a populatienof 30,000 or less, and that "whenany Qaunicipalschool district'. . . shall desire to have the public schoolvithin its limitsseparatedfrom muuieipalcontrol"the same shall be dome by one hmudredvoterspetitioming for am election,and an election being held in which all of the qualifiedvoters decidewhether or not the schoolashouldbe seprated from the city, and if a majorityvote for such a separationthen an indepandentscheol districtis therebycreated,and said law (&use sill 831, 44th Jag.) then providesin sections5, 7, 8, and 9, as fell&: Page #3 HonorableJ. A. Sues+., (0-llO6)
"sec. 5. Except as herein denied or limited,all the power8 conferredupon independentsohooldistricts and/or twns and villageeincorporated for free school purposesonly, by Title 49, of the RevisedCivil Statutesof Terss, of 1925, andawndm2nt.s thereto,lncludingtherightto anuexccmt~us ~rltoryfcaschool~~es,andthcri~ttolevyb~ and issuebonds for schoolFUXpOseS, as providedby Senaral Law, are hereby conferredupon any independentschool district separatedfrom municipalcontrolunder the provisionsof this Act; . . ."
"Sec. 7. That the Board of Educationor board of trusteesof such independentschool district,after separationfrom municipal~control, shall have authorityto providefor the taxes of said independentschool districtto be assessedby the Assessorand Collectorof Texas of the city of vhich such school districtvas formerlya part, or to have the taxes of said districtassessedand collectedby an assessorand collectorappointedby the board of trustees. Such assessor and collectorshall be sllowedand paid such compensationas is now or may be hereafterprovidedby law."
"sec. 8. The title and rights to all propartyowned,held, set apart or iu any way dedicatedtc the use of the public schoolsof the city or town, and/orheretoforevested in such city or tomand/orthemayor, chairmanoftha commission, city council,city cossissionor board of schooltrusteea of such city or town, prior t- separationfrom municipal controlas herein authorizedand provided,shall be and are hereby investedin the Board of Educationor board of trustees of such independentschool district,after separationfrom municipalcontrol,and shall be managed and controlledby the Board of Educationor board of trusteesthereof,as is mm or may hereafterbe providedby law."
"Sec. 9. Allbouda issuedbyaxdoutstandingagainstany such city or town, as a mnicipal school district,and all obligations,contractsand indebtednessexistingagainstthe city or town, as a nuuicfpalschooldistrictshall become tha obligationsand debts of the independentschool districtat the time of its separationfrom municipalcontrol,and the said independentschool district,after separationfrom municipal control,shall be held to have assumedthe dischargeof all such obligati6ns,contracts,and indebtedness, .aud:,tha same shall be eniorceableaud collqztiblefrom, paid off and.dischar@ by thq said independentschools district,as,if originallycreated.byit as a separatelandindependentschool district;and it shall not be necessaryto call an electionwithin and for-suchdistrictfor the purposeof assumingsuch bonds and other indebtedness." HonorableJ. A. Guest,Page # 4 (0-1106)
We assume that the publicschoolsinthe city of Pittsburgwere controlled by the city under the a~l:hority of Arr:.icle VII, Section 3. and ArticleXI, Section10, of tha Constitution,and Articles2768 and 2771 of the Stat- utes (quotedabove),and that the change of the controlof the schools from the city to the newly createdindependentschooldistrictwas under the authorityand procedureof Article27&b, which did not become a law until 1935.
We think that.priorto the change in the controlof the Pittsburgschools, by a vote of the people,in 1938, the city of Pittsburgconstituteda school district,and that its status as a school districtwas distinct from its statusas a municipality,even thoughthe same