Hon. Odls Tomachefsky 

County Attorney 

Washington County 

Brenham, Texas 

Oplnlon No. V-663 

Re: Legallty,of member of 

County School Board 

contracting with a 

local school district 

for the s,ale of gasoline for repairs for 

Its school busses. 

Dear Sir: 

We refer to your letter request on the following question: 

"Can a member of the Board of County 

School Trustees sell gasoline 'to a school 

district, and can such Board member do repair work on school busses belonging to 

local school districts located In the.county where such member,,ls a member of the 

County School Board. 

Article 2687a, Vernon's Civil Statutes, relates to lntradistrlcti transportation of pupils. It p?ovldes for the making of a contract by the trustees of an 

Independent or common school district for such transportation and contains other provisions not necessary here 

to state. 

181. 

Roblson v. Draper, ly3 Tex. 280, 127 S.W.(2d) 

Article V, Ii. B. 295, of Acts of 1947, 50th 

Legislature, relates to Interdistrict as well as the 

lntradlstrlct transportation of pupils. It provides 

that the County School Board and County Superintendent, 

subject to the approval of the State Superintendent of 

Public Instruction, may set up the most efficient system of transportation possible for the purpose of transporting pupils from their district:; and within their districts. It further provides for the making of R contract 

by the County Board of Trustees for bus drivers for such 

transportation; and the payment of snlarles of same out 

of the County Board.Transportatlon Fund when said drlv- 
Hon. Odls Tomachefsky, page 2 (V-663) 

em are employed by the County Board, and that the County Board of Education shall distribute funds In the 

County Board Transportation Fund equitably to the eliglble districts who have properly shown budgetary need for 

State aid In accordance wlth provisions of the Act. 

(Opinion No. V-139). 

Article XIV of Ii.,B. 295 provides that "All 

motor vehicles Including busses and bus bodies, tires 

and tubes, purchased for or by any school district receiving aid under the terms of any equalization act. . . 

shall be purchased by and through the Board of Control. 

And no such school district or its officers or employees 

shall have the power to purchase for such school distrlct any of such Items except in those instances wherein an emergency requires an immediate purchase thereof, 

to be reported to and approved by the Board of Control." 

The Immediate control and management of the 

various school districts of Texas Is in their respective 

local boards of trustees and the school laws vest In 

them the power to contract for their needs. Articles 

2749, 2780, 2827 and 2774a, Section 4, V. C. S. having 

authority to operate a transportation system for their 

scholastics, district boards of trustees have the power 

and do contract for gasoline and repairs for their busses 

necessary in the operation of that system. This the local board may do without the approval of the County School 

Board or the State Board of Control. In cases of emergency they may contract or purchase,without approval from 

the Board of Control, those Item8 ordinarily requiring 

approval of the State Board as set out In Article XIV, 

H. B. 295. 

Clearly, therefore, the business of purch,asing or contracting for gasoline or repairs on school 

busses owned by local-school districts is the business 

of the local school district boards and constitutes no 

part of the functions of the county board of school trustees. 

This office has heretofore held that the sale 

of gasoline or other supplies by a person to a school 

district, such person being a trustee of the school d!.s-. 

trlct to which the supplies are sold 1s void as against 

public policy. Opinions Nos;. o-1583, O-1014, O-2755, 

O-878, O-2306. It is well established In Texas that 

contracts entered Into by a public officer in his offlclal capacity are illegal and void l.f such officer eith- 
Hon. Odls' Tomachefsky, page 3 (v-6U3 ) :rri; 

er directly or lndiroctly tin:: a pec\lnln ry lnl:.c:f*<?::t ln 

such contract. Moyortr v. Walker, :"(!; :;.W. .3ir's, and .qutlloritles therein ci.ted; A. G, 0p1111011 W1'~!~0. 

In the situation under consideration herein, 

it Is our understanding that the sale of gasoline and 

repairs for school busses belonging to the local school 

districts for the transportation of its scholastics are 

consummated between the local school board and a person 

who Is a member of the County School Board. Further, 

that the contracts for gasoline or repairs are entered 

Into by the County Board member as an individual privately engaged in such business enterprise, and not in 

his official capacity as a County Board member. 

In Opinion No. o-1589 this office held that 

although Article 373, Penal Code, makes it unlawful for 

an officer of a county, city or town to sell gasoline 

to said county, city or town, It does not make it unlawful for said officer to sell gasoline to an lndependent school dlstrlct. 

It Is, therefore, our opinion that the sale of 

gasoline or repairs to a local school district to be 

used In the operation of its locally owned school busses 

by a person who Is a member of the County Board of School 

Trustees Is permissible and Is not per se void as against 

public policy. The relationship alone of the County Board 

member to the County School Board is not sufffclent, we 

'believe, to invalidate the contract. We assume in connection with your question that the County Board member 

exerts no overt pressure stemming from his official position as a member of the County Board in his contracts 

with the local school boards of his county. 

The sale of gasoline or repairs to a 

local school district to be used in the 

operation of its locally o.wnod school busses 

by a person who Is a member of the Coanty 

Board of School Tru::tees is permissible and 

is not void per se as against public policy. 

Your:-. very truly, 

AP ROVED: 

3' 

, 

rA 

ATTORIJEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

A1 

'ASSISTANT 

RNEY GENERAL 

CEO:mw 

By&z-eChester E. Ollison 

Assistant