Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

.. THE.ATI?ORNEYGESERL%L OF~EXAS Acsmn-. TEXAS April 24, 1948 Hon. L. E. Klq Opinion Ao. v-553 County Attorney Sablne County Re: Authority of Commis- Hemphill, Texas sioners’ Court to at- tach land to a Stock Law District vhich is not adjacent thereto. Dear Mr. King: Your lrequestfor an opinion Is substantially as follovst “Can the Commlsslon8rs’ Cou.Ptof the County, upon the petition of 13 freeholders, none of whose land adjoins ‘. the Stock Law District that vas creat- ed by the Municipality, order the terrl- tory attached to the Municipality, where there 1s~a tract of land betveen the bnlclpallty and the 13 petitioners vhose ovner has not petitioned to become a part of the Stock Law ~Dlstrlct? “I have advised the Commissioners’ Court that they could not join the~Munl- cipallty (which has a Stock hv District) and run their lines through the tract that adjoined the Municipality (but vaa between the Munlclpalltg and the petitioners) ulth- out the consentnof the ~ovner of the tract so Intervening. Article 69311 V. C. S., 1s as follows: “UheneveP there is territory,betveen two (2) subdlvlslons of a county~vhlch have adopted a stock lav, or vhen there Is territory adjoining a subdivision vhlch has adopted a stock lav, in a county, or in an adjoining county, and In uch terri- tory there are less than fifty 750) free- holders, an election shall be ordered on ’ ... - Eon. L. B. gin&, page 2 (v-553) a petition of a majorIt of the freeholder8 residing in such temltory by the Commfs- sioners Court of the County in which the territory lies, and the election shall be held as provided by lav in Other cases re- lating to the adoption of the at ck law. If there be less than twenty (20P free- holders In such intervening or adjoining territory, then on petition of a majority of the ovners of the land to said Commls- sloners Court, the said Commissioners Court shall Issue an order extending the stock law to said territory and the same shall be included in the territory of such ad- jOi.I%lllg subdlvlslon; in cases where there Bse no freeholder8 DD such iut8rV8XliIlgor adjoining territory, then on the petition of the ovner or ovners of the land to said cosmissionerscourt, the said Court shall issue an order extending the stock lav to said territory, and the same shall b8 ln- eluded In the territory of such adjolnlng subdlvislon; and any 'person or persons who ovn lands adjoining any other lands vhich have been added to territory in vhlch a stock law prevails, shall have the same right, and on petition of the owner or ovners of such lands to the said Court, the said Court shall issue an order ex- tending the stock law to said territory, and the same shall be Included in the territory of such adjoining subdlvlsion." Your factual situation reflects that the land of the petitioners does not adjoin thenStock Lav Dis- trlct but that~there Is a tractsof land Interveningbe- tveen the Stock Lav District and that of the petltlon- era. The construction placed upon Article 69 1, v. c. s., In the case of Tubbe v. Sample, 62 S.W. 726) 362 (Clv. App. error diss&ssed, 1933) is to the effect that any defined territory vhich adjoins a Stock Lav ~lt~~~rsp be added to such district upon petition of In requiring the attached lands .to.~.be ad- jacent to ihe district or subdlvislon to which they are added for stock lav purposes, It vas the evident intent of the Legislature to prevent the attaching of segrega- ted tracts or territory not actually CoMected with the i ..* - ,. - Hon. L. B. King, page 3 (V-553) stock lav district, thus insuring that suCh district shall at all times be a single, veil defined subdlvlslon. It will b8 readily seen that the tract of land referred to in yOUI'request does UOt Come Vithin the meaning of Article 6931 and, therefore, it 18 the opin- ion of this department that the ~ommlssion8rs1 Court my not join land to a Stock Lav District 'which is not adja- cent but has an lntervening'tract of land b8tW88n the dls- trlct and the territorg to be jo%ned. SUMNARY A Comlssloners~ Court'mag not attach land to a Stock Law District where such land is not ad-jac8ntbut has an lnterven- lug tract of land b8tW88n the Stock LaW District and the terrltorg to be attaCE8d; Yours very trulg, ATTORNEY GRNEXALyOF TEXAS B9Z-JJ BW:lIlW Burnell Ualdrep Assistant APPROVED: