I OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

JfoaOl’6b16 8. L. Warhburn 

CountJ AudItor 

gsrrla county 

goutlto3l, Texas 

Dear slrt 

1*‘4 ha00 I’0C~iV.d JOUl- 36 

th6 matter uaptlotmd above. ml 

held thattibte oreatedbya 

vbluh owate a defiolenq in 

vldAt1cm of lav 8nd orart a 

Oth6l’ VOzd6, th6 kX’U 

t0 6E66t6 CL debt 

are not au&tied 

Of tbQ di6tZ’iUt Of P 

fa6tiU m (StQtt66bOr 

gov4rn the cmhaol 

Uipf46, 8Bd $Wtl 86k th8t 

VO qUOt4 fXWl JOUF ktt6r: 

bitt 3ChoOl Distrlat 

“2. Hay satd Dtotriat pay frora ourmat t.ax61, old 

obli,~sttona Incurred in prior scdmlastfc or calea&w 

ye4rtt for vh%ckc, at the tfm4 they vem faaurred, DO 

eptOifiC pPWL61Cstl b&d bWXl nude for w-t OXQ6pt 

f%lTi thaIl OuPrent f%X48? @tI’XWllt t&X46 fOl’ thO64 pal-6 

prOP6d inauff”ioisak for ourrent opas%ttayg 6iqxm646, aad 

e6 to an wovat gwat;sr than the vuhool fwi$ e&OFt1Qnod to that distr;rict for twt mhola8tio ye8r. %%i6 

lialtatiaau9wl t%8 mvarob th4tl%*t64a satltex~tbe 

tt#.ttHcct vft.h the tiher5 n6uoawlly Isalt at0 prsPIOX& of the Ocbt~ thltt ~&$-it be oontraated to tbs amount 

ur th% fund vhfch b8lcm.ged to tha ti8trl6t for #6t y6aP, 

sal any &ebt cantreoted -tier then that vunld k e 

visl,.stlm of the l&V, had Gonst1tut0 rl0 olsla -lx&St 

tha di6tPfGt. The mix appxwprlated ballg Itxwnnt, azld 

me tm&ert Of 8Ghm.b d4&onarlwd, the 1eilgCh al the tezr 

t4 bs tsmght lrtsa4 SLX vltb WPteinq the p-104 tQ be 

paLd to tis6i t6whQr* snd E&o Qld med bQ lPi814d &out it. 

%%4 tmlst64e vm-6 mukk0rl.a~ ka aapoad ?a% 6uEl Ost 

apart t8 the d.f8t~~6t, but imt stcpwsx6d to aontrikst 

8 debt m~g4nst the OSJ&I ab f?%tztre posse . = 

8uppl~b.t ) 

(X@ma~s 
Yhi8 Mae van bstolr the 3upTaw cawpt on esTttr%su 

qtwrtfsas. In view af ths above quoted tioldbg tiw Court of 

~2~23 Appeals held ths r0m kr disp~mimg of tb~ M: 

* l * l In the cam ai Culberson v. BWc (T8x. 

Cfv. A *.) 50 3. W. 195, tt uas held by tha eaurt 

of QlYl Bf app4414 Of the Plitr4 HapTeme judiolal d?.strict that the school fund& of an fsar aould be 

tusd la tbs pqausntol the ladebtedna8s af a pns#d- 

%iat?i&tes, at d 

altbaughltls provldect Snmtial~ 3959 

letriots 

tsaahe~~ aball not em&e a Us?lafsnc!y debt 

the district.’ In t&s ea8s of Em& v. Hamb 

Cir. App.) 51 9. W. 266, It vae held W ths afnart of 

alvll appsala 0S tha Saaand suprme ju&ieLsl dirtriot 

170, to osrtlfy tko qkleIstlon ta the SupPans wt. 

San aasue~ to that queattcn 5.e udu, held that tim 

ssbcml fumd of tee par aal& not be uukd ta pay aft 

th0 dabt Of 4&Ou.W pi. !54 S. W. 102% St mh3WB 

mat tb4 pst1tion otat*~a so bauF6 al aotlen, u&u tbs 

(Eaphaai~ rrrrppliad] 

Thtul, It is npprimt that the ‘Joholaatie ysar IS the 

em suntrapbted br Artlals 2749 with rshwwk0e to te8aWrs1 

ueatTacts. 

fn the r6?wmt tm44 of Tsuplwan Ccmso~ sahcaa Blat so. 

