March 21, 1958

Honorable L. F. Benson, CriminalDistrict Attorney, Galveston County Courthouse, Galveston,Texas OpinionNo. WW-395.

.

Dear Mr. Benson: Re: Does the existence of an inactive Junior College District, comprising only a portion of a county, preclude the establishment and operation ofa Junior College District embracing the entire county under Article 2815h,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, and related questions.
In your letter of March 7, 1958,you request our opinion on two questionswhich are substantiallyas follows:

(1) Does the existence of the inactive Galveston Junior College District,which is establishedwithin the boundaries of the City of Galveston and the Galveston Independent School District (comprisingonly a portion of Galveston Island)prevent the establishment and operation of the Galveston County Junior College District, which embraces the entire County of Galveston, as provided by Article 2815h,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes? (2) If so,what, if any, is the legal process for dissolving the present Galveston Junior College District? You state that the Galvestop Junior College District was establishedpursuant to an electionheld on November 2, 1935, but the maintenance tax proposalwas defeated in the election of June 27, 1936. Therefore, such district has never established or operated a junior college, and we assume that there has been no other activity conductedby such district.Honorable L. F. Benson, Page 2 (l'W%%).

You further state that on March 3, 1958, the State Board of Education approved the Galveston County Junior College District,which is co-extensivewith the boundaries of Galveston County, andwhich embraces the territoryof'the inactive Galveston Junior College District.

Article 2815h,Vernon's AnnotatedCivil Statutes, devolves upon the State Board of Education the duty of determining the need for a junior college in a particular area (Section 1); that such college serves thepublic'convenience and necessity (Section la); and the feasibility and desirability of establishing such a college (Section 3; and In numerous other section of such Article).

Since there is now no existing, active, operating, actual junior college conductedby the Galveston Junior College District, in our opinion, the approval by the State Board of Education of the Galveston County JuniorCollege District, which proposes to place Into operation an actual operating junior college,was a proper exercise of thediscretion of the State Board. The Legislative scheme, revealed in Article 2815h,Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, envisions the creation and operation of a junior collegewhich, in fact, supplies a public need by complyingwith Section 12 of suoh Article:

"A Junior College as here consideredmust consist of the Freshman and 'Sophomorecollegework taught either separatelyor in conjunctionwith the Junior and Senioryears of the High school, and the course of studymust be submittedand approvedby the StateDepartment of Educationbefore It may be offered."
In our opinion, the Legislature did not intend that a present public need go unsatisfiedbecause the electorate then, in the former attempted creation of a junior college in only a portion of the proposed area, was unwilling to levy a tax to meet the need as it may have existed some twenty-three years ago.

We are of the opinion that the controllingquestion as to propriety of the creation of the GalvestonCounty Junior College District, encompassing thewhole of Galveston County, and the actual operation of a Junior College thereby is governed by the present need, as may be found by the State Board of Education, and by compliancewith the organizationaland operational provisions of applicable statutes. ,Furthermore, we are unable to find a prohibition against the boundaries of one junior college district as now proposed,, overlapping the boundaries of such a district as now exists.Honorable L. F. Benson, Page'3 (W-395).

Your first question'isanswered In the negative. Attorney General's OpinionNo. V-1221 (1951)establishes that, absent specificauthority and statutoryprocedure to effect a dissolution of an existing junior college district, there is no authority or procedureprescribed for, or to effect such dissolution. Article,2815q,authorlzing.thedissolution of union junior college districts, in the manner provided by Article 2767,Vernon%! AnnotatedCivil Statutes, would not apply to the Galveston JuniorCollege District,, as is shown by the above cited Attorney General's Opinion.

Therefore, in answer to your second question, In our opinion, there is no present legal process for dissolving the present Galveston Junior College District.

SUMMARY

The existence of the Inactive Galveston Junior College District, establishedwithin a portion of Galveston County,would not ,prevent the establishmentand operation of the GalvestonCounty Junior College District embracing the entire county of Galveston, as providedby ArticleHonorable L. F. Benson, Page,4 (WW-3%).

2815h,Vernon's AnnotatedCivil Statutes; and the existing inactive Galveston JuniorCollege Districtmay not be abolishedunder existing law. Very truly yours, WILL WILSON Attorney General of,Texas 

# Byc$%L &
Tom I. McFarling Assistant TIM:pf APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE Geo. P. Blackburn, Chairman
J. Arthur Sandlin L. P. Lollar Fred Werkenthin B. H. Timtnlns,

Jr. REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL By: W. V. Geppert.