_- 

THE ATTORNEYGENERAL 

OF -XAS 

Honorable D. H. Utley 

County Auditor, Clay County 

Henrietta, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. ,3-7094 

Re: Can one of six common school 

districts composing a rural high 

school district withdraw from said 

rural high school district? 

Also rela,ted questions. 

follows: 

Your r;ecent letter to .this department reads in part as 

"On April 24, 1941 the Clay Co, School Board of 

Trustees ,while convened in a call session deemed i,t 

advisable and for the Public good to form a Rural High 

School Dist. by grouping six Common Sch, Dist,, each 

of which had less than 400 Scholastics, with a combined area of more than 100 Sq. Miles, This election 

was ordered as provided by CJhapte:~ 19-A R. S P 1925, 

as amended, and Article 2922 C, as amended, said eiection carried by majoritiy vote of entire composed Rural 

High School Dist, 

"Said Dist, ~8s established and has funz,tioned as 

such since June 7, 1941, but on ,i,he site designa,ted, on 

account of scarecity of material and labor .the Buildings have not been erected, kit the School is being 

held in a near by School Bldg, 

'Now the Question - If one of the six Common Sch. 

Dist,s wants ,to with-,draw from the Rural High Sch. Dist. 

Can they? If so what way may they do so? 

"If they can by election whose duty to call the 

election, the County School Board or the County Judge?" 

Art, 2922a, V.A.C.S., reads as follows: 

"In each organized county in this St,ate and in any 

county~which shall hereafter be organized, the county 

school trustees shall have 'the authority to form one or 

more rural high school districts, by grouping contiguous 

common school districts having leys than four hundred 
Hon. D. H. Utleg, page 2 0 -7094 

scholastic population and independent school districts 

having less than two hundred and fifty scholastic 

population for the purpose of establishing and operating rural high schools, provided also that the ccuntg 

school trustees may annex one or more common school 

districts or one or more independent school districts 

having leas than two hundred and fifty scholastic population to a common school district having four hundred 

or more scholastic population OP to an independent 

district having two hundred and fifty or more scholastic 

population upon the approval of the board of trustees 

of each school district affected; provided that when 

one OP more commonschool districts are so annexed to 

a common school district having four hundred or more 

scholastic population, or to an independent district 

having two hundred and fifty, OP more scholastic population, as the case may be, a board of trustees shall 

be elected from the district at large and shall have 

the management and control of the district a8 enlarged 

until the time for the next election and qualifications 

of trustees for common and independent districts, as 

provided by General Law. Provided -- that the county school 

trustees shall -- have the authority & abolish 5 rural 

m school district z a petition signed bx a maioritg 

-- of the voters -- of each elementarv district composing the 

rural high school district and when such dIstrlct has 

been abolished the elementary districtsshall automatically revert back to their original status, wfth the 

exception that in the event there are any outstanding 

indebtednesses against the said rural school district 

each elementary dis,trlct shall assume its proportional 

part of the debts, (Emphasis added.) 

The underscored provfsfon of said Art. 2922a, supra, 

is the only authority we have been able to locate wherebya rural 

high school district can be abolished, Said provision requires 

'a petition signed by a majority of the voters of each elementary 

district composing the rural high school district.~mphasis 

added.) 

Therefore, it is the opinion of this department that 

unless a majority of the voters In m of the common school districts composing the rural high school distrfct in question, 

should present a signed petition to the county school trustees 

requestfng the abolition of such rural high school district, 

such trustees would have no authority to abolish same. Neither 

is there any provision of law whereby one of safd common school 

districts can withdraw from said rural high school di8trict. 

YOUP first question is answered in the negative. 
Hon. D. H. Utley, page 3 o-7094 

In view of the foregoing, the other questions submitted require no answers. 

Very truly yours, 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

By s/L. H. Flewellen 

L. H. Flewellen 

Assistant 

LKF :v:wc 

APPROVED MAR 8, 1946 

s/Grover Sellers 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Approved Opinion Committee By s/BWB Chairman