( . ,, F-876 

T 

Hon. 0. Ca Morris, Chairman Opinion No. Q-437 

Joint Legislative Committtt 

Austin, Texas Ae: Balances rcqui red 

to be shown in application for State 

aid under House 

Bill No. 295, Acts 

1947, 50th Leglslature, 

Dear Senator Morris: 

We refer to your letter of recent Bate from 

which wt quote in part as follows: 

“The Joint Legislative Committee, created by A. B. 295, 50th Ltge, R. S,) Acts 

1947, is charged with the responsibility 

of seeing that no deficit is crt;;t;i;; 

the expenditures of this fund. 

with this) wt art submitting to your Department the following questions: 

“10 Should a school district which 

has heretofore not applied for aid under 

the terms of the EquaLization Law be re-’ 

quirtd to show in its applioation all balances in the local maintenance, and State 

and county Available Funds? 

“2, Should a school distriot whir& 

has heretofore not applied far aid under 

tht terms of the EqualizatPan Law be required to show in its applicatitn all 

monies which said district has received in 

the form of per capita supplements? 

“In connection with this first question, it is our uadtratandfng that your Department has in the past rtndtrtd opinions 

holding that school districts which have 

been qualifying under the Equalizatian Law 

hart to show such revtnut as a balance in 

the various fund&” 
. ’ 

Hon. D. Co Morris, Page 2, Q-437 

A school district to be entitled to State aid 

under the provisions of H. B. 295, 50th Legi., R,S. ,Acts 

1947, must, among other conditions OS the Act, meet the .’ 

eligibility requirements of Artlola I, Section 1 thereof, 

the maintenanoe tax latf, requirements of Article I, Section Ze and must show budgetary need therefor on a proper. 

and tiaelg application for, aid made in accordance wit,h 

the provisions of Article I, Section 5, and Article III, 

Sections 1 and 2 of thr Act. , 

*Budgetary need* is defined in the Act as the 

differsnct between the total of all rtvenuts of the District end the total of all operating expenses if such txptnsts art greater than the revenues. Section 5, Article 

I, H. Bs 295, 

Section 1 of Article II rtquirts that any authorized school district making applioation for State aid 

under the Act shall on proper provided forms include a 

budget by which the amount of salary aid to which a school 

will be eligible shall be determined, Under Section 5 oft’ 

Article I and Section 1 of Article II, it ~1s provided that 

the revenues or receipts as shown in a district’s Rural’ 

Aid Budget shall include: (1) Watt and County Arailablt 

balances brought forward rrom the preceding year, (2) Local Bainttnance balanota brought ~foFward from the prtceding year, (3) Statealancts brought forward from the 

preceding year, (4:) State and county Available Receipt.8 

ror the current year, (5) Loon1 Maintenance Recti ts 

rived from a Looal Maintenanct Tax of 5Ot on the B 

dt100 val- ~’ 

uation for the current year, (6) Tuition to be collected 

locally s and (7) Misctllentous rt&tfpts e Certain gortrnment bonds s described in the Act, purohasad and owned by 

the district prior to August 31, 1945, shall not be rtported as receipts or balance in the Rural Aid Budget, 

Said provisions deolarlng what money or funds 

shall be reported as receipts s revenues or balances in’s 

Rural Aid Budget are clear and unambiguous and apply with 

equal force to so-called State aid districts (districts 

which applied for and received aid under S. B o 167, 49th 

Legislatures Acts 1945) s as well as to districts now sttking aid under H, B. 295 who have heretofore not applied 

for State aid, The latter type of district seaking aid 

under H. B. 295, as distinguishtd from a so-called Stats 

aid district, could not, of course, report State aid 

balances described in (,3) above, but it can and must rtport the other balances prtsaribed in (1) and (2) s if 

any there be, 
- . 

Hon. D. C. Morris, Page 3,,V-437 

In accordance with the provislans of Article 

Section 5, and Artiole II, Scotion 1 of H. B. 295,’ our 

answer to your first question is in the affirmative. 

