Attorney General Opinion GA-1029

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS GREG ABBOTT The Honorable Tracy 0. King Chair, Committee on Agriculture and Livestock Texas House of Representatives Post Office Box 291 0 Austin, Texas 78768-2910 Dear Representative King: November 25, 2013 Opinion No. GA-1029 Re: Whether Local Government Code section 143.014 authorizes a municipality to appoint additional assistant municipal police chiefs (RQ-1130-GA) You ask us to determine the proper number of police officers that a police department head may appoint under Texas Local Government Code subsection 143.014(c). 1 That statute provides in relevant part: "In a police department, the total number of persons appointed to the classification immediately below that of department head may not exceed the total number of persons, plus one, serving in that classification on January 1, 1983." TEX. Loc. Gov'T CODE ANN. § 143.014(c) (West 2008). Without referencing any specific municipality's police department, you explain that on January 1, 1983, there were four "captains" in the classification immediately below department head. Reque~t Letter at 1. You tell us that today, the classification immediately below department head has the title "assistant chief." !d. Because the title "assistant chief' did not exist in the department in 1983, you inquire specifically as to the maximum number of assistant chiefs a city can appoint today pursuant to section 143.014. !d. In municipalities that have elected to ad pt chapter 143, municipal polic department positions generally must be filled pursuant to a competitive xamination proce . EX. Loc. Gov'T CODE ANN.§§ 143.002(a)(l)(c), .004, .021(c) (West 2008). Secti n 143.014 provides an exception to that requirement, allowing the governing body of a municipality with a p pulation of less than 1.5 million to authorize the head of a municipal pollee department in which four classifications exist below the classification of department bead ' to appoint individuals who meet certain qualifications. !d. § 143.014(a), (b) (d). A department head's appointment authority under this section is limited to "the classification immediately below that of department 1Letter from Honorable Tracy 0. King, Chair, Comm. on Agriculture and Livestock, to Honorable Greg Abbott, Tex. Att'y Gen. at 1 (May 24, 2013), http://www.texasattomeygeneral.gov/opin ("Request Letter"). The Honorable Tracy 0. King - Page 2 (GA-1029) head" in a number equal to the number of individuals, plus one, "serving in that classification on January 1, 1983." Id § 143.014(b), (c) (emphasis added). When construing a statute, courts strive to determine and give effect to the Legislature's intent, as evidenced by "the plain meaning of the words chosen." Tex. Mut. Ins. Co. v. Ruttiger, 381 S.W.3d 430, 452 (Tex. 2012). Words and phrases are meant to be read in context. TEX. Gov'r CODE ANN. § 311.011(a) (West 2013). The phrase "that classification" in subsection (c) refers to "the classification immediately below that of department head." TEX. Loc. Gov'r CoDE ANN. § 143.014(c) (West 2008). The Legislature chose to describe "that classification" solely by its place, relative to that of department head, within the hierarchy of a municipality's police department. Nothing in the statute indicates that the Legislature intended for the title of the individuals within that classification to be determinative. Indeed, Chapter 143 defines "department head" as "the chief or head of a fire or police department or that person's equivalent, regardless of the name or title used." ld § 143.003(2). Therefore, the number of persons a department head may appoint under subsection 143.014(c) may not exceed the number of positions, plus one, in the classification "immediat~ly below that of department head" on January 1, 1983, irrespective ofthe particular title used.2 2Subsection 143.014(c) "does not apply to a municipality that has adopted The Fire and Police Employee Relations Act unless the municipality adopts the appointment procedure prescribed by [subsection (c)] through the collective bargaining process." TEX. Loc. Gov'T CODE ANN. § 143.0 14( c) (West 2008). The Honorable Tracy 0. King - Page 3 (GA-1029) SUMMARY Under Local Government Code subsection 143.014(c), the number of persons a police department head may appoint may not exceed the number of positions, plus one, in the classification "immediately below that of department head" on January 1, 1983, irrespective of the particular title used. DANIEL T. HODGE First Assistant Attorney General JAMES D. BLACKLOCK Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel VIRGINIA K. HOELSCHER Chair, Opinion Committee Stephen L. Tatum, Jr. Very truly yours, Attorney General ofTexas Assistant Attorney General, Opinion Committee