March 'I, 1958 

Dr. James A. Turman 

Executive Secretary 

Texas Youth Council 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Dr. Turman: 

Opinion Wo. ~~-3‘88 

Re: Authority of Texas Youth 

Council to renew and 

extend contractual agreements now in effect with 

Independent School Districts in the cities in 

which the respective State 

Children's Homes are located; 

and related questions. 

We have received your letter of February 10, 1958, in 

which you submitted the following questions for our opinion: 

"1 D In order to provide maximum educational 

opportunities for scholastics at the State Children's Homes under Texas Youth Council jurisdiction, 

can the Council renew and extend contractual 

agreements now in effect with Independent School 

Districts in the cities in which the respective 

State Children's Homes are located? 

"2. If your answer to the above question is 

in the affirmative, can such contractual agreements 

cause the State Home Independent School Districts 

to lose Independent School District status under 

the so-called dormant school statutes or by other 

means except by legislative action? 

“3. Even if all scholastics in the Children's 

Homes, grades one through twelve, attend public 

schools under such contractual agreements, made or 

renewed annually, can such agreements bring any 

change in the Home's Independent School District 

status except through specific action by the 

Legislature?" 

Article 2666, Vernon's Civil Statutes, Is the authority for the existence of independent school districts at the 

institutions in question. Attorney General's Opinion ww-285 

(1957) a 
D.T. James A. Ttmnan, Page 2 (Ww-388). 

Section ga; Article 5143d, Vernon's Civil Statutes, 

authorizes the Texas Youth Council to accept certain children 

for admission to the Corsicana State Home and the Waco State 

Home and to offer, if needed, care, treatment, education, and 

training to such children as are admitted. Section 25a of 

such statute reads in part as follows: 

"For the purposes of carrying out its duties, 

the Youth Council is authorized to make use of 

state. 

educational . . . institutions within the 

When funds are available for the purpose, 

the Youth Council may enter into agreements with 

the appropriate private or public official for 

the separate care and special treatment in existing institutions of persons subject to the control 

of the Youth Council." 

In our opinion, the above quoted provisions authorize 

the contracts in question. It follows that, there being 

authority to contract In the first instance, the Texas Youth 

Council may renew such oontracts from time to time so long as 

the statutory authority remains effective. 

The so-called "Dormant District" statute, being 

Article 2922-18, Vernon's civil Statutes, specifically expresses 

the legislative intent of such provisions to be that: 

All property subject to school district 

taxation wiihin the State of Texas be included within 

the limits of a School Mstrict and that a proper 

and proportionate tax be paid thereon for school 

purposes." (Emphasis ours). 

To achieve such purpose, the Statute provides for 

the abolition of dormant districts and the incorporation of 

the properties therein contained into an adjoining district. 

It would be a useless gesture to declare a district whose 

area is only co-extensive with the confines of a state institution, to be a dormant district when the property in the 

district so abolished and annexed to an adjacent district 

could not be taxed according to the announced purpose of such 

statute. We are not of the opinion that the provisions of 

Article 2922-18, Vernon's Civil Statutes, pertain to the 

independent school districts in question. See also Attorney 

General's Opinion WW-285 (1957) wherein it was held that the 

provisions of Senate Bill 175, Acts 55th Legislature, Regular 

Session, Chapter 143, pertaining to certain budgetary and 

accounting procedures to be established and followed in each 

Independent School District did not apply to the districts in 

question here, due to their peculiar status. 
Dr. James A. Turman, Page 3 (W-388). 

In addition, we call attention to Section 1, Article 

2756c, Vernon's Civil Statutes , which reads in part as follows: 

'Any school district created or established by 

the State Board of Education under the provisions 

of either Article 2666, Revised Civil Statutes of 

1925, . . . may be abolished by order of the State 

Board of Education upon written request . . . of 

the board of trustees of the school district. 

Notice of the order of abolishment in writing 

shall be given to the trustees of such independent 

school district and to the county board of school 

trustees of the county In which the district is 

located. From and after the effective date of 

this Act, the authority heretofore vested in the 

State Board of Education to create or establish 

school districts under any Statute of this state 

is hereby abolished." 

Since this statute is specifically directed to the 

districts in question, we are of the opinion that the status 

of the independent school districts at the Institutions In 

question would not be affected by your proposed plan of operation, absent action of the State Board of Education In 

accordance with the provisions of Article 2756c, Vernon's 

Civil Statutes. The status of the school districts existing 

at the affected institutions could be altered only by legislative action or in accordance with the provisions of Article 2756~. 

SUMMARY 

The Texas Youth Council may renew and extend 

contractual agreements now in effect with 

Independent School Districts In the cities in 

which the respective State Children's Homes 

are located. There being specific legislation 

pertaining to the abolition of Independent 

School Districts established under Article 

2666, Vernon's Civil Statutes, the general 

provisions of Article 2922-18 a0 not apply 

to such districts. 

Very truly yours, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

TIM:LP:wam:jl 

Leonard Passmore 

Assistant 
Dr. James A. Turman, Page 4 (WW-388) 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman 

J. C. Davis, Jr. 

Wayland C. Rivers, Jr. 

C. K. Richards 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: W. V. Geppert