Hon. J. M. Reiger 

County Attorney 

Stenhens COuntY 

Breckenridge, Texas 

Dear Sir: 

Opinion No. O-7124 

Re: Construction of Article 2753, 

V.A.C.S., with reference to whether 

Veterans may be given preference in 

the purchase of abandoned rural 

school buildings of a common school 

district 

Your request for opinion has been received and carefully considered by this Department. We quote from your request as follows: 

“Article 2753 Texas School Law, ‘Sale 

of School Property t , states, ‘The Trustees of 

any school district, upon the order of the 

county trustees prescribing the terms thereof’ 

etc. We have a number of rural school buildings not in use, which may be sold. Does the 

County Board of Education have the authority 

to limit the bidding on the buildings, in case 

they are sold, by public auction or sealed 

bids to veterans only? 

“Please let us have an opinion on this 

interpretation of that part of the law which 

says ‘prescribing the terms thereof’, or 

whether it can be applied to limiting the sale 

of the abandoned rural school buildings to 

service men.” 

Article 2753, Vernon’s Annotated Texas Civil Statutes, reads as follows: 

“The trustees of any school district, upon 

the order of the county trustees prescribing 

the terms thereof, when deemed advisable, may 

make sale of any property belonging to said 

school district, and apply the proceeds to the 

purchase of necessary grounds, .or to the building or repairing of school houses, or place the 

proceeds to the credit of the available school 

fund of the district.N 
Hon. J. M. Beiger - Page 2 

Article 2753, supra relates only to common school 

districts and does not apply $0 independent school districts. 

See Opinion No. o-6554 of this department, a copy of which 

is enclosed herewith. Said opinion No. o-6554 also holds that 

sales of independent school district property may be made at 

either private or public sale. 

The discretion and powers of school trustees must 

be exercised so as to best serve the interests of the public. 

Union Independent School District V. Sawyer, 259 S. W. 637. 

However, in the absence of a showing of aorruption, fraud or 

bad faith 

viewed. A 

the discretion of school trustees will not be reavis vs. Hemphill, 243 S. W. 691. 

The courts will not interfere with boards of education in carrying out the powers and duties required of them by 

law unless there has been a clear abuse of discretion or a 

violation of law; unwarranted interference would be to substitute the discretion of the courts for that of the boards. 37 

Texas Jurisprudence, p. 942. 

Many federal and state laws alike make preferences in 

favor of veterans who have rendered services to their country, 

however, Article 2753, supra, does not make any such preferences, 

and it is, therefore, our opinion that Article 2753, supra, does 

not authorize the limitation of bidding on school property to 

veterans only as outlined in your letter. 

However, we wish to point out that Article 2753, supra, 

does not require a public sale of such property and it is our 

opinion that the Board would clearly have the authority to make 

a valid sale of said property to a veteran, or to any other 

person for that matter, at private sala so long as the sale was 

regular, fairly made and for the best p&e obtainable. Any person desiring to attack such a sale would have the burden of showing wherein the Board had abused its discretion in the matter. 

APPROVED MAR 22, 1946 

/s/ Grover Sellers 

ATTORNEY CJENERAL OF TEXAS 

APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE 

BY: BWB, Chairman 

WJF:BT:wb 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEX GENERAL OF TEXAS 

By /s/ Wm. J. Fanning 

Wm. J. Fanning, Assistant