Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

THELI~~~ORNEY GENERAL OF-XAS May 5, 1959 Dr. J. W. Edgar Commissioner of Education Texaa Education Agency A,ustin, Texas Opinion No. WW-617 Re: Where an Bria or community is now included within the” botihd&rl&s of a munidipally controlled independent schbol district for ‘sdhool purpose& only, &id. that cotimunitt ihctirpoFat.eB~ihto a dity. or town; will such fncorporatlon’ aiitoiatlcally affect any~‘rightb ‘that thb~ muni~lpally controlled dib- triot may”have to exe*ci&e and’ continue jurisdidtion theticlln for school purposes Dear Dr. Edgar: onl)? We quote from your request at3 follows: "Fadtual situatiofi: There is a munioi- pally controlled lndependent’schtiol district. The oity cbtiprising that’city contrblled in- dependent echo01 district ha8 ~bn several oo- OabionE extended hits city’ boundaries fbr sohool purposes 6nly ufider~Atitlole 2803, so that till-: ,lty conttibllsd dohool district boundiii*r=Y bxtend btfond the”botindaHes of the oitJ ,‘or~ city purposds ~to include con- stderbti&e area not ‘a pert ol’ the city~ proper. A Oom~~r(,.rt~ has de%loPe~d In’ this area not a paFt of thC city prbper~ but within’ the boun- darlea~ of city oontrblli?d school sytititi as extended for schbol p,tirposes L Purri aant to Articles 1133, et seq., V. T. C. S., an eletid tidn has been called to lncorpbrate this oom- munity, to make of It an incorporated city. Dr. J. W. Edgar, page 2 (WW-617) “We have needy for and would appre- ciate an oplnlon’from your office on the following question: “Where an area or community ia now Included’ within the boundaries of ‘a municipally controlled inde- pendent school dlstrlct for school purposes only, and that communify~ Incorporates into a city or town, will such~ Incorporation automatic- allyaffect any rights that’ the municipally ~bnt~olled”dlitrict’ may have-to ‘exercise and continue jurisdict.fonthereln for school purposes only. ’ It is elementary that school districts may be organized or- abolished and’ the ‘boundaries thereof altered only in accordance with the constitution or stat,utes. Section 10 of Article XI of the Texas Constitu- tion provides that: “The ‘Legislature ‘may ‘constitute any city or town a separate and independent school district. . . .‘I Article 2768, Revised Civil Statutes, provides: “Any city or town in this~ State may acquire the exclusive control of the publics free ‘schools within its “limits. Any city” or town which has heretofore, under the Act’ of Marc’h 15;’ 1875, or any subsequent law, assumed c’ontfol of the puol3.c free’ schools ‘within its Iimlts, and’ has con- tinued~ to eierc3se”the same- until the” present time,: or any”dity or town’~tifilch”may hereafter determineso to’ d&by majority vote 0T the ‘property tax”payers ~of said tiity~ or~townvoflng atan eletition’held for’th~at ~‘purpose;~ may h;iVi? exc1iisivo “’ “’ control of ‘tke pubIic free schools within its limits. Acts 1905, p. 263.” Dr. J. W. Edgar, page 3 (W-617) The special nature of a ,munlcipal school'dlstrlct is illustrated by thelanguage used by the court In the case of Towh of Sunnyvale; Texas'v. DallasCounty Board of School Trustees, 283 S.W.2d 296 (Clv. App. 1955) as folLows: 'The adjudicated ca,ses lead us to the~tionclusion that ~a municipal school dintrict whlch'lncludes~a11 the.terrl- tory within 'the "limits' of'~a city~~or" town and which meets all the'reqiiire- tierit of Art'. 2768, R;C'iS;',' cannot be changed inoofar as the'territory with;~ In Its city Ilmits' lKcohcerned;~exce~t by"the~vote or consentof 'a majority of the Citizens of the-town'as~ a whole. Tn~other words; it"canhot be changed by the vote of ~the persons residing only In a portionof the-towh who seek to' disannex"suCh"portion'from the"balance of the munidlpal school dl.atrltit within the'city llmlts of"the tbwn;~ or by the County'Board of' School Trustees based on such a vote byonly the'qualifled voters of the territory dlsannexed. "Underthe record, if the trials court had jurisdiction of'this proceed- ing we should sustainappellant's conten- tion in its asserted question for review." The incorporation of a city or town pursuant to Artidles~ 1133 et'seq,'Vernon's 'Civil Statbtes,'does'not~ automatically~glve the'municipality'so~formed control of then s~hools'i~cated"withln'its corporate limits. ~The' mode of organlslng~munl~lpally controlled tichool districts as prescribed by Article 2768 is exclusive. Your question is therefore answered In the nega- tive. SUr.lPlARY Where an area or community is now Included within the boundaries of amunicipally controlled independ-, ent school-district for school pur- poses only, and that area or com- Dr. J. W. Edgar, page 4 (W-617) mtinity incorporates into a~ city or town, such lntiorporatloti'will not atitomatically affect ai-iy rights that the mtitilci~~lly'coh- trolled' distl'ict 'ti&y'have to'ei- &clsKand~ cdntihue~jurlsdicflo~. therein for school purposes only. Very truly yours, WILLSWILSON~ Attorney General of Texas -" Leonatid~ Passmore Assistant LP:rm:sd APPROVED: OPINION COMFTITTEE Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman Zellner J. Turllngton Robert H. Walls Llnward Shivers REVIEWEDFOR'THE~ATTORNEYGENERAL BY: W. V. Geppert