The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-04-23
New Law is Already in
 Force.
HOUSES MAY NOW BE ERECTE]
Attorney General Garber Renders
 Opinion on Subject.
Holds County That Does Not Use Bn- tire S1 900 One Year is Entitled to Balance tho Succeeding
 Twelve Months.

The fund of s67.OOo for the building of school houses, created by the last Legislature Is available now. In an opinion rendered yesterday by Attor- ney General Alex M. Garber 1t was held that the law goes into effect at once.
 The opinion was rendered in response to inquiries from the Department of Education, which grew out of hundreds of letters received from all sections of the State showing a general interest in the act. The opinion of Attorney Gen eral Garber which Is construction of the act is most important.
 It holds for one thing if county does not use up all it's s1.0oO for the year. 1t Is entitled to the remainder of it, the year following. The act. it will be recalled. provides that the sum of 1000 ahal1 be set aside each year to assist in building rural school houses in each of the sixty seven coun- ties of the State. The Attorney Gen eral holds that if county for in- stance should use only $500 of i.s mon- ey, 1t would be due $500 the year fol- lowing from the same fund.
 Under the act it Is provided that each school house that gets the benefit of the act must be built on a riot of SIouHu HOt leSS than two acres Tn eX- tent. and that this ground must be deeded to the State in fee simple. The Attorney General will shortly draw up form of the proper deed and print ed copies of 1t will be sent ont by the Superintendent of Education. When the deeds have been completed they are to be sent into the Department of Education and there kept on file. No warrant for the school house money Is to be drawn up until the deed Is completed.
 The opinion holds that ,he money cannot be used in an incorporated town or village. It is to go exclu- sively to the rural districts. Superin- tendent Gunnels believes that tho pas- sage of this act will result in the building of 5000 rural school houses In Alabama. -
 The opinion of Attorney General Gorber. which Is addressed to State Superintendent Gunnels. is In full as fellows:
 Many pressing matters and an un- usual volume of work in this offics have rendered the delay unavoidable in responding to your request, contain ed in your letter of March 26th, to advise you concerning certain provis- ions of the Rnral School House Act approved March 3, 1907. I proceed herewith to render you an opinion upon each inquiry: 5
 -First--The title of this Act is as follows: TO appropriate annually $67, 900. or as much thereof as is necessary to aid rural school districts in this State to erect or to repair public school houses Its purpose Is clearly ex- pressed in the above title and it's char acter is. distinctly remedial.
 There Is nothing In the body of the .N lI tfN. It cannot be contended that in the absence of specific direction on this point there existed any Legisla- tive intent to postpone the operation of this act to a future date. It Is we'll settled that unless different time is specified, statutes take effect and be- come operative from the day of the approval by the Governor .as Therefore, 1t Is manifest that this Act became ef- fective on March 2, 1907, the date of its approval by the Governor, and I so advise you.
 "2nd. It Is clearly the purpose of this act to render aid only to rural school districts in the erection and re- pairing of public school houses and the provisions of Section expressly ex- clude any school district a part of which lies in an incorporated city. town or village. The word incorporated must be held to qualify and describe each of the three words city town and village
 "3rd Whenever the erection of a. ru- raI school building has heen begun and has not been completed before the pas sage of this Act, l think such school house should receive the benefits of this Act and you would be authorized to so hold. provided the County Board of Education, upon application by the district trustees to the County Super intendent of Education and It's submis- sion to said Board, approves such ap- plication for aid. after having ascer- tained that all the conditions of Sec tion of said Act have been complied with; and if the plans of said building under course of construction. are en- dorsed by you.
 "4th The following provision is found in the last lines of Section 8 of this Act: No money shall be appropri- ated for the erection of a new school building on plot of ground of less di- mensions than two acres The mean ing of the language employed here is too obvious to admit of any doubt. The restriction upon the erection of a new school building on a plat of less than two acres Is plain. and 1t is equally ap- parent that this restriction does not apply to the school houses already erec- ted on a plat of less than two acres. Re- pairs on such school lot, of less than two acres, therefore, may receive the aid of the funds appropriated under this Act
 18th. Construing this Act as a whole. 1t is my opinion that it appropriates $67. 900 annually for the purposes named in the Act From Section 1 1t would ap- pear that $67, 900 or only so much there of as is necessary is appropriated. but when construed in connection with the following provision In Section 5: Pro vided further that if at the end of any year the whole appropriation for that year has not been exhausted, the State Auditor and the State Treasurer shall carry the unexpended balance forward and this balance shall be available in addition to the regular appropriation for the current year. It Is clear that 1t was the manifest intention of the Leg islature to appropriate and set aside s67, ,0O0 each year to aid rural school districts and such evident intention of the Legislature must control
 You will observe that Section i pro vides that not more than $1.000 or the annual appropriation shall be used in any one County in a separate fiscal year, but this provision cannot be held to apply to the unexpended balance mentioned in Section 5, which is mAue available in addition to the regular ap- propriation for the current year
 "6th Where the appropriation is used for merely reairing rural school house. the Act does not require the