Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1950 )

Hon. George, 9. Avery 'Opinion RO.~v-1059
County Attorney
Fannin,County Re: The sala??y of the
Bonham; Texas oourt reporter of
the 6th Judicial
Mstriet comprised
of Fannln and Lamar
Dear Sir: Counties.
Your request for'aa opinion reads in part as
follovs:
"I have received a requert for an opin-
ian from Hri,Farris Plrtle, Auditor of FinnIn
County, ~which request is herewith attabhed, in
effect venting to know if the 'Court Reporter
for the Sixth Judicial Distrlot, yhioh is oom-
posed of Fannin.and Lamar Cotitiea, should be
paid under the provisions.of Article 2326h or
Artiole 2327a-1 of Vernon's Civil Statutes of
the,Sttite of Texas, vith reference to'arriv-
ing at the proportion of auah dalary'eaoh coun-
ty should pay. Lamar County alao is in the 62nd
Judicial Dlatriot, which la composed of Lamar,
Hunt, Delta ati.FTanklin Counties..
"Therefore, I request an opinion upon the
follovlug queation:~ 'In apportioning the sal-
ary of the officla$ shorthand Feporter for the
C&H, of the 6th Judicial Diatriot, between'
Lamar and Fannln Counties, should we ba gov-
erned by the,provlsions of Article 2326h, and
let each county pay that portion of the ex-
penses and salaries which the population of
the county, aaoorddiug to the, last preceding
Federal Census, bears to the total population
of both oountiea, or, should 'era be governed
by;? provisions bf Artiole 2327a-1, and
only one half of Lamar County's popu-
latiob in arriving at that County's propor-
tionate,ah,are of aucrh salary?"
Hon. George T. Avery, page 2 (V-1059)
Article 232611, V.C .S., provides :
“In eaoh Judiolal District in this State
in which the terms of Court do not operate on
a oontinuous term basis end La whioh there Is
more than one County, the salaries and ex-
penses of the official Court reporter shall
2 ;zg,y the respeotlve aountles es’provld-
. lEaoh of the oountles vithin such
Diatriot shall pay that portion of the ex-
penses and salaries of the off1oiel Court
reporter which the population of the oounty,
according to the last preoeding Federal Cen-
sus, bears ~to the total population of the
counties acmprlaing the Judloial District. rr
Artiole 2327a-1, V.C.S., provides :~
Slhere any Judiolal DistrLot in this
State .is composed of more than one ~county,
and the Dlstriot Court thereof has swoessive
terma ln,,elther of suoh oountles throughout
the year, without more than tvo (2) .days in-
tervening betveen any of suoh terms, the aal-
arg of the offlolal shorthand reporter of
,suoh Distrlot shall ‘be paid by the several
counties of the District, the same to be sp-
portioned among such oountles In proportion
to their population aocording to the latest
United Wates deoennial oensus * provided that
where swh oounty is in two (2 different Ju-
aioial Districts, either one, of vhioh '3.a ooa-
posed of more than one county, In oaloulating
suoh county’s proportion of liability f th
salary of the offioial shorthand reDort?r in'
any auoh District containing more than one
oounty, such county’s 1)ODU‘IetiOU shall be
aounted at one-half of its aotual pomdation
as shown by the last Drecediw’ United States
decennial oena us . ” (Emphasis added )
It ia’apparent from reading the above 8tatUteS
that Artiole 2326h 1s . appllcabl?-to
. aoupties Ilf Judioial
Dlstrlcts vhlch do not have oontlnuous tezw or oourt,
while Artiole 23278-l applZea to oounties in Judicial
Districts which have continuous terms in either county.
Since Lamar County is located in two Judioial DistrMts
it is necessary that we determine vhether either oounty
in the 6th Judicial District has oontlnuous terms of oourt.
.
.’
Hon. Qeorge T. Avery, page 3 (V-1059)
..'*.
.Prior to 1947, s’ubdivialoh. ‘6:&f Ai%lole 199, V.
C.S., provided ln~ pert;
yii: - Fannici
‘~ bnd Lamar’
.. . ,:
‘%6gtPon 1. T&ma’ of Oo& in’ and for
the 6th ‘Judioiil ~Diattiiat shaL1 ba hereefter
held therein each year as fol1 ova :
“k $he County ‘of ~‘Bannin on the9 eeoond
Monday in January of eaoh year and may eon- ” ~’
tinw in session for QlWJetl weeks;
., ,. .,
!‘In the County of Lamar on ~t&e eleventh
Monday. after, the se&t.@. Aonday: in January of
esoh year and may oontinue in aessfon for ten
weeks ;
“In the County of Fannin on the tventy-
flrst.Ronday efter the ae6ond Monday in Jaqu-
ary bf ,eaoh’year and may oontinw in a,ession
for eight weeks;
“In the County ‘qf Lamap oh $h? Ififth Hou-
day after the qeoond Monday in August in eaoh,
year and may oontinue ,ln sesalop six vee.ks;
“In the Countp of iann& ‘oh the eleventh :’
Honday~after the second Monday in August of
each year and may continue In session six weeks;
“In the County of La’mclr on tbs aetintsen-
th Monday efter the seoond Mondsy in, August of
eaah year ,and may oontinue in session until the
aeoon$ yonday ,in Jqnuery, the following year.
. . .
Hove&; in House Bill 737, Aats 50th, Leg., R.S.
1947, oh.112, p.175, effeotlve April r21, 1947, the above
statute was amended by adding thereto the following;
“Eaoh term of Court in each of such ooun-
tleti~.may oontinue until the date herein fixed
for the beginning of the next suooeediag team
therein.’
It la thus seen that the Le lti,lature authorto-
ed oontlkous terms of court for the t th Judicial Dls-
triat.
Hon. Geopge T. Avery, page 4 (V-1059)
We are further supported In this oonolwion by
the emergenoy clause of Howe Bill 737, vhtoh provides:
%*a .5. The fact that the dookets in
the above-named oounties are orowded, and
the further faot that no relief can be had
for this condition until oontinuow terms
of Court are authorized, create an emetigen-
oy . . .n
It la stated in Texarkana 8 Ft. 9.
ton Qas & Fuel Co., 121 Term, 51 S.W.2d
“In oonstruing statutes enaoted direct-
ly by the Legislature it Is the duty of the
oourt to look to the entire a&, inoluding
the osption, the body of the sot, and even
the emergency clause, to determine the leg-
islative intent. When the legislative in-
tent is once determined it la the law.”
You state in your letter also that the 6th Ju-
diolal District has been operating under oontinuow terms
of its aourts.
Since Fannln and Lamar CountLes now have oontin-
uow terms of aourt, it is our opinion that in apportlon-
lng the salary of the official shorthand court reporter
for the 6th Judiaial Distfiot between suah counties you
are governed by the underlined provisions of Article
23278-l.
The 6th Judloial Dist’riot aomprlsed of
Fannln and Lamar Counties has aontinuow tems
of court. H.B: 737, dots 50th Leg., R.S.1947,
oh.112, p.175. Texarkana & FC.S.Ry.v.Bowton
Gas & Fuel CO., ‘121 T . 4 51 S.W.2d 284
. Therefore th?oourt’reporter of such
dlstriot ahould be paid aooordlng to the pro-
visiow of Artlole 2327s-1, V.C.S.
Yours very truly,
J. C. DE&S, Jr. PRICE DARIRL
County Affairs Divialon Attorney General
Charles D. Hathevs
Rxeoutlve Assistant
Joe 8. Greenhill Bg d&S
First Assistant Assistant
BA:mw ”