Honorable Charts 8. McMllaa 

County Attorney, &a Atqu8t.b County 

Sua Au~tiae, Teaar 

Dew sir: opitiion No. 04733 

Reti- Pwvar of the County Rchool 

I ! Truotea8 to qpaint A trustee 

5 wher e two l loctioa8 hava reivulkd in~tio votee. and rokted 

:quo8Uono. 4 

W* halo your letti? of Jut&e ZB.: 1941, &Which you ask ottr 

opinion ti certain quorlionr raiding t$ tha Wbito Rock Common 

School District of San Augustine Coyty., We appreciate the citation 

of 8uthoritiea and tke dircur&m coatnkod in your latter. 

Your firrt quertloa roldes to t&e right of the County ZjchooA 

Trustees to appoint a trustee of Y;hite R*k Common school District, 

under %ha following cSraumstute*ot ‘: 

‘In t&i ‘White Rock Common &hod District of Ran 

Attguotiuo Cmtnty, Totas an election was held to elect 

one trustee for the next throo years, the slaction being 

held at ths aamo tiDu as ail other common rchool dirtrict truster elections were held throughout the State. 

Thio olectioa nrulted ln a tie; anotkmcG&ion was held 

and it also tcrultod in * ties the Countyl Board of Scia001 

Trustooo then appointed a peraoa to fiti @is of&e, and 

who hso qualjfied.. 

Frorn~ your letter it also ttypoaro tlbt the truatur whose term 

Ime orpired hrr coatknued to act IIE trustee, and that the olfiice ha* not 

become vacant unlerr it was vacated by the ~OxpiraUon d the term of 

~offlcs or the fact that each d tha two olocti6ho #or a flow trustee resulted kr a tie. 

Our opinioa Ir that the County School T@totrer had no authority to appoint a truatec aftur the two ele~tiono had rslvulted in a tie 

wta. Under the ruling in our opinkm No, Q-17, the truetea continuns to 

hol,d his office until him tucceo~or hm bee&k legally elected ond qunlifice. 

Them ir therefore no vacancy in the office rroulting from tho oxpiration of the term of offieo. Nor would the fact tht ho election@ havm roaulted in tia vote@ ease a ncmmy to occut. As WI) shave r&d in our 

opinion No. 047, a tie vote la 8a rlection #pr l trurtoe for b~commoa 
Honorable Charler 8. bAcMil1~~ page 2 

rchool district merely ham the effect under Article 2953, Vernon% 

Annotated Civil Statutes, of rendering the election void and making 

another election nccermary. In our opinion. both electiona resulting 

in tie votes are void, and a new election rbould be called. as provided 

in Article 2953, and should be conducted aa directed in Articles 2745, 

2746 and 2746a, ~orntm’s Annotated Civil Ktatutes. SQO our opinion 

o-17. 

We find no authority for the appointment of a truntee by the 

County School Trustees. in this situatioa. Article 2747, Vernon’8 

Annotated Civil Statutes, provide8 for an appointment by “the county 

board of education’ only in case of a vacancy in the office; and in our 

opinion no vacancy has occurred, since the incumbent continues to 

hold the office until hi8 l c c eemor ham been properly elected and qualm 

ifies. The attempt of the County School Trutttees to appoint a trusteo 

ie, bwofore, in our opinion, without legal authority and void. 

Your second question relate8 to the validity of a contract 

enterod into between two mombera of the district rchool board, lneluding the trumteo whose term had expired, with a teacher for the 

l nmtiayear. y In this coanection you maka the following statdmont; 

“Daforo the time of appointment of the trustee by the 

County Board. a contract warn entered into b&wean two members 

of the ~cbool board of the district, one whose term had not enpirsd, and one whore term bad expired, but no one had succeeded 

him, with a teacher, and ouch contract was filed with the County 

!%perintendent. The third mambor of the school board, whose 

krm had not expired, did not Join in the contract.. 

Your question is whether the trustee whose term had l xpirod 

and whose s~~ces~~~ had not been elected and qualified, could lawfully 

join in the making of such a contract. 

Our opinion ir that tha trustee may Iawf* coatinue to join 

in such contracta until his wccosaor haa bean elected. See our 

Cj*inion No. C-04. Since both electiona have been void, there is no 

“newly elected trustee,* and under out said opinion, the trwtae may 

continue to act until his mtcceesor ban been Aawfully elected, inoohr 

as ouch contract@ arm concerned. 

Your third question relatem to the attempted execution of 

a contract by the pereon appointed by the County School Trusteea, 

and aaother truetoo. In this connection you make the following atatemat1 

“After the appointment of the truetee by the County 

Board of School Trustees, who wal a different person, 

and after his qualifying for ruch office, the new truetee 

and the trwtae who refused to join in the first contract 

entered into a now contract with another teacher for the 

sama prlod of time; the contract wao alro filed in the 

office of th Couatv SumrhtendoaL” 
. - ,.. 

I ,~: (. : 

I 

, 

Honorable. Cbarlee 8. McMillan, page 1 

Your third questton in substance io whether SenatoDilA No. 

126 of t&e 47th Le&teloture, Regular tission, has any effect on the 

validity of the contract Joined in by the trustee who holds over aftor 

the expiration of Ns term, in view of the attempted appointment of 

another trurteo by the County Doard of Gduoation and the joining by 

tbim appointee in the execution of a contract with another teacher. 

Section 1 of 6-U Bill l26, 47th k,gialature, ~eguhr Soeoion, reads 

aa follows: 

*Section 1. That trueteee of any Common School Dietrict 

or Coneolidated Common School District shall ham authority 

to make contracts for a period of time not in excess of two 

(2) years with prfncipals, superintendents, and teachers of 

said Common !ichool Diotricts or Consolidated Common ’ 

School Districts, provided that such contracts rhall be approved by the County Superintsndent. No contract may be 

sianed by tb Trusteea of Commou School Dlatricte or 

Common Consolidated jrbool Dietricto until ths newly 

electad trumtea or trueteos have qualified and taken the 

oath of Office: 

Vie have already expressed our opinion that the contract 

Joined in by the trustee who holds over. ia lawfully authorized, +r 

agree with your conclusion that there is nothing in Scnata tiAA NO. 126, 

Iicgular Sassion, 47th Logidatura, which would affect our ruling !n 

our Opinion No. Q-04. The attempted appointment of the trustee by 

the County tioard of Lducation heing void, the atlempted contract in 

which this appointee joined would be void. Senate Dill No. 126 containe 

substantially the same provisions as Article 2740a, Vernon’s Annotated 

Civil Statuter, which was the basis of our Opinion No. O-04, and the 

changes tn the language of the rtntuta made by Sonate Dill No. 126 do 

not affect our conclwion as applied to the l ituation,met forth in your 

request. 

We attach hereto co&o of our Opinions Noa. O-04 and 047. 

Very truAy yours 

ATTORNEY GENGRAL OF TZXAS 

By /a/ Jamem P. Hart 

Jamer *. iiart, Aeeia&nt 

JPN:EP$b 

$fr;;t;e,“:;;;,‘,‘“’ 

First Assistant Attorney Cionorai 

ENCLOSURES 

Approved 

Opinion Committee 

By BWB Chairman