AUSTIN. TEXAS 

wovember 5, 1949 , 

Boll. Gene Ii. Hlxson opinion Bo. v-944. 

Couuty Attornef 

Lipacomb County Be: The authority or the 

Biggina, Texer ~trwtees of an iudependeut aohool dlstriot to sell unused 

school houses of dormant aohool diatrlota 

tQllowing their OOPDeer Hr. Mixson: solid&ion. 

We refer to your mueat presenting, in aubstance, the followlng data end question: 

!The Llpaocmb County School Board, aotIn& under Artlole VIII of Senate Bill 116 

filat Legislature, (codified as Art.2922-lb, 

In 8ernon1s Civil Statutes) by order oonaolidated Common Sohool Districts Won. 8, 9, 11 

and a part of 6, all being dormant aohool diatrlots, with the Higgins Independent~Mhool~ 

Biatriot In such county. .Electioda h&we been 

held wherein bonded indebtedness has ~%een aasumed and provialon for levying a naintenanoe 

tax has been made. 

Located in the new diatrlot are three 

abandoned aohool howea whioh were used, at 

one time, by the dormant Oommon Sohool Diatrlots. Sohobl has not been held in them for 

many years. They are standing in disuse, unrepaired, end are rapidly deteriorat$ng. Ii 

sold, they will probably bring $200 to $400 

a piece. 

Question: may the Board of Trustees of' 

Hlggina Independent School Diatpict sell these 

abandoned sohool houses and invest the proceeds in more oonvenlent and desirable school 

property? If 80, must the consent of State 

Department of Education be obtained? 

We awume ior purpo8ea of th%.s 'opinion that the 
, 

Hon. Gene R. Mlxaon, page 2 (V-944) 

buildings in question were aoqulred or oonatruoted and 

maintained with public money; that they are owned and 

held in trust for aohool purposes. 

Artiole VIII of Senate Bill 116, dots slat 

Legislature, provides in pert as follows: 

” the Board of Trustees for the distkit’wlth which such dormant school dlatrlot is consolidated shall continue to 

serve, and be, the Board of Trustees for 

the new dlatrlot. In each auoh oaae, the 

oonsmdation order of the County Board of 

Trustees shall define by legal bouudary 

deaoription the territory of the new dLstriot ga so enlarged and extendedTnd said 

order, including the description of the distriot, shall be recorded in the minutes of 

the County Board of Trustees and otherwise 

as provided by law. ~Electlons shall be held 

in such consolidated districts for the aasuisption of outstanding bonda, if any, for 

the levying of taxes therefor, and ‘for the 

levying of a local maintenance tax; said 

elections to be ordered and held as now provided by laws” (Bmphasis added). 

Temple I IS .D. v. Proctor, $7 S.W.2d 1047 (Tex. 

Civ.App.1936, error ref.) holds that Artlole 2780 is applioable to all types of independent aahool dlatrlcta, 

whether in incorporated cities or not. 

Artiole 2780, Vernon’s Clvll Statutes, provides: 

‘Said trustees shall adopt such rules, 

regulations and by-laws as they may deem pro,? 

per, and the public free schools of awh inA. 

dependent aohool district shall be under ‘their 

obntrol; and they shall have the exclusive 

power to manage and govern said sohoola, end 

all rights and titles to property for school 

purposes heretofore vested in the mayor, city 

oounoila, or school trustees by Articles 3995, 

4013 and 4032, Revised Statutes of 1895, or 

other statutes, general end speolal, eroept 

such cities as era exempted by this title, 

shall be vested in said board of trustees and 

their successors in offioe, and their olatia 
Eon. Gene H. Hlxaon, page 3 (V-944) 

shall apply to any action or suit which may 

arLae to whloh said board Is a party.” 

