JOHN L. HILL Attorney General 

# The Attorney General ofTexas August 28, 1978

Honorable Homer A.Davis County Attorney Hartley County P.0. Box1110 Dalhart, Texas 79022 Opinion No. II- 1233 Re: Whether election onannexation to hospital district may be held within three months ofelection defeating similar proposal. Dear Mr. Davis: You ask whether, onthe facts presented, anelection may beheld onthe annexation ofpart of Hartley County to the Moore County H,ospital District. Early in 1978, apetition was presented to the directors ofthe Moore County Hospital District seeking annexation into the district of part of Hartley County. The proposal was defeated byvoters within the area proposed to be annexed. Thereafter, asecond petition was filed seeking annexation ofpart of Hartley County into the Moore County Hospital District. This second petition covered a different tract of land than the first petition although there was some overlap. An election on the second proposal has been set for adate inAugust, 1978. You wish to know whether the second election may be called within three months of the first election. You inform us that the Hartley County Commissioners have voted to become part of a proposed Dallam-Hartley Counties Hospital District, which will require legislative action to establish. The Moore County Hospital District was established pursuant to an uncodified special law adopted under the authority of article 9, section 9of the Texas Constitution. V.T.C.S. art. 4494q; Acts 1969, 61st Leg., ch. 287. Section 1Aof the special law creating the hospital district provides inpart:

Under the provisions ofthis Section, territory which isnot then within (i) Moore County, or (ii) within the boundaries ofany other hospital district, or(iii) within the proposed boundaries of any hospital district which the Legislature has authorized to be included within the area ofahospital district under article IX, Section 9of the Constitution, may be annexed or added to the area included inthe boundaries ofthe proposed district

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set forth in Section 1. Territory which is proposed to be annexed or added may be in one or more tracts, each of which shall beeither contiguous (adjacent) to the area ofthe district asdescribed inSection 1,orcontiguous (adjacent) to territory which has been or isproposed to be annexed to the district. If the territory inHartley County fits the foregoing description, voters who reside there may petition for its annexation according to the following provision of section 1A: Apetition asking that territory be annexed to the district

may be presented to the board of directors of the district.

... The board of directors, upon the receipt of the petition, ifit finds that it would be in the best interest of the district, shall (within 90days after such finding) approve the same and order anelection todetermine ifsuch property shall be annexed or added to the district.

. . . . The provisions ofSection 3, with respect to the qualifications of voters in the election therein provided, as well as the provisions thereof with respect to the time, manner and holding ofelections and giving notice thereof, shall apply to all elections held under the provisions ofthis Section.

. . .The board ofdirectors ofthe district may consider all petitions presented to it, and approve or reject the same. ... (Emphasis added). Section 3(a) of the special law, referred to and emphasized above, reads inpart:

The district shall not be created, nor shall any tax therein, be authorized unless and until such creation and tax are approved by a majority of the qualified property taxpaying electors of the area of the proposed district voting at an election called for such purpose. ... Such election shall be held not less than 35 nor more than 60 days from the date the election isordered. The order calling the election shall specify the date, place orplaces ofholding the election.

... The failure of such election shall not operate toprohibit the calling and holding of subsequent electtons for the same

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purpose; provided, however, that no district election for confirmation can be held within 12months ofany proced?& district election for confirmation, and, further provided, if this district isnot confirmed within 5years ofthe effective date ofthis Act, this Act ishereby repealed. (Emphasis added). Webelieve Texas courts, ifcalled on tojudicially interpret the meaning of “same purpose” as used above, would probaby hold under the facts presented that the second proposed annexation election is not for the “same purpose” as the initial election which failed because the second proposal encompasses substantially different territory, even though some land was included in both proposed annexations. Cf. Attorney General Opinion No. H-145 (1973) (political subdivision could hold one election per year at county expense). That being our opinion of the probable construction to be placed on the language under the facts presented here, we need not decide whether the prohibition of two elections within 12 months applies to annexations by reason of the emphasized language of section 1A. Inall other respects the annexation election must comply with section 3. In the absence of an express limitation on the frequency of annexation elections, webelieve none exists. See Attorney General Opinion V-585 (1948),V-126
r (1947). The matter iswithin the discretion of the board of directors, which shall

order anelection ifit would, in its judgment, beinthe best interest ofthe district.

. SUMMARY The special law under which the Moore County Hospital District was established, Acts 1969, 61st Leg., ch. 287, does not provide for a specific interval of time between annexation elections unless the elections are for the same purpose.

APPROVED:

DAVID M.KENDALL, First Assistant

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C. ROBERT HEATH, Chairman Opinion Committee

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