October 11, 1972 

Rep. Charles H. Jungmichel 

Chairman, House Committee on 

Public Education 

Opinion No. M-1235 

Re: 

Texas House of Representatives 

State Capitol B;;;f;ng 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Mr. Jungmichel: 

Constitutionality of statute 

authorizing voters of an independent school district 

within a junior college 

district to vote themselves 

out of the junior college 

district, and related 

questions involving S.B. 19 

and H.B. 33, b2nd Leg., 1972, 

4th C.S. 

Your request for an opinion reads as follows: 

"Senate Bill 19 and House Bill 33 are before 

the Legislature at this time and they are being 

considered by the House Committee on Public Education of which I am Chairman. A question concerning the legality of this proposed legislation 

has arisen which I feel needs some clarification. 

"In their applicatio~n, these bills will 

apply only to the Odessa Junior College District. 

A Dart of that district comprising the Midland 

Independent School District wants a legal basis 

to disannex itself from the Odessa Junior College 

District and establish a new Junior College District. This propo~sed disannexation and creation 

of the separate Junior College District will be 

voted on by the qualified voters of the independent school districts. Those voting on the disannexation question are a numerical minority in 

the Junior College District. The vote, if 

taken under this bill, would make it possible 

for the numerical minority to decide the question 

for all the voters in the Odessa Junior College 

District. 

"The questions to be answered are: 

-6046- 
I . 

Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel, page 2 (M-1235) 

II 1. Is it constitutional for the voters of 

an independent school district within a junior 

college district to vote themselves out of the 

junior college district? 

“2. Does the bill cover only the Odessa 

Junior College Taxing District? 

“3. If parts of the bill apply to other 

than the Odessa Junior College Taxing District, 

specifically what applies to other districts? 

11 4. What effect would this bill have on 

subsequent junior college annexation and disannexation procedures? 

11 5. Is this a precedent in junior college 

annexation and disannexation procedures in so 

far as geographic integrity, i.e. could any 

governmental entity vote itself out of a district at an election called by a petition signed 

by 5% of the voters without a vote of the whole 

district?” 

S.B. 19 and H.B. 33, b2nd Leg. 4th C.S., are companion 

bills amending Subchapter d, Chapter 51, Texas Education Code; 

by adding 51.069 reading as follows: 

“Section 51.069. DISANNEXATION OF 

TERRITORY COMPRISING AN INDEPENDENT SCHOOL 

DISTRICT. 

“(a) The territory of an independent 

school district which is the-only school 

district that has been annexed to a countywide independent school district junior 

college district in an adjoining county may 

be disannexed from such countywide independent 

school district junior college district and 

constituted as a separate independent school 

district junior college district in accordance 

with the provisions of this section, provided 

that the countywide independent school district 

junior college district has no outstanding 

bonded indebtedness which was incurred after 

the annexation of such independent school district. 

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Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel, page 3 (M-1235) 

“(b) The proposed disannexation and creation of a separate junior college district 

shall be initiated by a petition signed by 

not less than five percent of the qualified 

taxpaying electors of the independent school 

district seeking disannexation. The petition 

shall be presented to the board of trustees of 

the independent school district seeking to be 

disannexed, which shall pass upon the legality 

and genuineness of the petition and forward 

the petition, if approved, to the coordinating 

board. 

“(c) If the petition is found to be in 

order and all statutory provisions have been 

complied with, the coordinating board shall 

approve the petition and notify the board of 

trustees of the independent school district 

seeking to be disannexed, of such approval. 

The board of trustees of the independent 

school district seeking disannexation shall 

then order an election to be held in the 

school district within a time not less than 

20 days nor more than 30 days after the order 

is issued. At the election the ballots shall 

be nrinted to Drovide for votine for or against 

the’ proposition: ‘Disannexation atiog of the - 

ent School District 

Tram the 

Independent 

and creation 

Junior College District, 

f the Junior 

Colleee District wit Vcoterminous 

with the boundaries of the 

ariescoterminous 

Independent School District.’ (the blanks to 

be filled in as appropriate). All expenses 

incurred in holding the election shall be paid 

by the independent school district ordering 

such election. 

“(d) The board of trustees shall make a 

canvass of the returns and declare the result 

of the election within 10 days after holding 

the election and shall enter an order on the 

minutes of the board as to the result of the 

election. If a majority of the votes cast 

are in favor of disannexation and creation 

of a separate junior college district, such 

independent school district shall be deemed 

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. 

Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel, page 4 (M-1235) 

disannexed and constituted as a separate 

junior college district. 

“(e) If the creation of the separate 

junior college district is approved, it shall 

be governed by the provisions of this code 

relating to independent school district junior 

colleges. The offices of the representatives 

of the disannexed independent school district 

of the governing body of the countywide independent school district junior college district shall be terminated, and the remaining 

members of that governing body shall continue 

to serve for the terms for which they were 

elected. 