Under the express provisions of Artiole VIII 

of Senate Bill 11.6, a new district was created when the 

county board by its order consolidated the dormant diatriots to the Higgins Independent Sohool District. The 

truateea of former Higgins diStriQt ars now the truaFtieitof the eularged new Higgins Independent School DlaThe former common school dtatridta, defined as 

dormant in Article VIII, by reason of their consolldation with the Hlgglna district, have ceased to exist. 

State v. Cadeohead, 129 S.W.2d 743 (Tex.Cfv.App.1939, 

error ref.). Thus, the school properties, title to whloh 

prior to the consolidation was veated in the boards of 

trustees of the dormant common school dlatrlota, is now 

vested in the Board of Trustees of the Higgins Independent school Diatriot and their successors in office by 

reason of the consolidation end in accordance with the 

provisions of Article 2780, V.C.S., Love v. City of Dal- 

&, 120 Tex.251, 40 S.W.2d 20, at p. 26 (1931). Houston 

v. Gonaalea I.S.D., 229 3.W. 467, (Comm.App.192~); Lender v. Victoria Count 131 S.U. 821, (Tex.Clv.App.rViO); 

T J 946 Schok, Sec.79; A.G.Oplnions Ros. O54e~&?:7265: 

With respect to the authority of the board of 

trustees of an independent school district to sell school 

property of the distrikt we quote from Article 2773: 

"Any houses or lands held in trust by 

any city or town for public free school purposes may be sold for the purpose of investing In more convenient and desirable school 

property, with the consent of the State Board, 

Fr Frmbozs of school trustees of such city 

in such case, the president of 

the schiol b;ard shall execute his deed to the 

purchaser for the ssme, reciting the resolution 

of the State Board giving consent thereto and 

the resolution of the board of trustees authorlalng such sale.” 

Previous Attorney Genersl opinions O-415 and 

O-1570 hold thet the prooedure to be followed by boards 

of trustees of independent districta ln selling abandoned school buildings and grounds is that provided in Article 2773, V.C.S. R.B.Spencer & Co. v. Brown, 198 S.W. 

1179, (Tex.Civ.App.1917, error ref.). Oplnlon O-1570 
Eon. Gene Ii. Mixaon, psge 4 (V-944) 

further holds that independent school districta msy dispose of property no longer needed for aahool purpoaea, 

only if it is necessary to do so to acquire other property whLoh is more suitable; that such property may not be 

sold for the purpose of putting tbe’:prooeeda in the looal 

maintenance fund of the district. 

With the foregoing in mind, it is our opinion 

that the Board of Trustees of the Higgins Independent 

School District may dispose of the abandoned buildlags 

in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 2773. 

This law requires that the board of trustees meet and 

sdopt a resolution evidenolng their decision to sell the 

buildings. Then the cowent resolution of the State Board 

of Education must be aeoured, and finally the prealdent 

of the Hlggka Board of Trustees must execute the deed 

to the purchaser. ‘Fhe two resolutions should recite tM 

purpose of the sale, and the deed should refer to both ‘5 

reaolutiow . 

SUMMARY 

Abandoned ,achool buildtinge in dorraant 

districts oowolidsted with an independent 

school district under Article VIII of Senate 

Bill 116, Acts of the 5Xst Legislature, may 

be sold by ,the board of trustees of the newly created school dietriot In aooordanoe with 

the provisions of Article 2773, ~V.C.8. hart. 

2780, v.c.s.; Love v City of Dalli%, 120 Tex. 

351, 40 S.W.2d. 20’ Eowtod v.‘.(ion%a~6k I.S.D., 

229 S.W.467; Land& v. Viot’otiU Coiantjr, 13 

3 .W. 821; R.B.Spencer & Co. v’. BYown, 198 i.W. 

1179; A.G.Opinlow Hos .0413, 0-l>m, O-5354, 

o-7265. 

APPROVED 

Yours very truly, 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

James E. Ferguaon 

Aaalatant 

JEF:CRO:bh:mv 

&-7pW 

Cheater IE. Olliaon 

Aaal8tant