Senator Jeff Wentworth requested an opinion from Attorney General Gregg Abbott asking whether the transfer of certain duties and funds from the Texas Department of Transportation to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles in section 17.30 of article IX of the 2011-12 General Appropriations Act constitutes an “item of appropriation.”
He writes, “The 81st Texas Legislature acted to fund rail relocation efforts in order to further one important facet of needed transportation solutions in Texas. Now it appears the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is using an accounting gimmick and an invalid legal argument in an attempt to thwart the will of the Legislature, and to obtain for TxDOT a higher level of funding than the Legislature appropriated to that agency.”
To view the complete requests, please visit: http://www.oag.state.tx.us/opinions/opinions/50abbott/rq/2009/pdf/RQ0838GA.pdf