Honorable Otto Studer, Chairman 

Industrial Accident Board 

Land Office Building 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. O-l&l 

Rf?: Whether a Deputy Gems Warden of the 

United States holds a Federal position 

of honor or trust. 

We have for acknowledgment your letter of October 19, 1939, wherein you 

request the opinion of this department upon the question whether a State 

officer who holds an appointment as a Deputy Game Warden of the United 

State, without pay, and who received his appointment prior to the tima 

that he took office as a state official,, would come under the payroll 

affidavit now required by the Comptroller, which reads as follows: 

I, 

. . . and that none of the employees on this payroll are 

receiving salary or compensation as agent, officer or 

appointee, who holds at the same time any other office or 

position of honor, trust or profit, under this State or the 

United States, except as prescribed by the State Constitution, . ..' 

The foundation for the affidavit required by the Comptroller is Article 

16, Section 33, of our Costitution, which reads as follows: 

"The accounting officers of this State shall neither draw 

nor pay a warrant upon the Treasury in favor of any person, 

for salary or compensation 8s agent, officer or appointee, 

who holds at the same time any other office or position 

of honor, trust or profit, under this State or the United 

States, except as prescribed in this Constitution. Provided, 

that this restriction as to the drawing and paying of warrants 

upon the Treasury shall not apply to officers of the National 

Guard of Texas, the National Guard Reserve, the Officers 

Reserve Corps of the United States, nor tb enlisted men of 

the National Guard, the;National Guard Reserve, and the 

organized reserves of the Unites States, nor to retired 

officers of the United States Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, 

and retired warrant officers and retired enlisted men of 

the United Stetes Army, Navy, and Marine Corps." (Section 33, 

Article 16, adopted election November 8, 1932.) 
Hon. Otto Studer, Page #2 (O-l&l) 

“An analysis of the above quoted Section of the Constitution 

results in the following: That the accounting officers of 

this State are prohibited from drawing or paying a warrant 

upon the Treasury in favor of any person for (a) salary, (b) 

compensation; as (1) agent, (2) officer, (3) appointee, if 

such person at the same time holds any other (1) office, 

(2) position of honor, (3) position of trust, or (4) position 

of profit, under this State or the United States." (See opinion 

by Hon. C. M. Cureton, First Assistant Attorney General, 

end Hon. C. W. Taylor, Assistant Attorney General, Reports 

end Opinions of the Attorney General, 1912-1914, p. 873, at 

P. 880.) 

Deputy sheriffs are held to be public officers. 34 Texas Jurisprudence 

601; State vs. Brooks, 42 Tex. 62; Brown vs. Harris, 13 Tex. 50‘7, 5l2; 

Feller vs. Alexander, 13 Tex. 497, 506; Murray vs. State (Cr. App.), 67 

S. W. (2d) 274. By enelogy, it would seem clear that e Deputy Game 

Warden of the ~United States is en officer of the United States, within 

the meaning of Article 16, Section 33, quoted shove. 

Whether e Deputy Game Warden of the United States is teachnically en. 

officer, however, it, in our opinion, cannot be disputed that e Deputy 

Game Warden of the United States holds a position of honor end trust 

under the United States, thou& no salary or compensation be attached 

to the position. 

In answer to your question, therefore,you ere advised that e State officer 

who holds en appointment as a Deputy Gam..~.Warden of the United States 

without pay, at the same time that he holds his office under this State, 

is within the purview of the payroll affidavit required by the Comptroller. 

Youri very truly 

ATTGRNFXGHNERALOFTEXAS 

s/ R; W. Fairchild 

By 

R. W. Fairchild 

.Assistent 

lNXF:pbp/ cc:ldw 

APPROVED Oct. 25, 1939 

s/ GERALD c. MANN 

Al%XUiEYGHNHRALOFTEXAS 

APPROVED OPINION COMMITPRR 

BP B. W. B. 

CHAIRMAN