Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN gonorrble Xr Me TrMlr, Pirrt Arrirtuat 8trtr uuperintubduAt of ruolio Iaotruot10a Austin, Tour ot which har' 8 rohoola for ral4tit. to the fcll~ai~qj rOqU4Dkd t0 46TiBe t:iO ~PdOat 8chool Dlatrlct a mu'plur of State and ) 8ft.r thmr h8TO oon- or 4 period of right montha. your 0pmoR u to whether, rlJrl8 of8897 or the Artlolr Gtatutrs, thlr aurplu ma7 k 8 p4ymnt on the outmuadlng bonded indobtednrrrof thr rehool dlrtclat.1 " Artlob 2027, Rerlred Cltll St&tutra, 1926, nqdr u follw8a lThr publio f'zw rohoolfun41&all no tba oxpondmdexcept for the followingpurpo~or: wx'abl. T. if.Triable, pa;, .+2 '1. Tb 6ktO Uid oo\mty aWlabl@ iwd# ‘ha bll eused lxolurlre4 for the pa lnt ot mohem~ and ‘uporintondontl~ rrlu 7" .I) f0.r for taking an rohol~8tio OwmU‘# aad lntrrert OnBOM~bOX'XWWd 011BhOPtthOtO W w1Ui.B ef 6oaoh.m and when thwr euporlntead‘ntr, raluler brow dw beion tb.a aohool funda for tlw oamont yur beoomo rvall~blrJprovided thaC no loans for the purpo88 of paymoat of teacher8 rhall k paid eut of fundr other than them. ior the thon O~Jrlwrdi yeare "9. Looal rohool fund8 t’rar dlrtrlot tue8, tultlon Se08 OS pup118 not ontitledto irae tuition wad other local aouroe~my be wed for th8 purporor rnumentrd tar State end county fun48 and for purah~ring lppllano~sand suppllar, for the pqaent of inouranorprmluw, jaltore ubd other buployor,for buJlng r&o01 rlter, buying,bulldinguxd rsp8lrlng end ranting 812~01 how.‘, and ior other purpose‘ neorrruy ln t;?e oonduot of the pubI& eohoolr to ba doknalned by the Board of mY.tee‘, the aooountr and vouahw‘ In Ada8 vs. 36 s. 1. (21 128 on reherring taq 0 ue8ti0n 0~ r80l Ml108 u S* I. (2) 2r, 0r WJ&S stat0 ~m,b able funda f*r oonrtruotionof rohool bulldlmgr we8 ooneldar- rd by the comalrrlon of Appeal& It wti h.Ld in t&t oa8e thet, when tho Stat0 availablefund8 zero sufflolontto mbtaln thm rehoo1.r OS the dlatriotfar llghtmontb, aad lravo a rurplur,thr rewlnl~ acne;l oould bo used, uudrr the 544 :-. wasa prwvlrionr OS Submotion 2 of Artlolr 2227, for bulld- @g of ‘ch00lhoW.s. It 1s prokbla that if APtlcle 2327 mere- w adhorleod ueb or the funds for %qlng, building and n- #& l”s ' it would be ‘uffloIontl~broad to l l l ‘0h o o lh c na ‘.‘, mblr, ~8. of ‘uoh .rurpluafunds for rotlrerunt of debts io- 0w.d for those purporor ($80 tow '18~Rookmall IeSIDe (40%. CUT,App.~ errorrrfurrd) 194 S. Fi.6lQ)jbut the authority loafurod by the rtrtute sot only Is for %uylag, btilcllng and rpair~ 80h00l.h0~808~” but the trU@ke@ era iurthcr author- ire& to WI rush fund8 "for other pwpo8.8 n.oo‘r~t'y in th. gonduot of the publIo school8 to be datunalaed by the Board of ~N‘U)~‘.* Fc Would Ob8bma as did the Condrslon of Appeals h Adsas vea ?!llor (3b 9.w. (2)125) lo ocrnuidarln~ its eimI1~ problca, rhct t&c Board of Wu8toc‘ , la dotermIning the 1;c.eto k aado d rwh rurplue ruadr - a I)* l 1s repeolally luthorirod to do al~iioaL an>- thing deemed nooerrcry In their judgment to lo- ocuipli8hthe purposes statedIn 5ectlon 1 or hrtl- clc 7 of the Conctltutlon to the cffeot Cat @a general dirru8ion of lamwl8~c, talr~~ cucc~#Acl to the prerrmtlon of the liberty and right8of the paoplo,It ‘AaU.Cd trr6 kut)of t;?aLe&ilo- turo of tha State to rrtcblI&h and 14~8 cAtable provl~lonior the support; 6n.d ~i.ate~~c df iw Ofri0iOnt.y.cem of public r'rec6c:~oolr.'i*'*9.1) The lt8tutory &uthorIt~ ccncrralq mc sf mth sur:Aue Stat. lvallablofunds is thwrforc, la our oplnlcn, br*oa& lnou&h to pumlt USY of luoh find8 ic ret1rcmrr.tof ten-?ed ln- dobtadrmrr of l eohool di.~rZoc,. U8c of roncye dorAred f-am.the oountr lrallablc school fund Is 1lmIkd by Artlclo 2027, ‘uprar to those purpo8.8 onum- crated In Subrcctloa 1 oi that rtatuto# neither th8 oonatruotlon ot bullding nor peynrnt ef uutrtmdiry lwidod indebtedness 1s Ppong the l&horlred uaae. Mcmryr dorived trap tha oount avail- lb & funb, &areioN, may not be used to rrtlrr o~tetand1rq bond‘.