OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

April 17, 1939 

Honorable Robert J. Allen 

Lubbook County 

Labbook, Temm 

.: 

. . 

we be& to aokno 

or March 25, LOS9 

thla laepartlncnt 

coaposed or 0 

ronsahooldlrr 

gvgaril the&r pemea on -the Ori&nal p&itiO~ shoal& be meogn&ed by then, or whether thQr ehotid a;erely consider 

the original elgne% petition to abollsh*~the Rural High 

Sohool Dietriot, 
Hon. Robert J. Allen, April 17, 1939, Page 2 

"Provided that the county school trustees 

shall have the authority to abolish a rural 

h&h sohool dlstrlat on a petition signed by 

a majority of the voters of eaoh elementary 

dlstrlct composing the rural high school dlstrict and when such district has been abollshed the elementary districts shall automatically 

revert back to their original status, with the 

exoeption that In the event there are any outstanding indabtdneaae~ agaInat the eai% rural 

soheol dirtriot eaoh elwntary dietriot shall 

amnuw its proportional part of the %abtr.* 

1t is elear that ua%er iii0 abate statute the 

oounti sohool trustees have of themselves a0 power to. 

abolish a rural high sohool aimi0t unless they are rhit 

authorize% $o %o so bJI "'a petItIon signed by a majority. 

or tha voters of eaoh elementa- diltriot oo@@osing the 

- rural sigh sohool distdot." The ~OldS8iOIl di Appal.8 

0r Texas has ad 8oaatraed a dmllar atatate in the oaae . 

MesauIte Independent Sohool Dlstrlot v. Gross; 67 8. 

0% 

be 

in 

0r all 

.ArtIole 2?62a, R. 0. a., hat3 5e~aieUlr rooeivju%loIal sanotloh by the court. There ean,_theeFam, 

no question as to the valldlty of the prooe%un tnereoutlined whloh makes petitions signed by a majorltr 

the qaalIrIa% voters 0r eaoh or the oomponent %lstrIots 

essential prerequisite before whIoh Zhe boar% of oountr 

sohool trustees oamot sot to abolIsh.ruoh a'rural hi& 

' sohool district. 

(24 j 242. we ;Inate rrom that opinion: - 

*The plain words of the statute ltits 

the'potential jarisdlotlon oi.the sohqol boar%' 

to Instanoes where It Is preeenti%wIth~the 

statatoe-petition. If the statatory petltlqn 

$6 absent, the jarlsdlotion of the boar% Is 

utterly laokIng. -In other words, unless an% 

'ontil-the boar% Is presented with the titit&-, 

tory petition, it has no jurIs%Iatlon in the 

1 premiae8.* 

We have been unable to find any-Texas authorities %Ireotly in point on the. queetign oi whether a. 

signer of a petition may subsequentlp revoke his aot In 

so signing the petltlon. The authorI8iee OQ this qaestIon.In other jurIs%lotIons dare not unlform.but the \ 
Hon, Robert J. Allen, April 17, 1939, Page 3 

doaided weight of authority follows the rule 'thatone 

who signs a petition may.subsequently revoke his signature prior to the time that the petition haa been aoted 

UpOIl. 

‘We quote from 15 Corpus JurIs at p. 402: 

"AXI elector may legally sign two or more 

non-oompeting petitions and he aay withdraw 

h is a lg r uta r e b y l wr itten oommanloation, wlthoat appear* ln.p 8r eo n. The withdrawal ma y 

. 

be ma& after the 4atdfIxdl for hparlng and 

. . . beox- rinal aotlonr~ state r. Faniah, 42 noxk- -. 

tapa 26, lS4-Pao. 297. 

Quot&'iropl SS Corpar JIlris at p. '6262 

:. *A &ItIoner for a.loaal option petition 

nny.frMhdraw hi8 nuta rr0m ths petition at ady 

flab3 before the pstitloa has been aoted apon.* 

cmmr v. Wewto~, lb4 Kentaokf 499, 167 s.W. 716. 

The Saprege aoart.or wonta~, in the owe 0r 

stati V. y,.53 u0tktaw4 iss, 168 ~0. 164, +a: 

I 

*Counsel on both sib08 oorrc~otlyaasuae6 

that it ma th0 aaty or the board to permit 

such of the~petltlowra as de&red to %o so to 

wIt;hdraw.~heIr nasies from the petition - - - - Th0 right or petition rr0hi it8 mare4 impmu 

the rI&htoiwIth%rawal, beoause, aponfuzther' 

4Iaoaf4eIon aad~mora mature rdi0otion a8 to the 

dsrlrabIlItp or the l aoompllehment of the. purpose eought by the petition, the petitloner 

may ohange his aonylotion." 

'Ln State v. Boyden, 21 & Dakota 6i 102 If. W. 

