1968-12-30 Special Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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• Hon. Mayor and City Commissioners - 2 • December 30, 1968 Inasmuch as Section 13 covers both City of La Porte officers and employees, it only becomes necessary to determine whether the position of Mayor of the City of 5horeacres is a public office. The Mayor is the chief executive officer of the municipality. 39 TJ2d, "Municipal Corporations," Section 220. A public officer is a person who exercises some functions of the government, one who is commissioned or authorized to perform any public duty. 42 TJ2d, "Public Officers," Section 1. The Mayor is almost universally held to be a municipal officer. Antieau, Municipal Corporation Law, Section 22.00, P. 197. It must next be determined if the above-referenced Section of the Home Rule Charter is void, because of conflict with any pertinent constitutional or statutory provision. Dallas Railway & Terminal Company v. Price, Tex.Civ.App., 94 SW2d 884, modified on other grounds, 131 Tex. 319, 114 SW2d 859; 39 TJ2d, "Municipal Corpora- tions," Section 45. The provisions of Section 13 of the Charter are entirely consistent with Article 16, Section 40, of the Texas Constitution, to the extent that Section 13 prohibits dual office holding. The consti- tutional provision is that "No person shall hold or .exercise, at • the same time, more than one Civil Office of emolument. .(with certain exceptions not here relevant)." Here, of course, we are concerned with a City of La Porte employee holding outside public office. Although the Texas constitut onal provision relates to offices "of emolument," Section 13 of the La Porte Home Rule Charter refers only to "other public office." I find nothing in the Texas Constitution on the particular point: Employment by one public body, and office holding with another. I find no statutory provisions in conflict with the provisions of Section 13 of the Charter. Indeed, the language of Section 13 could probably be traced historically to the General Incorporation Act of 1875, particularly the provisions thereof which are now codified as Article 988, Vernon's Annotated Texas Statutes. Although this Article now has application only to general law cities (see "History, Status and Functions of Cities, Towns and Villages," by Trueman O'Quinn, Page xiii, et seq, Vol. 2A, Vernon's Annotated Texas Statutes), and although the language of Section 13 goes further, the language of Article 988 is instructive: "No member of the city council shall hold any other employment or office under the city government while he is a member of said council, unless herein otherwise provided. No member of the city council, or any other officer of the corporation, shall be directly or indirectly interested in • any work, business or contract, the expense, price or