Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1940 )

686
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Bon. Earlon %oGee
county Auditor
Hays County
San Karooa, Texas
Dear Sir:
park.,,-,, -
Thb will eoknowl 0r your 1eYtter of
Meroh fM, 1940, in wbleh inion 0r thfa hparf-
ment on the queetlons th wa doom it lie0488-
ary to here set out the 0r YCW htt0r,
rhloh ere aa rallowei
ln*tpnlm yoarr
14m than cum
hata suoh e levy b44n
ty now lerlee e aixtern aeixt permen-
tar aa authorlrtd by Artlol,e E3519,
8 or the Gonetitution. Ae county Auditor or Bays
County, may I legally approve warrants authorieed by
the Gommisefoner8 Court to be drawn on ea,id permanent
improvement rund kn payment or lmprovom*nte on aafa
aounty perkPw
Hon. Earion MoQtle, Page 2
krtiole 6078, and Seotions 1 snd 2 of Article
dOale, of the Revised Civil Statutes of Texas are pertinent
to the instant inquiry. They are:,
Art. 6078. Vach conaniaslonera court is
authorized to levy and oolleot. e tax not to ex-
osed rive cents on each glil0 of assessed valua-
tion of the oouuty icr the Purohtse and lmprove-
ment of lend8 ror use as county parka nhlah
shall aonsIet ot not more than one hundred aores,
ana shall not exceed more than four In any one
county. Eo suoh tax shall be levied an8 oolleot-
ed until the proposition is submitted to and rati-
riea bpthe property tax-paying voters oft the
county at a general or epeolel eleotion eelled
,$or that purpose, “provided, a two-third6 majority
of the property texpaying’votere,oi suoh oounty,
at an election ~hela ,for ,suah purpose &all deter-
itine .Bn favor of 8ald tax. xi said oourt desire0
to establish two or more of such oounty parks
they ,&all looate them in widely separated por-
tions 0r the county. Said court shall have full power
ana control over say end all, such ,parks and may levy ,
and,colleot aa asnual tax suf~faieut in their judg-
sent to properly kaintefn suah perks and ‘build and
oonstruot pavilions and suoh other balldjngu as they
nap deem necessary, lay out had open driveways aad walks,
pave the sane or any part thereor, set out treea and
shrubbery, oonetruat ditohes or lakes, and make suoh
other im~rovementr as they may deem proper. SUOh
parks shall’, remain apen for .the rree use of the pub-
lic uuder suah reaaonable~rulee and regulations as
said court xay presaribs.
Art. 6081% Sear 1. *That any oouaty or any
lnaorporated~eity 0r thla State, either inaependent-
lg cs in aooperation with eaoh other, OY with the
Texae State PsrksBoard, may aaqulre by gift or
purchase or by eondemuatioll prooeedings, lands to
be uaed ror publio parks end playSrounds, suoh lands
to be situated in any locality in this State and in
any siaea traota deemed suitable by the governing
body of the oity or oouaty acquiring same; provided,
however, that lauds to be aoquired by enj suoh aity
or oounty for eaid purposes may be, In the disor~etion
688.
Hon. warion Ecme, Page 3
of the ~oremin~ body ther@of, situatedwithin
the State, either within or without the boundary
limits of such city, but withlh the boundary
15mita of said county and within the limits of
seld county wherein said alty lice or is situst-
ed.
*Sec. 2. To pay for land6 for park purpo806,
an inoorporeted city and/or Mmnty lhey issue bonds,
and sap le9y a tax not exosedlng !Xfen (10) Cents
on the One Hundred Dollars ($100) valuation of
taxable property in such olty and/or aounty to
pay the interest and provide a sinking fund to .
retire suoh bond6, the lssuanae or such bonde,
and the oollectlon of tax86 in payment thereof
to be in amordanae with the prorl6ione of Clzap-
ter 1, Title 22, Revised Girl1 Statute6 of lRS$,
uorerning the Iseuance of bond6 .by cities, town6,
md/or oountie6 In this State; thi.6 Section .eholl
be oosmtrued to authorire the lery%ng oi eaid
tax 'not eXCW#ding Ten (10) Cent8 on the On8 Hun-
dred Dollar6 ($100) of valuation notwithstanding
ths provisIon af A?ticle 6080 of the Revised
Civil Statute6 ot 1925.e
T48 quote from Team ~urisprud8nc8, vol. 11, paS8
609, as tollover
*The Cbmititution prc6Orib86 the maxim66
rate of taxes for general purpoeea, for road6
and pridg8w, ior juries, and for permanent im-
provemento, l'88y8Oti9ely. The monies arising
ircsetaxea levied and collectsd for each of the
e6II68mt8d pUrpO6e8 are oon6titutional f1~1d6;
and the OomIdB6iOn6r6’ OOUrt ha6 no power t0
transfer money from one’ fund to another or to
expend, for one purpose, tax aaonep raised obsten-
6ibly ror another purpose.
*The immediate purpose of the provision is'
to limit the eaount oi tar86 that 663~ be rairred
for these se9eral,purpo6es, re6pectively; but it
is also deBigned to inhibit exaesaiva expenditure6
for any suoh purpose, and,to raguix-6 th8t any and
all monies raised byltaxahon f;or any purpose
ahall be applied to that partioular purpose and
to no other.9
689
Eon. Marion KoGe6, Page 4
The ahOVa qimtation fmna Tens6 Jurfaprudenos is
supported by the oaeea of' Commi66ioners* Court oi Renderson
County va. Burke, 282 S.W. 948 Ault va. Hill County, 112 S.W.
339; Seotion 9, Artiols 8 ot the State COu6titUtiOn) and
Carroll va. Wllliama, 202 S.W. 504.
It is a ~811 6ettl8d prineipl6 ,of l6w that a county
6Ukb it8 CO6Eii681O~r6' OOWt ha8 IlO parer8 Or duties 8Xl%8pt
thoae whioh an 018early set forth 6nd defiolsd In the COn6ti-
tution and pertinent rttituterr. Ifiu &xmtJ '16. RaPlilton,
278 8W 292; Edwards Countf v6. Jennings, 33 SI SBS, and oaser
therein oit8d too numaroua ?or rbpetltlon herein.
‘Phe above quoted 6t6tutrs ptovid8'th8 lGCLan6raad
method by whioh crountiee laoy s6tabli6h 6nd finan bounty
parka, either indsp8ndently or in aooperatfon with the olti66.
It ia 6 wall X-8OQ@Xed prinoiple of I6w tht~@&s6 the
Iagtalature pFs66rib88 a definite, oertainwt&:$Sxaa mthod
of prooedurctor a oltp or oot;ntrto folLow iu ths sr6oution
crf its govsrnmmtal funotionr othsr mthod.6 6r8 by implioation
of 16w 6rolud8d. Foat8r v6. City 6f Waoo, 2113 S.W. 1104 (sup.
ct. 1.
ft IS, th6refor6, 01tr i3006iaer?a apbi~n th6t 6
Ooutt dO68 not ha+8 aizthotitj~S@
0oluei:~lliO116T0* &kw expendi-
tures rr06i ths p6raan6nt lntprovem8nt fund for the putpoe of
improving oountp park6, tn the abawe of 6 ooap~lanss with
one of the abovr quot6d artlolea. SiILOc,mith6T of thee8
statutes w8m eoa&li8d with, it nutux&ll~ iol~.ons th6t you
o~annot legally approve th6 warrants 6uthorie6d by the ocwt-
misBionarn* oourt to be drawn on 66td pemaaeut iAprom%risnt
fund in paymmt ai th8 ooata of the eanteraplstcldiPproveaent8.
BY
Lf-
7& Lloyd Anastrowz
k66i6tSUlt
APPRCVECAPR 27, 1940
mJJ--++J
ATTORNEY GKNERAL Ol?TEXAS