897, the Suprems Court of South Dakota held that ths 

sQners oi a petition to oall an eleoti~Q.to~m+ve the 

aounty seat ooulld. remove their names from the:petltioa, 

either by striking them therefrom br by a subsequent 

petition any tIme b0r0m it was aoted apon, 

%%,e loglo em% reaaoa bemd this rule has boon 

mmt rorosrully erplalned b? the SU~WEO (tourti 0r wlaooasin 3.n &s Londe V. Board 0r SaperPlsore or Barron Oounty, 

49 W. W. 9601 
Eon. Robert J. Allen, April 17, .1939, Page 4 

2’ 

. 

. 

"The learned oircuit judge held that the 

board had the right to allow persona who had 

signed the petition to withdraw the;eir nemoa 

therefrom;or to strike their name8 from th 

petition, when requested so to do by the al 3-s. 

before the.petltlon wae finally aoted upon by 

the board. Waae that a oorreot view of the matter? We think It was, and that it was In aooord 

with mason and oomon sense. For what valid 

objeotlon 1s there, either in law or on grouads. 

or publlo polio)- agaIn8talMwInga per8onwho 

ha8 signed a patitloa lalr(an ior 4 raqovql. of 

the 00~tpaeat ~XW *TV* ~8,8*lu'.ama 

the petition Eeforu It.18 l otcia &&ion by the 

board4 AS the i0amd 00~01 r0.t ,tb ~a+0,tbwt8 

: nay, a person amy have been de~eivsa or: eatrep+ 

ped, or t&ma&h lnadvertenoe or~thoughtle881~0@8~:~, 

nay have 6lgne4,saoh a petition; aa&. :.og~sdflqo~-~.~ 

tion, a na b a r 028 l atloa is+akim oa Lt.;-*y UoL .~ '. 

aIre. ti eormat hi8 aatloii, *aa Cnth%raw~al8 :.:. 

aamec Why ehould, he not have the rIghta&& prl-. _' 

rllege or %oing 007 Aa lntelllgent man; +ofIng. 

dellberatelp hna ander8tand~~; play ohange, 

hle'ml~il oa 8uoh a question, and oonoltiae he 

has made a mistake In a6kIng ror a~ohange of the 

oounty-seat and that the pabllo Interest iril;L 

be prgmted by having the bounty-seat remafn-: 

where it Is. All thIe i8 plaIn.an% obvloimfo, 2G 

any one refleoting on tha mqbjeo$." J 

-. 

As heretotire statad the aatharitles are not 

In entire aooor% oa this quecltioa bat by far the @eater 

number ot-8+ates followthe hoidlng &ad the rearonlag 

or the above' o.Its% oaeq by the SuprepSe'Coort of WIaooa8la. 

See: Hey8 y. 301168, 27 Ohio State,218; Ear% v. IElliott, 

33 ImlIana 220; State vi Eggleston, 34 Ean. 7x4,~ 10 Pao. 

3; State v. Wemaha Co., 10 Web. 32, 4 W. W. 393. 

. 

Both the'weQht of authortty and the reafKmMt3 

upon,wliioh the..case8 are based Inoline UB .taward the tisw 

that one who s&ns a petltlon may +l?sequeafly, upoa.ohanglag his mind, revoke his aOf el@her by etrikLn&hle name 

from the petition hiplseir or bp 8Qning.a revoking petltion. we oan me no just rea8bn'It~r~opnelderIng the signing @a pstltlon an lrrevooable.aot. In our opinion a 

petition which 18 being oiroulated among the voters 1s 
Iion. Robert J. Allen, April 17, 1939, Page 5 

lq the nature of an ambulatory instrument which may be 

altered or revoked by the signers thereto until the same 

has been acted upon for the purposes whioh it was designed to serve or until someone has relied theron to his 

detriment. 

Replying speaifioally to the question presented in your letter we respectfully advise you that it is 

the opinion of this Department that the effeot or the 

edoona eeries 0r petitions which ask the removal 0r the 

signers* names from the ilr8t petition au4 ask that the 

14alou Rural High Sohoof. DlstrIot be not ab0118he4 ha6 

th8 6mOt Of rOv0k.m the d&IMmFOS Of t&se per8OM 

On ae first petition GhIoh mqus8td the County Boar% 

of &ho01 Trustees to ab0lIah the I%n.lou Rural,Hlgh 

School Dlstrlot. xr after rubtraoting rr0m the~aumbem .'. 

or those who signed the m-8t petitioa, the nsnms 0r 

those who signed the revoaatiag petition, .the remalnIag 

number IS not 8urrloleat to ooastitate a majority 0r the 

.qMiiiiO% YObBrS Or WOb dba0ntary diEtriOt 00~~08~ 

th8 IdalOU Rural sigh SOh00i DlStriOt.it iOUOws that. _- 

ander the authority of Artlole 2922a, Revised OIvIl SW- 

.. totes 0r Texas, the Boar% 0r couaty Sohool TrUStees 18 

not emp0werea to abolish the rural high s,oPool distriot. 

,Youra very truly 

A%!iWWEYGSRERALOFTEiAS 

. 

Waltsr.B.Xboh 

A8sistfmt 

LGh 

A'rl!ORKEYCEN%RAL OFTIC@S