. . . ,.., ..~. 

TEE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

OF TEXAS 

September 9, 1948 

Eon. Joe. B. Dart Opinion No. V-678 

County Attorney 

Kendall county 

Boerne. Texas 

Re: Legality of loaning 

surplus funds of a 

cominon sahool dlstrtot to an independent school~dlatrlct. 

Dear Sir: 

We refer to goir opinion request ooncerning 

the following question: 

“Can a aommon school dietriot u&e a 

loan.of its 1947-48 balanoe to an indepenschool distriot. ’ 

Powers of school boards and Offloer0 over 

funds belonging to school dlstrlots and the purposes for 

whloh those funds my be ex 

37 Tex. JUr p 968; 

ended are presorlbed by Stati::: 351, 40 Sd2dj 20. 

& ve V, city of DallSS, 120 

It is provided In Artlois 2827, Swat 1 and 2, 

v. c. s., that; 

“1. The State and’ aounty avellablei 

fund6 shall be used exoluslvely for the 

payment of teachers’ and superlntendenta’ 

salaries, fees for taking the scholastic 

oewuo sad Intereat oa money borrowed oa 

short kne to pay 6slarlw of teaohers sad 

superintendents, whoa these Sal&Pies beoome 

due before the sohool funds for the owrent year beoone avallablet provided that 

ao loans for the pur 

‘: 

0110 of payment of 

tea&em shall be pa d .out of fuada other 

than those for the then ourrent gears. 

“2. Loos1 sohool fund6 from dkstriot 

taxes, tuition fee6 of pupils not entitled 
Bon. Jos. 8. Dart, page 2 (V-678) 

to free tuition and other local sour&~ 

may be used for the purposes enume’tibted 

for State and county funds and for pmchasing appliances and supplies, for the 

payment of Insurance preinlums, janitors 

and other employees, for buy&g school 

sites, buylng,bullding and repalrlng and 

renting sohoolhouses, and for other purposes neaessary In the conduct of the 

publie sohools to be determlned by the 

board of trustees, the amount8 and vouchers for county districts to be approved by the county superintendent; provided, 

that when the State available school fuud 

in any oitg or district is euffioient to 

maintain the schools thereof in any year 

for at least eight months, and leave a 

surplus, suoh surplus may be expeqed 

for the purposes mentioned herein. 

Under this statute the expenditure of’such 

school funds, whether they be.surplus funds or otherwise, may be made only for the purpose8 therelu entunerated and for other purposes necessaq in the conduct of 

the public schools of the dlstrlat. Attorney Qeneral’s 

Opinion V-534. Public funds, among which srs inaluded 

school funds, collected and designated by statute to be 

used’only for particular public purposes cannot lawfully 

be diverted to the use of another public 

v. City of Da supra; San Benito I.S. rs” 

pose. Love 

t 

las, . v. Farmerst 

Bank, 78 S.W. 26) 741; MBdele v. Trustees of Comoe Independent School, 130 S.w.(2d? 929. 

We find no statutory authority, expres~sed or 

Implied, In trustees of sohool districts, common or independent, to loan the public school funds of their dlstrlct to any other school dlstriot, person, or entity. 

Clearly, the loan of surplus funds of a common school 

district to an independent district would not be using 

such funds for a purpose necessary in the, conduot of the 

,- 

public schools of the common district. 

SUMMARY 

A board of trustees of a school dlstrict has no authority to loan Its pub110 

school funds to another sehool dletriat. 
Hon. Jo;. B. Dart; page 3 (V-678) 

Article 2827, Sections 1 and 2,-V. 0. S. ~-~ 

Yours very~truly, 

cm:mw 

Chestei; E. Ollison 

Assistant