Could a Texas school employee be paid as an election clerk, and could a county road worker also serve as a paid part-time police officer?

Texas AG Opinion JM-862: Election Clerk and Police Pay

Plain-English summary

The Trinity County attorney asked two compensation and dual-service questions. First, could an independent school district employee be paid for working as an election clerk on a day off? Second, could a county road and bridge employee also serve as a paid part-time city police officer?

The Attorney General answered yes to both on the facts presented. A school employee was an employee rather than a civil officer, and an election clerk worked under the presiding election judge rather than exercising independent governmental authority. Article XVI, section 40's dual-office prohibition therefore did not bar the service.

The constitutional rule preventing certain state-paid employees from receiving a salary as members of local governing bodies did not apply because an election clerk was not a governing-body member. The common-law incompatibility doctrine also posed no problem because the school job and constitutional-amendment election duties did not conflict or place one position under the other.

For the second question, the opinion treated the county road worker as an employee rather than a civil officer. It found no conflict, inconsistency, or subordination between that employment and part-time police service. The worker could receive compensation from both positions.

The opinion separately noted that Election Code section 32.054 prohibited a school employee from clerking a contested election for a school district trustee. The facts before the Attorney General involved a constitutional amendment election instead.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1988. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Was a school employee considered a civil officer?

No. The opinion relied on Ruiz v. State for the rule that a teacher was an employee, not an officer, under article XVI, section 40.

Was an election clerk a civil officer?

No. The presiding election judge determined the clerk's duties and working hours, so the clerk did not possess the required independent authority.

Could the school employee be paid for election work?

Yes. The constitutional no-salary rule applied to service on specified local governing bodies, not to election-clerk work.

Did the answer apply to a contested school trustee election?

No. The opinion noted a separate Election Code prohibition for a school employee serving as a clerk in that type of election.

Could a county road worker also be a paid part-time city police officer?

Yes. The opinion found no dual-office violation or incompatibility between the two positions on the facts presented.

Background and statutory framework

Texas Constitution article XVI, section 40, prohibited one person from holding more than one civil office of emolument. Ruiz, Tilley, and Aldine described a civil office as a position exercising a sovereign governmental function with substantial independence from others' control.

Because the school employee and election clerk were employees rather than officers, the dual-office prohibition did not apply. Election Code sections 32.071 and 32.072 placed the clerk under the presiding judge's direction.

Article XVI, section 40, also allowed state-paid employees who were not state officers to serve on certain local governing bodies only without salary. Earlier Attorney General Opinions MW-230 and JM-118 applied that rule to public school teachers serving on city councils. JM-862 distinguished election clerks because they were not governing-body members.

The common-law incompatibility doctrine prevented simultaneous service when duties conflicted or one position could control the other. The opinion found no such relationship in either set of jobs. For the road worker, it relied on JM-485's discussion of subordination and the Thomas and Martin decisions.

Citations

Constitutional and statutory materials:

• Texas Constitution article XVI, section 40
• Election Code sections 32.054, 32.071, and 32.072

Cases:

• Ruiz v. State, 540 S.W.2d 809, 811 (Tex. Civ. App. - Corpus Christi 1976, no writ)
• Tilley v. Rogers, 405 S.W.2d 220, 224 (Tex. Civ. App. - Beaumont 1966, writ ref'd n.r.e.)
• Aldine Independent School District v. Standley, 280 S.W.2d 578, 583 (Tex. 1955)
• Thomas v. Abernathy County Line Independent School District, 290 S.W. 152 (Tex. Comm'n App. 1927, holding approved)
• State v. Martin, 51 S.W.2d 815, 817 (Tex. Civ. App. - San Antonio 1932, no writ)

Prior Attorney General materials referenced: MW-230 (1980), JM-118 (1983), JM-129 (1984), JM-133 (1984), JM-485 (1986), and JM-519 (1986).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opinions/jim-mattox/jm-862
• Original PDF: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/1988/jm0862.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Obvious character-level OCR errors have been corrected, but minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.

February 22, 1988

JIM MATTOX
ATTORNEY GENERAL

Honorable Joe Warner Bell Opinion No. JM-862
Trinity County Attorney
P.O. Box 979 Re: Whether a school dis-
Groveton, Texas 75845 trict employee may be com-
pensated for serving as an
election clerk, and related
questions (RQ-1310)

Dear Mr. Bell:

You request advice on the following questions:

(1) May an Independent School District school employee receive compensation for work done as an election clerk on a day off from school employment?

(2) May an employee of a County Road and Bridge Department also serve part-time as a city police officer? May he be compensated for both offices?

You advise us that the off-duty school employee served as a clerk at a constitutional amendment election and was compensated by the county. We note that a school employee is prohibited from serving as an election clerk at a contested election for a school district trustee position. See Elec. Code § 32.054.