“(f) Any petition for disannexation and 

creation of a separate junior college district 

may also incorporate a request for the proper 

authorities, in the event an election is ordered 

for the creation of a new district, to submit 

at the same election, either as a part of the 

disannexation issue or as a separate issue, 

the questions of issuing bonds and levying 

bond taxes and levying maintenance taxes, in 

the event the district is created, not to exceed the limits provided in Section 51.102 of 

this code .‘I 

Section 1 of Article VII of the Constitution of Texas 

provides : 

“A general diffusion of knowledge being 

essential to the preservation of the liberties 

and rights of the people, it shall be the duty 

of the Legislature of the State to establish 

and make suitable provision for the support 

and maintenance of an efficient system of 

public free schools.” 

In construing the above quoted provision, 

in Mumme v. Marrs, 120 Tex. 383, 40 S.W.2d 31 (1931) 

liberal rules of construction of this constitutional 

it was held 

, that the 

provision 

should apply in determining the power of the Legislature in 

organizing a public school system. It was further held that 

legislative determination of methods, restrictions and regulations in organizing a State educational system is final except 

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. 

. . 

Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel, page 5 (M-1235) 

when so arbitrary as to be violative of a constitutional right. 

Junior college districts constitute a part of the svstec 

of public free schools: Shepherd v. San Jacinto-Junior College 

District, 363 S.W.2d 742 (Tex.Sup. 1963). Therefore unless 

regulated by some other constitutional provision, it is within 

the sole discretion of the Legislature to determine the method 

of annexation or deannexation of the territory comprising junior 

college districts. Section 3-b of Article VII of the Constitution of Texas provides in part: 

“NO tax for the maintenance of public free 

schools voted in any independent school district 

and no tax for the maintenance of a junior college 

voted by a junior college district? nor any bonds 

voted in any such district, but unissued, shall 

be abrogated, cancelled or invalidated by 

change of any kind in the boundaries thereof. 

After any change in boundaries, the governing 

body of any such district, without the necessity 

of an additional election, shall have the power 

to assess, levy and collect ad valorem taxes on 

all taxable property within the boundaries of 

the district as changed, for the purposes of 

the maintenance of public free schools or the 

maintenance of a junior college, as the case 

may be, and the payment of principal of and 

interest on all bonded indebtedness outstanding 

against, or attributable, adjusted, or allocated to, such district or any territory 

therein, in the amount, at the rate, or not 

to exceed the rate, and in the manner authorized 

in the district prior to the change in its 

boundaries, and further in accordance with the 

laws under which all such bonds, respectively, 

were voted; . . .‘I 

Section 3-b of Article VII recognizes that the Legislature may authorize changes in the boundaries of junior college 

districts so long as outstanding bonds are not abrogated, cancelled or invalidated. Since the bills in question only apply 

“provided that the county-wide independent school district 

junior college district has no outstanding bonded indebtedness 

which was incurred after the annexation of such independent 

school district”, the bonded indebtedness of the junior college 

district could not be and is not abrogated, cancelled or invalidated by the provisions of the bills in question. 

-6050- 
. 

Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel. page 6 (M-1235) 

It may be argued that the electors comprising the 

entire junior college district should be permitted to vote on the 

deannexation of the independent school district since all the 

taxable property within the boundaries of the junior college 

district is subject to taxation for the present junior college 

district. Nevertheless, this is a question that is solely within 

the discretion of the Legislature and is not required by any 

constitutional provision. You are accordingly advised, in answer 

to your first and fifth questions, that it is constitutional for 

the Legislature to authorize the voters of an independent school 

district within a junior college district to vote to deannex the 

territory comprising the independent school district and creating 

a new junior college district. 

Finally, in connection with our consideration of your 

first question concerning constitutionality, we have concluded 

that the form of the ballot and the proposition to be submitted 

to the voters, although duplicitous, is not confusing and is 

legally sufficient to inform the voter of the purpose of the 

election and the effect of an affirmative vote and is thus constitutional. The form of ballot will be uuheld if not misleading to the voters. Beeman v. Mays, 163 S.k. 358 (Tex.Civ.App. 

1914, error ref.). 

fin answer to your second and third questions, the 

bills in question apply to any independent school district which 

is the only school district that has been annexed to a countywide independent school district junior college district in an 

ad ‘oining county. 

II 

At the present time we are unaware of any 

SC 001 districts other than the Midland Independent School District annexed to the Odessa Junior College District to which 

these bills apply. 

In answer to your fourth question, you are advised 

that the provisions of these bills will apply to deannexation 

procedure of territories of an independent school district 

which is the only school district that has been annexed to a 

countywide independent school district junior college district 

in an adjoining county, whether such territory has been annexed 

prior to or subsequent to the enactment of these bills. 

SUMMARY 

S.B. 19 and H.B. 33 of the b2nd Leg. 4th 

C.S., relating to deannexing territories of 

certain independent school districts from 

-6051- 
Hon. Charles H. Jungmichel, page 7 (M-1235) 

certain junior college districts are constitutional. 

Prepared by John Reeves 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Kerns Taylor, Chairman 

W. E. Allen, Co-Chairman 

Gordon Cass 

Gerald Ivey 

James McCoy 

Roger Tyler 

SAMUEL D. MCDANIEL 

Staff Legal Assistant 

ALFRED WALKER 

Executive Assistant 

NOLA WHITE 

First Assistant 

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