Honorable 'Ia Id. Trimbli 

Mret Aaeietant, State Supt0 of Publio'Izetruetiw 

Austin, Texar 

Dear Sirt opinion Roor O-5647, 

Res kiministration of affairs of 

Enlarged Sohool M&riots for 

Rural High School Purposes. 

We reply to your inquiry of August 11,1945, whioh reads as followas 

"When an independent eehoel dietriot lr enlarged Egr annexation 

of ocnunon school dietriate by aotion of the,Couuty Board of 

Trustees, as provided for in Article 2922s, R.,C. 8. Who is to 

administer the affairs of the enlarged rohool dietriot? 

s Who is to control the assets of the elementary sohool districts 

composing the rural high eohool distriot? 

"Is the County Superintendent entitled to continue to hold on to 

these funds, or should they be turned over to the Board of Troetees 

of the Rural High S&o01 Eistrid?~ 

"This opinion request is b.sing,sufmitted in view of the resent 

opinion No. O-5462, which was rendered at the request of the 

County Attorney of Menard County, regarding the handling of the 

sohool property belonging to the elementary districts of the 

Menardtille Independent Sohool District.* 

Artioles 2922a and 29220, V. Ae C. Se, provide fop establishing rural 

high school distriots by the County school trustees* 

Arbiele 2922e, V. A, C. S,, provides for the control and management 

of rural high school dietriots, It reads in part as followss 

"The control and management of the schools of a rural high sahool 

.dietriat; prtsEl~~~S,~r~eM,ip~~eEal'of:~i~Aot( shall;W 

veeted ig a boa@.of ~e~:CPns&eema eleotld bythkpuelifiM. 

voters of the said.dietrfet ,et large, l . . " 

Articles 29221, 2922j and 2922k, V, 'A. C. S,, ,provide as followss 
Honorable T. Md. Trimble, page 2 

'"Art. 29221. Warrants 

"All Funds of evel?r nature to which a rural high sahool district may 

be entitled shallbe pid out of warrants Issued by the secretary and 

signed by the seoretary and president of the board of trustees and 

amroved by the countysuperintendent cf public Instruction. The 

board of sahool trustees shall seleot Its onnpresident and secretary, 

each of whham shallbe a member of the board. The secretary shall 

keep a complete Itainiaed rooount of all receipts and disbursements 

In a wellbound book ovmed and paId,for by the districts and his 

accounts shall be approved by the county superintendent and by the 

county board of aohool trustees at the end of each scholastic yeare 

No school funds shall be allotted or apportioned and paid to any 

rural high school district for the following year thereafter until 

this report is euhnitted to and approved by the county superintendent 

and the Wants Ward of.sohool~ triMtees ..,: 

eArt. 29225. Deposit and disbursement of'funds 

eAll funds belonging to a rurallhigh school district shall be deposited 

in the county &posit&y and disbursed in the sems manner as other 

funds are disbursed from such depository under the depository law 

in so far as same ars applicable." 

*Art. 2922k. ~Control by and of trustees 

?A11 rural high schoolswithin a rural high.sahool district herein 

provided for shall be under the immediate oontrol of the board of 

school trustees for such rural high schoolssand suoh board of school 

trustees shall be under the control and supervision of the county 

superintendent and county board of school trustees, and shall be 

subject tq the same provisions of law and restrictions that conanon 

school districts ars now subjeat to, except where otherwise provided 

herein." 

Article 29221, V. A. C. S ., which is the amended Section 12 of Chapter 59, 

Acts of the 39th Legislature, then original Rural High School Act, empowers 

the board of trustees of a'rural high school dietriot to levy and oollect 

maintenance and bond taxes for said distriatp~after Iming authorized by 

an election held for said purpose or purposes; and also provides; 

* . that the local taxes previously authorized by a district OP 

d&hi&s included in a rural high school district . . . shall be 

continued in force until such time as a uniform tax may be provided 

for the benefit of the rural high school distrioto" 

lkder the provisions of said Section 12, It is the duty of the board of 

trustees of a rural high school to cause to be levied, assessed and 

collected in each of its constituezit'distriots the same tax which said 

districts had previously authoriaed. McPhail v. Tax Collector, (Civa App.) 