Attorney General Opinion JM-485 (1986) addressed the matter of the state constitutional prohibition against dual office holding as follows:

The prohibition in the Texas Constitution against dual office holding prevents one person from holding more than one 'civil office of emolument' at one time. Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 40. The courts have held that a person holds a 'civil office' for purposes of that provision if he exercises any sovereign function of government for the benefit of the public and is largely independent of others' control. Ruiz v. State, 540 S.W.2d 809, 811 (Tex. Civ. App. - Corpus Christi 1976, no writ); Tilley v. Rogers, 405 S.W.2d 220, 224 (Tex. Civ. App. - Beaumont 1966, writ ref'd n.r.e.); Aldine Independent School District v. Standley, 280 S.W.2d 578, 583 (Tex. 1955).

While you do not inform us of the duties of the person who is the subject of your first inquiry, the question posed reflects that the individual is an employee of the school district. It has been held that a teacher is an employee and not an officer within the meaning of section 40 of article XVI of the Texas Constitution. Ruiz v. State, 540 S.W.2d 809 (Tex. Civ. App. - Corpus Christi 1976, no writ). Nor does an election clerk possess independent authority. His duties and working hours as an election clerk are determined by the presiding judge of the election. Elec. Code §§ 32.071, 32.072. Because neither a teacher nor an election clerk is an "officer," the off-duty school employee does not violate the dual office prohibition by serving as a clerk at a constitutional amendment election.

You express concern that Attorney General Opinions MW-230 (1980) and JM-118 (1983) cast doubt on whether a school employee may be compensated for serving as an election clerk.

The factual background in your inquiry is distinguishable from the circumstances which led to the question addressed in those opinions. In Attorney General Opinions JM-118 and MW-230 it was found that public school teachers receiving compensation from state funds might serve as members of a city council only if they receive no salary for service on the city council. The prohibition against compensating the school teachers for service on the city council was based on that portion of article XVI, section 40 of the Texas Constitution which provides as follows:

State employees or other individuals who receive all or part of their compensation either directly or indirectly from funds of the State of Texas and who are not State officers, shall not be barred from serving as members of the governing bodies of school districts, cities, towns, or other local governmental districts; provided, however, that such State employees or other individuals shall receive no salary for serving as members of such governing bodies.

Since an election clerk is not a member of the governing body of a school district, city, town or other governmental body, a school employee is not prohibited from receiving compensation for duties performed as a clerk at a constitutional amendment election.

The common law doctrine of incompatibility prevents one person from holding two positions if the duties are inconsistent or in conflict or if one position is subordinate to another. Attorney General Opinion JM-519 (1986). We are unable to find any inconsistency or conflict in the duties of an election clerk at a constitutional amendment election and those of an off-duty school employee. Nor do we find that one position is subordinate to the other. Inasmuch as we find no conflict in duties here, we need not determine whether the doctrine of incompatibility applies to two positions, where at least one is not an "office."

You refer to the person who is the subject of your second question as an "employee of the county road and bridge department" and "a road worker." This identification of his type of employment would negate any concern that his position with the county would be defined as a "civil office" so as to bring him within the constitutional prohibition of holding dual offices.

In Attorney General Opinion JM-485 it was found that the common law doctrine of incompatibility does not prohibit someone from serving simultaneously as a constable and a jailer. The prohibition against one position being subordinate to the other was addressed as follows:

The common law doctrine of incompatibility prohibits one person from occupying two offices when one office may 'thereby impose its policies on the other or subject it to control in some other way.' Attorney General Opinions JM-129, JM-133 (1984); see Thomas v. Abernathy County Line Independent School District, 290 S.W. 152 (Tex. Comm'n App. 1927, holding approved); State v. Martin, 51 S.W.2d 815, 817 (Tex. Civ. App. - San Antonio 1932, no writ).

We find it unnecessary to delineate the duties of a county road and bridge employee and a part-time police officer in concluding that one of these positions of employment may not impose its policies on the other or subject it to control in some other way. Nor do we find that one position's duties are inconsistent or in conflict with the other.

An off-duty independent school district employee may receive compensation for services performed as a clerk at a constitutional amendment election. An employee of the county road and bridge department may serve as a part-time police officer and receive compensation from both positions.

SUMMARY

An off-duty independent school district employee may receive compensation for services performed as a clerk at a constitutional amendment election. An employee of the county road and bridge department may serve as a part-time police officer and receive compensation for both positions.

JIM MATTOX
Attorney General of Texas

MARY KELLER
First Assistant Attorney General

LOU McCREARY
Executive Assistant Attorney General

JUDGE ZOLLIE STEAKLEY
Special Assistant Attorney General

RICK GILPIN
Chairman, Opinion Committee

Prepared by Tom G. Davis
Assistant Attorney General