 

K4ntW.l COUity 

Ilaesns , %xo8 

Bear Slrt opinion 80. o-SEW6 

Ret 8houlU thr 4x-ofrioio sslary 

WU the aounty olerk %a 8 

oounty whloh ooatalno Iam 

then 85,000 hh4bitantr.l?Q 

oonrlbered in aete~nlm(l the 

Mxlntum anapal .salazy o$ aalb 

ol4rk unbar thr i44 rtatutes 

of thu stat.9 

This wllfask5aladge recbipt~of your 14ttsr s$ 

August BS, lW, mquerrtlng an cpinton of thlrr dapartmaat oa 

th4 qu44tlon Hated herein. 

Pps qu4t4 Won your letter a* tollwsr 

"1 hay4 been requs8t4Q by the Cmmalrslona~s* 

Court to ask you ior a ruling on tha iollaning 

~usstlont Should the 4x-0rri0i0 salary paid 

the ofilolal (the County Clerk)~ be considered 

rees of oiriae In dotrmlnlng the Pnaual i54cimm 

and the offiolal'8 rrtatur uader the sxciw# iesa 

or ofi% law7 

0. . . 

*The 4x-oiiicio Salary of the County Clerk 

OS Ken&all County was fixed at $1000.00 at the 

:irst meetly in January and is payable in 

monthly h.4t41&tant8. 

"Sho*tid the clatk take Into 4444unt this 

f;lOOO.OO in arrlrlng et hi8 nraximus or @3400&0 

and fnulude it in a total OS hie fees of oXi 

end than after omditlng bimsaif with the 

."1000.00 and earnsd f448 up to aluount of 

3400.00 Sty14 all the r4St Of tbQ i848 COl- 
Dnarabla SOB. E. Dart, Fag4 8 

14otsd as (311043s fe48 and take hi8 Oc4-thh& 

.tbwdraa; or should he ore&it his allowed 

:24OO.OC only with the Se08 4am4d, and ii 

this bo irswlficisnt to r45ah the ~WOO.00 

t&an cre6I.t himseLf with oe much of the 4x9 

otfiola s::lary un may allow his naxliaum compen..tlon from all sourc48 to meoh $3000.00, 

rand mks an ad~justmnt with the oounty for 

any moufxt paid hlsrr In axcoss af &R300.00* 

“. . . 

” 

Randall County has 8 population or 5,080 iohabltats according to the 1940 Tedera Cecrat and the oouz&y 

offlolaln of said oounty are oo-npmQnrated oc a ire bash. 

Article8 3N3 t&t spJ91, Ve~raon~8 Ancot;ato& Clvll 

Btatutas, permit a county oluk, in ooucti48 b*pYin&a population ipf leas thuc 80,oco %&4bi,tW&t8, to retain ,48 00~. 

pennatiora and 4x4401 t848 the maximum #am of $S,OOO,OU. 

Articler ?i889t an& 3939, hmon'8 Annetated Clrll Statutes, 

srpr44sly authorize t&s Comds~lcuwr~~ Ctmrt, when, in their 

Judgment, awh oozspensstion 18 n4oosmwy, to allOWO4@p4n8ati4n for 4X-officio' 84mi448 Of th4 OOtlllty Oluk~ 

ruoh ooapensatlo~ *hall not lnarmre the aoqsea,u 

prov36ed 

nt;- asOtt 

the oounty olerk bepnd the aiax&m w#ouM et emp8anatien 

and 4x444~1 fees allmved to be rstalaed by hlsl uader the 

preoeding articles. These artl4140, two think, el44rl aatho&4 tho Co3&aission4r~~ Court t4 allow tha,elark at the 

county oourt in eountNt# having a population of 148s than 

80,000~ Inhabitant.@, 4oJlpaosatior. for 4xpffiofo oer~iaos, 

provided suah oonpenstatlon, t -8th~ 1~1th the feu rrklnod 

by him rxlldqr the gweaedlng art T ale8, does cot u#uat $0 

more than tJ,WO.OO per unm.a (See t;b4 case of Ander44n~ 

coucty i. RG$K.lQu, 197 9. we lO)Q*l 

m0 hst tw4 pampaphs 0r Artiel8 zEm, Vernon*8 

Ancptatdl Civil Statut44, rsad as Zollom~ 

"The Cc~~anBatiOll, lin~t’ItiO5B 454 2‘hi.- 

aums hmeln fixed in this Aat for oSflcem shall 

include ~5 apply to all oliiaor8 nmntioned 

harain in esch aa& every aounty of tcis %f8to, 

and it $8 herebp Ueelarsd to bs the intOCtfO5. 

of the L&sleture that the ;r0~~814~ OS tU 

Aat shall apply to 44& of Miff 0Sti~~~S, 454 

mmrablo So&B. Dert, Pa&e 4 

s*rn etate3ente, kaeplng eccounts end axpen acoountn regs~~~ing county official8 oongeneated on a rer baris. 

IR answer to your inpulry, you clre advlaed that 1% 

i$ the op%nlon OS this dspmtmlt that the 9x-0riici0 Owl& 

p.nsation OS the ootmtp alark must be conrldered and aeootit.d 

for in arriving at the praxfia~n annual ei:m~neatlon of eaid 

ol6rk* The elsrk rhall firat out of tb. ourrent.ia.6 or hl. 

&Sloe pay or bs plhld the emomt alloewd hbu under th. pm- 

~l.lotu vi Article aeS3, together with the salaarier of h%6 

~istanta and deputiau, eod authoriaed exgea.e. under Arti. 

2lWQ end the antcunt neossrrary to cover the eost of prdum 

05 WL tevar l twety bond may be reau1r.d by law. If the 

aiwrent Seen of such offit? colle6Osd la'ony year h6 mere 

thim the apfstint needed to pay the 6m6unt8 above rp6olil6d 

the name almll b. de6ia.d ezaee. fear and th. clerk 16 ptrc 

&ted to rota15 on.-third of sadh 4x46.. Se.6 until 6u.h 

o+thlrd, togthor with the awnmt. spealfied in kticl. 

SWS, &uvunts to $S,OOO,OO. IA&her word., the oouttty 

obrk 16 6ntitled to retain all th.~.onq.neatlod 6llou.d b 

Art%016 3383, together with the one-third exoeer teei allowed,@y Articls 3891 until 6wb one-third, togctthsi rlth 

th* aamunt rpeoiriea La APt1016 9883 amount4 to &3’ 000.00 

per annum* 31 the ewa nemtlon .llo&ed under Artici6.3888 

ana the OXBIBB $6~ al f” orsd under A~tlale SBSl do not rmoh 

the mm or C3,000.00 per annum, th6 Ci%n8l6eione~8~ Oowt 

18 l ut&orlsed to pay the sl6rk an ex~ofilal~ aoia1~~8oi.on, 

prwid6d ,S)uOh Oom~ene.tlon* tog6thar itlth the fees +-mea 

by,hla undrr Artialer 38f39 and .WQl, doe. not amount to 

more than t3,000.00. Them OM be no 6xoeer tcea until th6 

awnmt of #2,400.00 is reaohetl ad the deduatloaa whl6h are 

aUmmdbplawar. med.. To lll.arrtrat. the aounty olerk 

carmot take Q1,400.00 •~ reer unaor ~~A16 3289 and tbup 

add the &OOO.OO ex-otflaio ooapeaeetion to make a totd 

OS -&&,400.00 and them MY 611 fee6 oadllng Into th6 .otifoe 

00 are outhorlzed by law are 6x6668 t668, and that--j, 

snttt.164 to ona-third ot the mee. In ehcwt, beforr'~tbo 

cler? 16 entitled to any exo.s. tsar under APtlale:58Bl, he 

mu& first reoel~e a~ irea the amount of ft2,4001OO not ineluding enp part of the 6x0of?i.io omp~nsation aPt.r nraki~% 

the legal dedwtfon6 as 6llowed by law and alter this emu&t 

hen been reached then the olerk ie entitled to one-thbd 

of euah exoea. tees a. prorlded by &tie16 3891 end e. 

above 6tated if' this does not reeoh,th. total a.XlSui% Of 
~~,oOO,OO pnr annure, the Co?nmi~slonere' Court may in its dia. 

or.at$on Ilefl;ally alow an sx officio oo?-yunsatlon ;irovided such 

aonpasatioa, toqathdr with ths fees retainsad under tbe above 

Qent:oneSb articlq doss not sxoeed $3,OCO.C0 psr annuz. 

Trusting that the foragoing fully anawera your in- 

.,i tpirp, we am 

Youra very truly 

.z 

E'IKT ASSISTANT 

ATTORJWiY GENE&& Ardsll wl.ll1a?M 

Aariatan~