Opinion ID: 1789805
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: School District Organizations

Text: Defendants contend that the plaintiff school districts and their representative not-for-profit advocacy organizations lack standing to litigate constitutional claims concerning individual rights. For an organization to have standing, its members must have standing, the interests it seeks to protect must be germane to the organization's purpose, and the participation of individual members must not be required. Mo. Health Care Ass'n v. Attorney Gen. of Mo., 953 S.W.2d 617, 620 (Mo. banc 1997). This Court has stated that the capacity of a school district to sue and its authority to prosecute actions required to protect and preserve school funds and property is necessarily implied from the district's duty to maintain schools and conduct instruction within its boundaries. State ex rel. Sch. Dist. of Independence v. Jones, 653 S.W.2d 178, 185 (Mo. banc 1983) (finding that school districts were not barred from bringing a declaratory judgment challenge to the State Tax Commission's future calculations of school funding monies). Arguing that their duties are impaired, Plaintiffs assert that article IX, section 1(a), of the Missouri Constitution, which guarantees free public schools, also contains a requirement for adequate funding for those schools. Because they argue that, under their interpretation, school districts would be entitled to more funds, the plaintiff school districts and their representative organizations have standing to challenge the school funding formula under article IX, section 1(a). See Comm. for Educ. Equal. v. State, 878 S.W.2d 446, 458 (Mo. banc 1994) (Robertson, J. concurring) (suggesting that school district standing was proper under article IX, section 1(a)); Gerken v. Sherman, 276 S.W.3d 844, 853 (Mo.App.2009) (stating that public schools have a legal interest directly jeopardized when the state failed to place certain funds into the public school fund). Similarly, school districts and their representative organizations have standing for their assessment challenges raised under article X, concerning taxation, in that they allege the legislature wrongly relied on inaccurate tax assessment data. They contend this impacts their duty to provide a free public education under article IX, section 1(a) in that an injury results from use of inaccurate assessment data in local effort calculations. School districts and their representative organizations lack standing to assert that the alleged inadequacy of school funding violates their equal protection rights or the Hancock Amendment. Political subdivisions established by the State are not persons within the protection of the due process and equal protection clauses. City of Chesterfield v. Dir. of Revenue, 811 S.W.2d 375, 377 (Mo. banc 1991). Also, the Hancock Amendment by its terms does not grant standing to school districts or their representative organizations. Mo. Const. art. 10, sec. 23 (granting taxpayers standing to sue under the Hancock Amendment).