PRICE DANIEL 

L~~IW,-IN 11. %,SXAB 

ATTORNEY GENERAL July 13, 1949 

Ron. Robert W. Hillln Opinion No. V-853. 

District Attorney 

1st Judicial District Ret 

Jasper, Texas 

Dear Sir, 

The legality of appointment 

of the half-brother of an 

independent school district 

trustee as tax assessorcollector for the district, 

under the submitted facts. 

You have requested 9 opinion relative to the 

constructlon of Articles 432-435, V.P.C. (Nepotism Law). 

In connection with the request you submitted the followl.ng facts: 

"Recently a Ur. Yeager was duly elected 

to the Board of Trustees of the Brookeland 

Independent School District, but before he 

qualified as such, his half-brother was appointed by the Board of Trustees as Tax Assessor Collector for the District. Since the 

&ppointment of the Tax Assessor Collector Mr. 

Yeager has qualified as trustee and is now a 

duly elected and qualified member of the 

Board. The question has arisen as to whether 

or not this constitutes a violation of the 

nepotism laws Article 432-435 lnclusives P.C. 

1925 since Yeager will be a duly elected and 

qualified trustee and will necessarily have 

to approve the account of the compensation of 

a Tax Assessor Collector.” 

In answer to our request for additional lnformation you have informed us that the half brother of the 

newly elected trustee qualified as tax assessor-collector of the school district prior to the time the newly 

elected member qualified as a member of the board of 

trustees. 

Article 432, V.P.C., as amended by 11. B. 508, 

Acts of the 51st Legislature, 1949, provides% 
Hon. Robert W. Hillin, page 2 (v-853) 

“No officer of this State or any officer 

of any district, county, city precinct, school 

district, or other municipal subdivision of 

this State, or any officer or member of any 

State, district, county, city school district 

or other municipal board, or judge of any 

court, created by or under authority of any 

General or Special Law of this State, or any 

member of the Legislature, shall appoint, or 

vote for, or confirm the appointment to any 

office, position, clerkship, employment or 

duty, of any person related within the second 

degree by affinity or within the third degree 

by consanguinity to the person so appointing 

or so voting, or to any other member of any 

such board, the Legislature, or court of vhlch 

such person so appointing or voting may be a 

member, when the salary, fees, or compensation 

of such appointee is to be paid for, directly 

or indirectly, out of or from public funds or 

fees of office of any kind or character vhatsoever; provided, that nothing hereln contalned shall prevent the appointment, voting for, 

or confirmation of any person who shall have 

been continuously employed in any such office, 

position, clerkship, employment or duty for a 

period of two (2) years prior to the election 

or appointment of the officer or member appointing, voting for, or confirming the appointment of such person to such office, position, clerkship, employment or duty.” 

It was held in Attorney General’s Opinion No. 

V-184 that the election of a school trustee who Is related within the prohibitive degree to the teacher who 

had been previously employed would not operate retroactively to void the contract. Attorney General’s Opinion Ho. V-184 followed the holding in Attorney General’s 

Opinion No. O-6330, which held that the Nepotism Laws 

were not violated where the prohibitive degree of relationship between the teacher and trustee did not exist 

at the time the teaching contract was made and that the 

teacher could complete the term of the existing contract 

without resignation of the trustee in question since 

the prohibitive degree of relationship did not exist at 

the time of the employment. It was further held, however, that any new contract made between the Board of 

Trustees and the teacher In question would be invalid 

as in violation of Article 432, V.P.C. 
Ron. Robert W. Rlllln, page 3 (V-853) 

Since the half-brother o? the newly elected 

member of the board of trustees was appointed and qualified as tax assessor-collector for the independent 

school district prior to the time the newly elected 

member of the board qualified as trustee for the dlstrict, you are advised that the action of the board of 

trustees of the Brookeland Indepbndent School District 

appointing the half-brother of the newly elected member 

of the board, did not violate the provisions of Article 

432, V.P.C. 

SlJRMARY 

When a person is appointed tax assessorcollector of an Independent school district 

by the board of trustees of such district and 

qualifies prior to the time a newly elected 

member of the board to whom he Is related 

within the prohibitive degree qualifies as 

member of the board of trustees, there has 

been no violation by the board of Article 

432, V.P.C. 

Yours very truly, 

ATTORDEYG~LOFTRXAS 

JR:bh 

4/%iee 

Assistant 

APPROVED 

@ 

?k 

FIRST ASSISTART 

ATTORRRYGEI[ERAL