Honorable J. 0. Loftin, President 

Texas College of Arty and Industries 

KingtillS, Texas 

Dear Mr. Loftior Opinion l?o. O-1422 

Be: lryr.a person simultanek5usly 

serve on the board of trustee8 

Of &II Independent School district and 

(1) on the board of direotors of the 

Texas Colleg0 of Art8 & Industries, or 

(2) as Wltod Stitar POSkWStOr? 

ale are pleased to answer the following questions which you submitted to us by your letter of September 8, 1939: 

"1. Can an Individual legally 88rVO on the board of dlreotors ofthe 

Texas Collsgs of Arts and Induetrioa and at the 881118 time serve as a 

member of I board of trustees of an indSponde& school district? 

"2. Can an individual serv8 as a member of the board of trustees of 

trustees of an independent school dlstrlot e.nd also a8 United Stafes 

Postmastorl" 

Both questions lnvolvo the application of Article 16, Se&Ion 40, 

oftho Constitution of Texas, which reads in put as follows: 

"No person shall hold or SXSroiOe, at:the 8wr.S time, more than ono oivil 

offiae of SBlo1unl0nt. . . ." 

34 Texas Jurisprudenoo at page 549, r8fSrrirrg to the abow constitutional protirlon,, saymt 

"ThO COnStltLItiOn RppliSS Only t0 OfflkO Of ~lmnenf. 'J$ro~~SZ,t' ,i,kIS 

a paounirary profit, gain or advantage; hence, the same parson may hold 

two civil offices whuo no pay, oomponsation or peknlary gain attaohS8 

to ono of Iham, protided theyaro not lncompatiblo.w 

For further discussion of this qusstion, 800 opinions ofthis 

department numbered O-490, O-982, and C-1263. 

Since you dld not speoify in your letter under what Aot the indc 

pendent school district wa8 omated, wo shall assme that it-as oroated 

under authority of Chapter 13, Title 49 of the Revised Civil Statutss 
Hon. J. 0. Loftin, page 2 (O-1422) 

of Texas, 1925. Article 2775 thereof provldos in part a8 follows: 

"In each independent district that Shall hereafter be organized, the 

county judge of the oounty in which sald independent district is situated shall order an olsctfon ,for'seven trustees. who shall c&stitute 

the sohool board of such diStru&, and all of v&m shall serve without 

oampensation." (&dorsoorlng ours.) 

It is, theroforo, apparent.that a member of the board of trustees 

of an independent sohool district, oreated under the general 1~8, does 

not hold an offioo of 8molum8nt nithin the meaning of Artiole 16, Section 

40, of the Texas Constitution. 

We know of no reason why the duties of a member of the boald of 

trusts88 of 8.n independent 8ohoo1 district should b8 in any manner conflicting or incompatlol withthe duties either of (1) a member of the 

Board of Directors of tho Texas College of Arts and Industries, or (2) 

a United States Postznaster. 

Article XVI, So&Ion S3, of the Constitution of Texas, provldos 

In part, 

'%a aooounting offiaoro of We Strto ahall nelthor dreu nor pay a warrant 

upon the Treasury in favor of my person, for salary or oompensation a8 

agent, oftioor, or appoilrtoe, who holds at the same time any othor office 

or position of honor, trust or profit, under this State or the United 

States, exoopt a8 prosorikad in this Constitution." 

There oau be no doubt but that sll three of the offloes hero under 

ooneldsration am positions of honor, trust or profitdthin the meaning 

of the abow quotid oOnstikItlon~~ provision. See opinion bf this 

Department No. O-1101, datod ,July $1, 1939, addrossod to HonoraWe Goo. 

HI Sheppard. 

In accordance with the foregoing disouseion it Is our opinion that: 

1. A perlrnn may legally servo on so Board of Diroc%ors of the Tiixrs 

College of Arta and Indwtrie8 and at tho 8ama tizW 8or‘w a8 a mmnber of 

the board of trustosaof an indopendont sohool district; but in 80 doing 

he forfoita all right to any oompeneatlon to whioh he might havd ken 

sntitlod a6 a dire&or of the collage, by reason of &tide XVI, Sootion 

33 of the Toxad Con8titutlon~ 

2. So far as the Constitution and lawa of Texas are concerned, an indEvldual a*y simultaneously forve as a Iwmber of the board oftrustaos of' 

an independent school distriot, and as UniUod Stab8 Postistor, sin00 

the formor offloo oarrios no oarmpenaatlon, but we ar8 unable to advise 
Hon. J. 0. Loftin, pqe 3 (O-1422) 

you whether the United States postal regulations may or may not fop.. 

bid the samee 

Yours very truly 

ATTCRREYGENEBALOFTEXAS 

By /s/Walter R. Koch 

Walter R. Koch 

Assistant 

APPRCWED SEP 23, 1939 

/s/ Gorald C. km 

ATTORNEYGENERAL OFTEXAS 

Approved 

Opinion Committee 

ByBWB 

chairman