The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1909-09-01
JEFFERSON COUNTY
ASKED FOR OPINION
Supervisors May Appropriate Money
to Pay Teachers Salaries, Outside
the District-Sixteenth Section
Funds Not Available For Other Uses

JACkSON, september l.-Attorney
General Stirling, in response to a re-
quest from the county attorney of JEFF
ferson county, has issued an official
opinion in which he holds that where
pupils living in one township attend
the school in another the supervisors
may appropriate money to pay sal
aries for teachers, and may not uss
sixteenth section funds outside their
own township for repairing buildings,
furnishing or other purposes. The
opinion follows:
.Gentlemen: l have your inquiry
through your attorney as follows:
In two adjoining townships in this
county some of the pupilshfrom one
other adjoining township; now, the
question is, should the trustees in
the township in which the pupils at
tend the school in the adjoining town
ship appropriate money for the run
ming of the school in such other
townships (the one they attend( es-
pecially since there is a good school
in each Of the townships. In other
words, should not the pupils attend
the school in their own township :?
and under section 4704, code 1906, if
they do attend the school in the ad-
joining township, should such town.
ship bear its pro rata Of the expenses
of teachers salary, building and re-
pairing such school, purchasing fur
niture for the same, supplies (other
than books, water and fuel? or should
such township appropriate money for
the salary of teachers only"
Under section 4516 code of 1906,
children Of one district may attend
schools of another with the consent
of the trustees of both districts and
the superintendent of education, and
in my opinion this section applies to
all districts whether regular, special
or separate. Section 4704 contenf-
plates such an attendance as well as
an attendance in an adjoining town.
ship.
Atty. Gen. report 19O5106, 22S.
Opinion to Superintendent ]. N.
Powers. Nov. 3Oth, 1908.
Section 47O1 dealing with sixteenth
section funds, among other things
provides:
Such funds shall not be expended
otherwise than for the purpose of ed
ucation within the township whici
thev belong, but the board Of super
visors may appropriate the funds for
the erection of necessary buildings
and improvements upon the land"
section 470 provides for the appro
priation by the board Of supervisor:
of the available funds for building
and repairing school houses, for the
nurchase of school furniture and sup
plies for the same, and for supplying
water and fuel, and for the payment
of teachers salaries. These two sec
tions must be construed together and
so constituting them I am of the opin
ion that the township funds may be
used in another township only in the
navment of teachers salaries and may
not be appropriated to the repair ol
building of school houses in Other
townships.
This is in full accord with a prioi
ruling of this office. Attorney Gener
aps report 19O3-05, 80, and mo way
in conflict with the ruling to Sharkey
! county, attorney generals report
n 905-O7, 22S. The last clause of thai
) opinion refers to the duty Of tho
board Of supervisors to appropriate
n ffhe funds for the various purposes or
i <fIe Recommendation of the township
{x&rustees and not to the division o1
Z the funds between the townships for
building and furnishing school houses