TEEEATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEL%biS
Hon. ZollieSteakley opinionHo. w-202 Secretaryof State Austin,Texas Re: House BillI?o.3, Acts 55th Legislature,Article6252-9, Dear Mr. Steakley: V.C.S.
Your opinionrequestconcernsprimarilySection3(b) of House Bill 3, Acts 55th Legislature,RegularSession,Chapter100, page 2l3, (Article6252-9,Vernon'sTexas Civil Statutes).
Section3(b) provides:
"If an officeror employeeof a stateagency,legislator or leglelativeemployeeis an officer,agent, or member of, or owns a controllinginterestineny corporation,firm, part- nership,or othe? businessentitywhich is under thf,jurls- dictionof any state regulatoryagencyhe shall file a sworn statementwith the Secretaryof State disclosingsuch inter- est."
You have asked seven questions. We have taken the libertyof rearrangingthe order of these questions. Each questionwill be set'out immediatelyabove the discussiongenwne to the respectivequestion. Three of the questionsare:
"1. Are the varioueRiver Authorities,such as the Lower ColoradoRiver Authority,state agencies,and are their members and employeesrequiredto file the sworn statementrequiredby Section3(b) if otherwiseapplicable4
"2. Is the Texas Commissionon HigherEducationa 'State agency',and are its xaen@ers and staff requiredto file the sworn statementrequiredby Sectionj(b), if otherviseappli- cable?
"3. Is the State Bar of Texas a 'Stateagency'and are its officersand employeesrequiredto file the sworn state- ment requiredby Section3(b) if otherwiseapplicable?"
Section2(a) of House Bill 3 defines"Stateagencies"as: Hon. Zollie Steakley,page 2 (w-202)
I any office,department,commissionor board of . . .
the executivedepartmentof government."
The statutorydefinition,however,&es not fully answerthe question. Consideration must be given to the legislativeintent. Arti- cle 10, R.C.S.,provides:
WE followingrules shall govern in constructionoft all civil statutoryenactments. . . .
"6. In all Interpretations, the court shall look dili- gentlyfor the intentionof the.Legislature, keepingin view at all times the old law, the evil end the remedy. ... . . .
"8. The rule of the commonlaw that statutesin dero- gatlonthereofshallbe strictlyconstruedshall have no ap- plicationto the revisedstatutes;but the said statutesshall constitutethe law of this State respectingthe subjectsto which they relate;and the provisionsthereofshallbe liber- ally construedtith view to effecttheir objectsand to pro- mote justice."*
The evil that the statutewas designedto curb is showu In Sec- tion 1 of House Bill 3, which providesas follows:
"It is hereby declaredto be the policyof the Legisla- ture that no officeror employeeof a stateagency,Member of the Legislatureor legislativeemployeeshouldhave any in- terest,financialor otherwise,director indirect,or engage in any busiuessor transactionor professionalactivityor incurany obligationof any naturewhich is in substantial conflictwith the proper dischargeof his duties in the pub- lic interest. To Implementsuch policyand to strengthenthe faith and confidenceof the people of Texas in their Covern- med., there is herein enacteda code of ethics settingforth standardsof conductto be observedby state officersand employeesIn the performanceof their officialduties. ,It is the intentof the Legislaturethat this code shall serve not only as a guide for officialconductof the State'spublic servantsbut also as a basis for disciplineof those who refuseto abide by its terms."
~*Fimphases suppliedthroughout. Hon. Zollie Steakley,&WP 3 (m-202)
The languageof Section1 indicatesthat the statuteis intended -to regulateState officialsand employeesas distinguishedfrom local governmentaloffici.aleand employees. This coustructionexcludesgovern- mental officersand employeesof subdivIsIons of the State, such as coun- ties and cities,and other strictlymunicipalcorporationswhose operations and jurisdictionpertainonly to a particularlocalewithin the State.
The variousRiver Authoritiessuch as the Lower ColoradoRiver Authorityare all orgaeizedpursuantto specialenactmentsof the Legis- laturewhich are found in Chapterl2 of