Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-10-09
BOWMAN RULES ON
HANDLING RURAL
SCHOOL MONIES
Assistant Attorney General
Says Funds Should Be Dis
burSed Exclusively By COun-
ty Boards of Education,

[sPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS TO MORNING JOURNAL
Santa Fe. n NJ. Oct assistant
state Superintendent John V. Conway
has sent to all county school super
intendents, county treasures and
county commissioners the following
copy of an opinion rendered by AS
sistant Attorney General Harry S,
Bowman regarding the manner OF
handling rural school funds;
Hon. j. II, Wagner,
superintendent Public Instruction,
Santa Fe. n. M.
Dear Mr. Wagner:--The history of
rural school legislation in this state
clearly indicates that it was the IN
tention of the legislature TO take from
the old district boards and to place
in the hands of the county boards of
education both the administrative and
financial handling of the affairs of
the county rural schools and nowhere
is this more apparent than in the pro-
visions of Sec. 5, Oh. 105, l.. 1917,
wherein ii is stated that the said
board shall have fun power and con-
troll over all rural schools and dis
tricts and the funds thereof, excepting
such power as is now conferred upon
the state board of education and the
state uperintendent of public ipstruc-
tion.a All rural school moneys
in the respective county treasures and
all such money credited or to be
credited to said schools may he ex-
pended and disbursed upon warrant
of the county board Of education
only" etc.
The powers in the handling of the
funds of the schools which are here
given to the county board of educa-
ton are broad and limited only in
those cases where there is any con-
flict which the powers granted to the
state board of education or state SUI
perintendent of public instruction.
My examination reveals nothing
which gives to either the board or the
uperintendent any power over the
handling of the school funds of the
county, and. in view of the wording of
this section wherein the full power
and control of the funds Of the schools
are placed in the hands of the county
board of education. we are of the
opinion that such board is authorized
to make any transfer of the funds
that it shall desire so long as the said
funds are used for the purposes for
which they are intended by law.
(Signed) HARRY s. BOW MAN,
Assistant Attorney General
In commenting on the foregoing,
MI Conway said: ..=...
THE foregoing opinion should be
used as guidance for the proper
method of managing and handling the
school funds in the various counties.
1t is hereby deemed necessary that a
uniform system must be installed by
the county treasurers in keeping the
school moneys in one fund instead of
ereuiting individual districts as it is
still practiced in number of coun-
ties. Under the law it is the duty of
the county superintendent to keep
the school districts within the budget
limit and no district should be allow
ed to overdraw its allowance. 1t is
the duty of the county treasurer to
honor all warrants drawn against the
general school fund when properly
issued by the county board of educa-
ton and to charge same to said gen
eral school fund and not to individual
districts.
"A great deal of Inconvenience and
has been caused in O num-
her of counties, due to the fact that
the public school moneys have been
credited to individual districts, which
caused some to carry excessive bal
ance while others could not be credit
ed with their budget allowance. In
of counties the balances have
been carried from year to year when
the intent of the law is that the
money should be in one fund to be
out on warrants issued by the
county board of education. In other
words, the county treasurer should
charge all warrants issued by the
county board of education to the gem
eral school fund, and it is the duty of
the county superintendent to keep the
accounts of the individual districts.
This is one of the most important
decisions we have had from the at
torney general in months and will do
more to systematize the bookkeeping
in the office of the county school SUI