260 S. 17. 260, error refused* 

The following quotatiob from said ease of~MoPhmi1 ~b'~ar.Golleotof ia: 

wsy instructive and enlightsningr: 
Honorable T, & Trimble. page 3 

"The law charges the trustees of the high school distriot with the 

duty of naintairing the elementary schools of the consolidated 

district, and, in addition, are recpGlired to establish and ma5.ntaj.n 

therein a high school, and to accomplish them purposes, are authorized 

to use all avilsble msintenance funds. (BphAsis ours) Bzfunds 

should be kept and aoministored separately from maintenance funds, and 

likewise the bond fund of one district should be kept sepsrate from 

the other0 Noney belonging to a bond fund cannot be used f’rlr r&inttx>aaoe~ 

nor can the bond fund belony,in:: to either of the elementary distri,ots 

be used In ?E!hg the Indebtedness of the other. 

"The law commits the details of adminlctration in these respects to 

the sound judgment of the trxtees,. . . W etc. 

While the McPhail ease was decided previous to any amendments to said 

Rural Kigh SchCol Aat of 1926, Chap. 1% of Title 49, V. A. C. S., we 

have discovered no amendrents thereto which would affect the judgment 

rendered therein. 

It is alsc to be observed that in said McFhail case on election was held 

authorizing the assumption @r said rural high school district of the 

outstanoing 'Jonded ir'ebtedness or its ccnstituent districts, as authorized 

by Art. 2922h, V. A, C, S,, before and since being emended. Until thus 

assumed by the enlarged district, said indebtedness remained a charge 

exclusively against the district iseuing the bonds, and the trustees of the 

enlarged district were char,ged with the duty of levying from year to year, 

and collecting a sufficient tax from t:e district issuing the bonds, to 

discharge its obligation. 

Seation 13 of Ch. 59, aforesaid, Acts of 1925, provides that 

sAl1 laws and parts of laws in oonflict with any provision of this A:t 

ere hereby repealed." 

Since this opinion is requested in visw of our recent opinion Moe O- 5462, 

regarding the handling of snhool proper+;: belonging to elementary districts, 

and since said opiniqn is so closely related to the subject matter of this 

opinion, we ,rafer to and make a pa& henxffor all purposes, the same as 

if written fully herein, said opinion MO. O&462 . 

However, regarding the second paraf;rapJ? on page #% of said Opi~nion No. O-5462, 

you are advised that funds cf an elementary district, when used to maintain 

a high school in a rural high school district or in an enlarged district 

7r~ annexation, are usad fo: ,tha &nefit of XI& elementary district, provided 

there is no actual or threatened violation of law or abuse of discretion 

b the trustees of said rural hi@ school di~strict or said enlarged district 

by annexation in so using any of said funds. See MoPhail V. Tax Colleotor, 

supra. 

ln view of the foregoing, the three questions contained in your CommioatiOn 

are respectively answered as follows8 
Honorable To 1:. Thimble, page 4 

(1) The affairs of the enlarged school district are to be administered 

by the Board of Trustees of said enlarged district. 

(2) The assets of the slementary school districts composing the rural high 

school district are controlled by the Board of Trustees of said Rural High 

School District, and are to be administered by said Board in aooordance 

with the provisions of Articles 2922~~-2922L,,V. A. Co 60 

(3) The funds of elementary sohool dlotriots pass by operation of law 

to the control of the trustees of the rural high school district of whioh 

they are constituent par'is. Therefore, it necessarily follows that your 

third question must be answered in the negative. 

Very truly yours 

A!lTOFOi%Y GENEXUL OF TEXAS 

a/ L. H. Flewellen 

By 

L. H. Flewellen 

. Assistant 

LHF/JCP 

Approved Sept,30,1943 

Grover Seller 

First Assistant 

ATTORFJFSGENERAL 

APPROVXD OPINION COhXITTEE BY BWB CHAIBMti