1 of Bmsos County Y. 30yd B9. Tiead CO., 8tJl?M, &fntiff 6-d tb 

8ehcwl dlatclot to Tlxxw4r cm trs varmurtr imnaed in papsa of 

-1 wnrmnto, and worn dated Fsbz’wwy 22, 1.933, 

February 22, lC@+, and A&l I, 1934. Them ua4 a0 shmdag that 

t.b d.i8triOt had Elny &tQ4i,hblQ f’tE& @Xl h8Ud fCW tb4 fSlW f@l= 

uhleh the purchw4 Y'CLS aads, and the colsrt, rpbaiclng t.hmugh 

titiee Al~ii&dW, fn hoSa t&t ~'GaoVery atid aat bo, bd QA 

tbo VaTpate had the follalrwg to say: 

' *I + * 3% oth4r wcwU4~ all of the fund4 aearuliag to i&e &atriat ror tno cuTrent wae61 y*aT 

bad gmvioualy be- ag3pPuprmxta far 0th.~ purpo6er 

at 2124 tit834 the dsbt in q~astiaa was SJmmTsu. + * * 
g&lo Ii. L,. wamhburm, P-0 5 

‘slate the tmhool dfmtriot did not, a: the 

tina tlw cantrant vm anteFed into, nm during that 

scrhohsttc pass, have avatlable or aacrnrlng to ff 

?bds amwqsary to mot the abltgatlan, the trustvear 

lrexw vlthalt wtboritr t30 inour tha uobt." haspha41s supplied) 

see also t&s uase Qf F"LFst mu. Ban!& of 

J&mhisoa ~SaUepttadoat School D&at., 2x4 S. W. (2%) 

w court safd the foolloving: 

ln r ler Qf the60 autho~ittis it is OUF o p l& la n that 

tl# trruteo6 o f A 4 c heul ufotrict em vitihmt auth6rity ta lneur 

a debt in a cmt&n ye&r grwU.w !&an the avatlable ftan& oa hand 

01 uhtah are nsoeorurb4 antiuipatetl for th4t year. St im also 

mu- oplnloa that the aeholimtia yew, and not th4 aaleadm y8e, 

gevorzbs the opertrttan of 8daoGl distc2crts uith retpeat tcl zac 

ima’- ob~li~aticms. 

we are not unm- sf th4 ikat that the ttolla66~on of 

Am in the cnae of Uarr~z; et al Y. t3aa$er Sadepsadmt 36heel 

Dirt. et al., '2&l; fi. 'L'. 159, used hr.qu6g4 whleh ecnald possibly 

k uqpd tci support the oorit4xM’xI that the 66lmdsr p6r is the 

pawpar ,Jrerar lib&n it ram 
I Ho@sable H. L. Washbum, page 6 

In apeaifically anawerlng the three questions which you 

have propounded, v8 OllIEinste the WOrdS "C414ndW year' fr~41 

6uah questions because of our holding that the scholastic year 

is thQ proper one. In vlev of the foregoing authorltles and 

discussion, we ansver your first question in the negative. We 

-,m~r yanr second and third questions as Pollovst Debt8 may 

not be contracted greater than the amount of available funda on 

w or that may be reasonably antlakpated for that who01 year. 

A debt created In excess of such edsount la void and constitutes 

a~ 01alm against the district. Obllgatlons expressly payable 

out of funds nooNing t0 the distriQt in a SUbSeqtWIh scholastic 

rmr may not validly be created by the trustees of a school dlstrict; such obligations are void and create no liability vhatsoever en the part of the dlstrlat. If in a prevloua year a debt 

qss validly c-ted In reasonable anticlpatlon of revenues to be 

collected for that year, but the fund 80tually realized vas lnrufflcient to dis&a~e the SLIIM), such debt may be paid from the 

delinquent taxe8 of such prevl0u6 rear or years prior thereto. 

Suah a debt cannot be paid frcsu the revenues of a Subaequ*nt y-oar, 

rt least unless there is an a&IIal surp1ue in tho fund after the 

direbarge of al1 the obligations of auoh subsequent year3 however, 

as there ia no swh surplus in the fund of the school dlatrlct 

lnv41ved, It Is not neaessery for 06 to pass up011 this point, and 

v4 express no op.tiion thereon. 

l&/--I* 

VepY tNlyyeIW6 

AT!l'ORXBY O%ll%I?AI, OF TEXAS 

A?-~., .-, ,,y 7:" ~: