Texas Attorney General Opinion: JM-1019 Page: 3 of 5
This text is part of the collection entitled: Texas Attorney General Opinions and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Honorable David R. White, Jr. - Page 3 (JM-1019)
one commissioner may differ from that of another depending
upon a marked disparity in these duties. In the final
analysis, as was concluded in Attorney General Opinion
JM-770, what constitutes a reasonable salary is a question
of fact within the discretion of the commissioners court.
In your second question you ask whether a salary can be
lowered for a county commissioner. The salary may be
lowered at the discretion of the court. However, under
section 152.013 of the Local Government Code, the commis-
sioners court is without authority to lower the salary of a
county or precinct officer until the regular annual budget
hearing. See Attorney General Opinion JM-839 (1988).
In response to your third question, the salary may not
be lowered to an amount less than the amount of salary in
effect on January 1, 1972. Local Gov't Code 152.012.
In your fourth question you ask whether a commissioner
may elect to receive a salary lower than that set by the
commissioners court. Section 151.011 provides that the
commissioners court shall set the amount of compensation for
county and precinct officers. It is not within the province
of a commissioner to determine that his salary differ from
the amount set by the court.1
In your last question you ask if a commissioner after
receiving his salary may make a gift to the county of a
portion thereof.
1. We call attention to section 152.052 of the Local
Government Code regarding the decision of an official not to
be paid.
(a) If an elected county officer files an
affidavit with the county clerk stating that
the officer elects not to be paid for the
officer's services, the county payroll
officer may not issue a paycheck to the
officer.
(b) After the affidavit is filed, the
county payroll officer shall take measures to
stop payment of a paycheck that was issued to
the officer before the affidavit was filed
and that has not been presented for payment.p. 5260
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This text can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Text.
Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: JM-1019, text, 1989; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth273457/m1/3/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.