### THEA ORNEY GENERAL OF~EXAS

June 6, 1962

Honorable J. W. Edgar Commissionerof Education Texas EducationAgency Austin, Texas Opinion No. WW-1342
Re: Whether "federal-ownedforestry land" shouldbe construed to include National Grasslandsrecently made a part of the national forestry system for purposes of allowing a deduction in the local fund assignment of a schooldistrictpursuant to Section 

### 5 of Article 2922- 

### 16of Vernon's Civil Dear Dr. Edgar: Statutes.

Your request for opinion from this office informs us that schooldistricts In Fannin Countyand other counties in Texas contain landwhich is a part of the Panhandle National Grasslands,a federal reservation,which by administrative order was made a part of the National Forest System. The tax assessor-collectorof Fannin County now contends that the district is eligible for an adjustment reduction in its local fund assignmentpursuant to Section 

### 5of Article 

### 2922-16 of Vernon's Civil Statutes.

You then ask the following question:
"Forpurposes of allowing a deduction in the local fund assignment of a school districtpursuant to proviso, Article 

### 2922-16, Section 5, secondparagraph, legally should 'federal-ownedforestry land' be construed to include National Grasslands only recently made a part of the national forestry system?" Section 

### 5of Article 

### 2922-16 states in part as follows:
"Sec.

### 5. The State Commissionerof Education shall determine the amount of local funds to be charged to each schooldistrict and used therein toward the support of the Foundation School Program, which amount shallbe calculatedas follows:-

Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 2. (WW-1342)

"Dividethe stateand county assessed valuation of all property in the county subject to schooldistrict taxation for the next preceding schoolyear into the state and county assessed valuation of the district for the next preceding schoolyear, finding the district'spercentage of the county valuation. Multiply the district's percentage of the county valuationby the amount of funds assigned to all of the districts in the county. The product shallbe the amount of local funds that the district shallbe assigned to raise toward the financing of its Foundation School Program. "Provided,however, that in any district containing stateuniversity-owned land, state-owned prison land, federal-owned forestry land, federalowned military reservations or federal-owned Indian reservations, the amount assigned to such schooldistrict shallbe reduced in the proportion that the area included in the above-named classificationbears to the total area of the district. Provided further, that no local fund assignment shallbe charged to the Boys Ranch Independent School District in Oldham County, Texas. II

. . . "TheCounty Tax Assessor-Collector in each county, in addition to his other duties prescribed by law, shall certify to the State Commissionerof Education in Austin, Texas, not later than December 1st of each year, the following information: "(1) The assessed valuation, on a stateand countyvaluation basis, of all property subject to schooldistrict taxation in each schooldistrict or portion of schooldistrict in such county, and the total assessed valuation of all property subject to the school district taxation in the county; "(2) The total area of each schooldistrict; and 

### “(3) The area within each school district comprised of stateuniversity-owned land, state-owned prison land, federal-owned forestry land, federal-Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 3. (WW1342)

owned military reservations,and federal-owned Indian reservations.
"Shouldany County Tax Assessor-Collector fail to submit such certificates to the State Commissioner of Education as provided for herein, the State Comptrollerof Public Accounts is hereby directed to submit such information,estimatingwhen necessary. As soon after the receipt b~fsuch certificates as practicable, and prior to the time that the respective tax rates for the schooldistricts,of the county have been set, the State Commissionerof Education shallnotify each school district as to the amount of local funds that such district is assigned to raise for the succeeding schoolyear." (Empha,sis added) Section471 of Title 16 of the United States Code Annotated states in part as follows:

"ThePresident of the United Statesmay from time to time, set apart and reserve, 1; any State or Territory having public land bearing forests, in any part of the public lands wholly or in part coveredwith timber or undergrowth,whether of commercialvalue or not, as national forests, and the President shall, by public proclamation, declare the establishment of such forestsand the limits thereof.

II

. . . "(b) The President, in his discretion, is authorized to establish as national forests or parts thereof, any landswithin the boundaries of Governments

reservations, other than nationalparks, reservations for phosphate and other mineral deposits, or water-powerpurposes, national monuments and Indian reservations,which in the opinion of the Secretary of the departmentnow administering the area and the Secretary of Agriculture are suitable for the production of timber, to be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture under such rules and regulationsand in accordancewith such generalplans as may be jointly approved by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary formerly administering the area, for the use and occupation of such lands and for the sale of products therefrom.

. . .' (Emphasisadded)Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 4. (WW-1342)

Section 472 statesas follows: "The Secretary of the Department of Agriculture shall execute or cause to be executed all laws affectingpublic lands reserved under the provisions of section 471 of this title, or sections supplementalto and amendatory thereof, subject to the provisions for national forests establishedunder subdivision (b) of section 471 of this title, after such lands have been so reserved,excepting such laws as affect the surveying, prospecting, locating,appropriating, entering, relinquishing, reconveying, certifying, or patenting of any of such lands." (Emphasisadded)
Number 123 of Volume 25 of the Federal Registerprovides as followsat page 5845:

'8213.1 Designation,administration,and development of National Grasslands. "(a) The land utilizationprojects administered by Department of Agriculturedesignated in paragraph (e) of this sectionhereafter shallbe named and referred to as 'NationalGrasslands.'" "(b) The National Grasslands sggn;;t; pa$Ed of the national-forest systemand p Y by the Department of Agriculture for administration under the provisions of Title III of the BankheadJones Farm Tenant Act, subject to such exchanges of lands thereunderas will promote effective and economical administration or otherwise serve the public interest." (Emphasisadded)
The above administrativeorderwas signedby True D. Morse, Acting Secretary,ofAgriculture on June 20, 1960.

Although the PanhandleNational Grasslands located in Texas are not in any one of the four "NationalForests" of Texas, we must hold that such reservationsare Included in "federalowned forestry land," as that phrase is used In Article 2922-16. The administrative order of the Secretary of Agriculture clearly provides that the National Grasslandsare to be a part of the national-forest system,and when Article 2922-16 refers to federal-owned forestry land,we hereby hold that that term is not limited to the National Forests as such,but all federal-owned forestry land.. .- -

Honorable J. W. Edgar, page 5. (WW-1342)

You are therefore advised that upon certificationto you by a county tax assessor-collectoror the Comptroller, that a schooldistrict contains territory in the National Grasslands,that such district Is entitled to a reduction pursuant to Section 5 of Article 2922-16.

SUMMARY
A schooldistrict containing territory in the National Grasslands Is entitled to an assignment reductionpursuant to Section 5 of Article 2922-16 of Vernon's Civil Statutes, since such territory is a part of federal-owned forestry land.

Yours very truly,
WILL WILSON Attorney General of Texas

FDW:wb:zt

APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman
Pat Dailey Vernon Teofan Jay Howell Milton Richardson Fred D. Ward Assistant

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: Leonard Passmore