Hon. L. A. Woods QplnlonNo~ 

### o-897

State.Superintendent of Re: Reconslderation'of~Opinion No. Public-Instrnctlon Austin,Texas 

### Q-1944,conceming~the grantingof salar a-id

under House Bill No. 

### 933, Acts 6th Legislature.

_ ZE' Hon. L. A. Woods QplnlonNo~ 

### o-897 State.Superintendent of Re: Reconslderation'of~Opinion No. Public-Instrnctlon Austin,Texas 

### Q-1944,conceming~the grantingof a-id under House Bill No. 

### 933,

bear Sir: Legislature.

_ Dear

We are in receipt of your letter of March 

### 7, 1949,requestingthat we reconsiderour OpinionNo; O-1944, addressedto the Honorable Olan R. Van Zandt, Chairman of the Joint Legislative AdvisoryCommittee. In thatopinion we reuled that the State-Superintendent-of Public Instructionand the Joint Legislative Mvlsory Committeedld not have authorityunder the provisions-of

House Bill No. 

### 933, Acts 46th Legislature,to direct applicantsfor rural aid under such Act, to omit receipts from the State per capita apportionment which they would receive for pupils transferredinto the school district from a district ineligibleto receive aid under Section 6 of the Act, in showing the budgeted receipts of the receivingdistrict-under Section 

### 13.

You suggest that Inequitiesand hardships to school districts

will result under our constr.uction of the Act, and state that: "1~1

many Instancesthe number of pupils-transferring into State aid schoolsmake it absolutelyessentialthat extra teachersbe employedto take care of this influx."

The questionsraised in your present requestwere considered in.our originalopinion,and It was pointed out that the Legislature

had provided for adjusting such hardshipsor lne.qultles

asmight arise. In that opinion;we stated:

"If this construction works a hardship upon the school receiving such ineligibletransfers,such result does not justify a disregardof the statute. The wisdom of the statute is for the Legislature. Besldes,.other provisionsof the kct may take care of such situation. We refer especially to that provisioncontained in Section 4 'thatwhere unusual or extraordinary conditionscause an actual increase in enrollment,an'adjustment as to the number of teachersmay be made by the State Superintendent on approval of said Joint Legislative-Advisory Committeenot to exceed the teacher-pupil load providedherein."'

.Hon. L. A. Woods, page 2 (O-897)

Section 4 of House Bill No. 

### 933, Acts 

### 46th Legislature, reads as follows8

"Sec. 1;. (Teacher-Pup11 Load.)--State

aid under provisions of this&t shall bye allottedupon the basis of
one (1) teacher for any number of scholasticsfrom twenty (20)~tothirty-five 

### (35)and one (1) additionalteacher for-each additionalthirty (30) scholastics; or fractional part thereof residing in the district. It Is expressly provlded that In the event pupils are transferred into the districtthe excess fractional part thereof shall not be less than two (2) scholastics. The basis for calculation shall be the net-scholastlc,enumeration of white or colored r&e, as the case may be, including the transfers into the district and excludingthe transfers out of the district,provldeb such transfersare from the districts eligibleto receive aid under Section 

### 6 of this Act, for the currentyear; and there shall be deducted all scholasticswho have completedthe course of study in their home school,as authorized by the county board of trustees, provided that where unusual or extraordinary conditions

cause an actual increase in enrollment,an adjustmentas to the number of teachersmay be made by the State Superintendenton approvalof said Joint Legislative Advisory Committee .notto exceed the teacher-pupil load provided herein. .& conditionof unusual enrollmentmay be said to exist when and If the average daily attendance'of a school reaches a point in excess of the net scholasticsremaining in the districtafter transfer. Under no conditionsshall aid be granted for teachers in excess of the teacher-pupil load based on the averagedally attendance,for a period of at least five (5) consecutive months; provided further that under no conditionshall aid be granted any district In excess of the number of teachers actually contracted for and employedas authorized herein, and shall also be ~uthorlsedto increasethe teacher-pupil load from thirty (30; to forty (40) after the employmentof the fifteenth teacher on the.teacher-pupil load provided herein, and shall furtherbe authorized,If deemed advisable,to place all schedulesof payment for the last year of the biennium
on the net scholastics for such school districts for the year preceding."

The teacher-ouoil

load is one teacher for anv number of scholastics

from tw&%y (20) to thirty-five 

### (351 and one (1) additionalteacher for each,addltiotial thirty (3O),scholasticsor fractionalpart thereof. The Act then directs-themethod for calculating

the net scholastics within the district for determining the number of teacherswhich may be set up in the budgeted expenditures

of the districtunder Section 13. This is basedHon. L. k. **Woods,** page 3 (C-897)

upon the scholastic census, transfers in and scholastics who have completed their their borne school. Under Section 5, the and out **of** a **diStriCt** course of study in school district Is not

__ ..- disqualLfied from receiving salary aid deternlnec. in this method ylle. i;8 t.3

f >rerage daily attenI;mce Is less than sixty-five is>;,) per zent cf the scholastic tens-us enrollment.

._ T’ke Se&ton then provides that the State Superlntendazt atti Joint Legisi.tlve Gdvlsory & ommlttee may adjust the num3er 0T F

e;-ohers Yhere onuspal or extraordinay conditions caused
se bw. zi _:&:,::l lncregs* f.Q cr Iher&, provided hcwever that the nu%b~ of.t~sachars shall :otOexceed the teacher-pupil load therern provlS?d. ‘IA condition of unusual enrollment may be said to exist when and if -the average dal’iy attendance of a school reaches a point in excess of the net scholastics remaining In the Zistrict after trwsrer.l~ Here WPfind a specific provision au- ,& .horising the State Superlntri;dent L81d Joint Legislative ddvisory Committee to tilc~ addltloaA teachers when there is an actual increase in enrolZ.ment a& the average dad.ly atteudance is’ greater than the number of the net scholastics apportioned to the. -district based upon the scholastic censns and trantieer record, if such Increaseis sufficient to warrant additional teachers and oreate an unusual or extraordinary condition. The disqualiflc&ilon that the number of teachers allowed under this proti-

. slon shall not exceed the teacher-pupil load refers to a calculaMon of teacher-pupil load based upon average dally ‘attendance and not upon the census and transfer records. Any other construction would render the %nusual or extraordinary bonditionsU portion of the Section wlthout any significance or meaning whatsoever, since the school dlstrlct would already be entitled to the full number of teachers calculated upon the basis .of the
census and transfer records wrthout any reference to unusual or extreordinary conditions. ’ / : lie adhere to the conclusions expressed In our origlnal Opinion Ro. O-1944, 31;d are of the opinion that the Inequities and hardships to which you refer should be adjusted in the manner provided by the Legislature and in accordance with the provisionsof Section h-of House Bill No. 933, Acts 46th LeglslaWire.

_ . APEROVZD

MAR18, 1940 Yours very truly Id..GeralG_G. Mann ZTTORNEY GRRERAL

OF TEXAS ATTWNEY GEI@El-&I,

OF TFXAS By.fsJ-Cecil-C.-Cammack,. I?PPRQ~P:..QRINICON-COMITY 4x2 4!Jds,

-rn4~~~.. Cecll‘C, CammackI, Assistant

CCC:RS:wb