-.A.~
OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN ,6-G--eHonorableI. Pmdeokl

CountyAuditor OalvestonCounty t?alveeton,

Texas

Dear sir:

0 eleations.

to whether the ered by persons to be paid by Sahool Disthat have e also alassed as Cow

kmon*a AnnotatedCivil Statutea,re1 district trustee elections,provides,

"Said bustees shall appoint thred (5) pepsona, quallffedvotem of the dietriot,who shall hold such electionand make returns thereof to maid trusteeswIthin five (6) dprs after euahry Honorable I1 Fmdeoki, page #2

election,and said persous shall receive aa compensationfor their servlaee the sum of one Dollex ($1) eaoh, to be paid out of the looal fuuds of the sahooldistrictwhere the eleotion was held.”

Prior to itrr amendmentin 1941 (XoueeBill No. 11, Oh. 623, Aata 47th Legislature), this statuteprmlded tiat the one dollar compensationto the eleetLon offlolalsrhould be paid out of the aounty geueral fuud. However, the amendment a h"tf ed the statuteby providing that such ooupeasation shall be paid out of the locral fuuda of the oohool district where the eleotlonwas held.a This wa6 the only respeet in whiah the statutewas changed.

The emergenoy olause of Hmse Bill 20. 11 read8, in part, a6 followsr

*set. 2. The fast tbat the generalhnd of the several oountiesof thl* Btate is muah depleted creates au eaasrgeney * + 0."

Artiole 2746a provides that the expenses of printing and deliveringthe ballots to the pretalding offloer, "together with the other eupenses inoldentalto sa3.d eleatiou ehall be pnld.out of the ava.tlable malutenauae fuuds belonglug to the sohool dlstriot In whloh arrid eleotlon is held, or to be held."

Artlale 2740b provider that all expenses In conueation with or incidentalto any sohool dlstriat eleation anal1be paid out of the maintenancefund of maid distritt.

In view of these atatutox-y provirionathere canbe no doubt that the one dollar compeneatlonto offioialefor holding 6-n aehool dlatrief trumtee eleotiona should be paid out of the looal funds of the school distrlat#

### 847

Eononble I. p~edeaki,page #3

AdditionaloousldePations enteP in, however,when oonsolldated

mmmon aahool distriat trustee electionsare involved. Articles 2774a (Seatlon3) end 2808 both provide that offiaislsholding suah eleatlons shall reeelve tro dollaxwa &I for.

euah rerviaes. We quete the last sentenoe 0r seat&on 3 of Artiole 2774s as follows:

*The board of trmsteea of the district shsll appoint three qualifiedvote- of the district to hold bald eleationaud mske returns thereof in like aLlpner

as provided by law for holding eleatlousfor tPustees in aosmon school dlrtriata, exee*t that the perrom holding said eleatlon shall eaah roaeive &an the geuenl ~M;fst$e oounty two dolluw a day ,tor8ueh

.

You will uotiae that the artioIe provides tbst persens holding the eleotlon shall reaelve the two dollrrs frapI the general fund of the aouutq. But we bolieva that the muemlmeut in 194.l

to Artlole 2746 ahongsd the souPae of paTsmut frca the aounty general fund te the maintummoe fund ot the dtstriat. CUP reamone for this view ace stated am folloust When Artlcrle 2774s wao ensoted in 1930 the general law (Article2746) provided that the compensation of officlslsholding common sahool dlstriot tnutee eleatlousshould be oue dollar and shouldbe ppid fraa the general fuud of the aountI. Therefore,the only dlffereuaebetween Seation 3 OS Artlale 2774a aud the general lsw in this respeotwas the amount of the oompensation - two dollua a6 wlnst one dollaP. If fOllOW8 that the part of Section 3 of Article 2774a providingfor payment to be vmde from the oouuty general futul wa8 pure surplus. The Intention was declared in Seotion S that the eleotion should be held ae eleotions

~for common sahool dietriot trusteesexcept, elimiuating the surpluspart, that the compensationof electionoffioials shouldbe two doll3rs.

The emergency~ILUUW of the 1941 amendment statesc "The faot that the general fund of the several, aountieaof this Stateis muoh depleted + * +." Thie language olearlg ahowe the

reason for the &an&e of the eouree of papent from the genera& fund to sohool funds. The luuae reasonwould apply with equal foroe to the ocnapenaation of pereonsholding sonsolidatedaomon sohool dletrlot trustee elections. We do not think that the amount of eompenea~ion*mentionsd In Seotlon 8 (two dollars,) was affeated by the 1941 amendment,for it la &early ahown in the aurgrns~ olau6e that It wa8 not the uouut o? oaupenaatlonthat prompted ,the &an@, but, rather, the sourae of payment.

A.r we have mtifore mentieued, th6 intention#a8 shorn in Se@tZon-8 of Ar%ile 8TWa &hat consoUda$ed school distriot tmastee .eleotlonn &ouXd be held ae electioxxe for acsntwna&do1 dlrtrlat trusteoa mept thet tht% oompezaeatidn shouldbe two,dol&rai ~Xou,qm, therefore,advised Turk th# one dollar aampbnaationto pertao~ SOP holdin,y[a a31wwn sohool dietriot truetee eleotion and the twu dollara oompenaafion to pereone SOP holding a cohaolidatedeQoBon sahoold%.strlattruetee election shouldbe paid out OS the looal ruadrm of the distriot in jhioh suah eleetzonwan held.

Gws-s

O.K. C.@.R.