I* 

We have advf8ed herein tha’t a school district 

making application for State aid under H. B. 205, 50th 

Lee4 q and which did not receive State aid under the provisions of S :B. 167, 49th Leg., shall report in the requfred State ‘aid budget, in like maaaer ae the so-oalled 

State aid. district, Its-State and oounty 

antes brought forward from the preoe&ing 

its local maintenance balanoe 80 brought 

there be. 

evrilable balyear and aleo 

forward, it any 

This Department has preolously advised in its _ _ opinions NosP O-6265 and O-6699, napectlvelg, that State 

a&d dfstticts receiviq? the supplemental per cspita epportionmeat made in theyeara lQ43-44 and 1944-1945, 

should brfng forward and x!eFort in full in their State afd 

budget PO, the years 1944-1945 and 1945-1940, respeotively, 

the entire suppleMenta amOunt reoeived by the Distriot 

for those years even though the districts had spent the 

money entirely e It was olearly pointed out in those opOnions that the State aid districts reoeivfng aid under 

the provisions of H. B. 176, 48th Leg,, and S. B. 167, 

49th Leg. e had not been authorized to spend more than the 

mexfmom amount for salaries and operating expenses set out’ 

in the Equalization Laws, and for .that reason State aid 

dfst?fctr must report in full the per oapftr supplemental 

apportionment received in their next sumeadfug year*s 

State aid budC)et, Tb mlinge in theso opinions are equally appl&oableo we believe, to State aid Mstrfots now seekfng aid under R. B. 295 and wha have rsoeired their per 

capita supplemental ap~portfonment of (6,OO in and for the 

year 1946, 

It is our opinion, howovers that this Nifng advanced in said former opinion ,with respect to State aid 

distriats fs not applioable to those school distrfots now 

seeking aid’ under H. B. 295 who heve not heretofore received State aid under 9, B. 167, 49th Le&, for the fisc.al year 1946-1947) and that suoh distriots do not have 

to report any part of the 1946 aupplementel per eapfta 

apportionment except to the extent that all or any portion thereof still remains unexpended and a balanoe in 

the distrfctqs State and County Available Fund. If all 

or any portion, thereof remains unexpended, the amount or 

balance must’be reported by such a dfstrfot in its State 

aid budget as fts State and oounty balance which, under 

Section 5 of Article I and Seotion 1 of Artlole 11 of H.B. 

295, is required to be brought forward from the preceding 

year and reported in the budget. 

. 
Hon. D. C. Morris, Page 4, V-437 

A school district which is not a State aid district say expend its State and County Available per capita 

apportionments be it supplemental or otherwise, in aocordante with the! provisions of Article 2827, V,C.S., and for 

the purposes therein set out, Where the State and County 

Available Fund is sufficient to maintain the .sohool for at 

least eight nenths and leave a surplus, suoh surplus may 

he expended by the sohool board in the same manner as looal funds0 Subdivision 2, Article 2527, V.C.S.; Darlingen 

13.D. v* C, II, Page & Rrotxa, 48 S.W. (21) 983. 

On the other hand, the maximum amounta which a 

State aid district nay expend for its ealaries and current 

eparational purposes are limited by the provisions of the 

State Aid Law as a oondition to its reooiving State aid 

thereunder. Sections 1 af Article II, H. B. 295, 50th 

Lw8; S. B. 167, 49th ~Ls a; H. B. 176, 4Dth Leg., respeotits1p * A. GI. Opinions, f -6205 and 0-6609. In short, a 

soheel district which elects to become a State aid district sacrifioes to a liinfted extent its freedom to detarnine how nZuch of State and oountg available funds it 

may use for salaries and current operating expenses, 

Aoaordingly, our answer to yaur second question 

is that a school district whfoh has heretofore not received 

State aid fn the fiaoal year 1946-1947 under S. 5. 167, 

49th Legap,is not required to show in its State aid budget submitted in its applioatien for State aid under the 

provisiens of H0 B, 295, 50th Leg. ) all monies which said 

district has received in the form of a supplemental per 

capita apportionment in 1948, but shall report only suoh 

per espita monies that remained unexpended by the Bistriot 

which oonatftute a part of the State and, couhty available 

balances which balance is required to be reported under 

Seatlon 5 of Article I and Seotion 1 of Article II of H,B. 

295, 

Sohool districts applying for State 

aid under Rouse Bill Flo. 285, 50th Legfslature, which have not received aid under 

Senate Bill No. 167, 4Qth Legislature, 

are required under Section 5 of Article 

I. and Section 1 of Artiole II of House 

Bill No, 295 to show fn their application 

for aid all balances in their locsl mafntcnance and State and county available 

funds r 
Hon. D. C. Morris, Page 5, V-437 

Such a district must report in its 

application for aid only that part of 

its 1946 supplemental per capfta apportionment which remains unexpended and 

which constitutes a part or all of its 

balance in its State available fund, 

Yours very truly 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Bruce ?f. Bryantv , 

Assistant 

. 

ATTOFU'JEY GENERAL