Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1952 )

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November 12, 1952
Hon. J. W. Edgar Opinion No. V-1538
Commissioner of Education .‘
Texas Education Agency Re: Authority of the Texas
Austin, Texas' Education Agency to re-
quire the depository '
banks of public junior
college districts to
Dear Dr. Edgar: file an annual report.
Your request for an opinion of this office
relates to the application of general school laws to
the operation of junior college districts. You state
that since you have been unable to discover pertinent
statutes governing junior colleges which provide for
an annual depository bank report It has been your inter-
pretatlon that Article 2833;,wouldbe applicable to
junlor college districts.
Article 2833, V.C.S., provides:
"Each treasurer receiving or having con-
trol of any school fund of an Independent
school district shall keep a full and sepa-
rate it~emlzedaccount with each of the dlf-
ferent classes of school funda coming into
his hands, and shall on or before the first
day of October of each year, file with the
board of trustees of such independent school
district and with the State Superintendent an
Itemized report of the receipts and-disburse-
ments of the school funds for the preceding
school year ending August 31st, which report
shall be on a form prescribed an8 furnished
by the Department of Education: The board of
trustees shall notify the State Superlntend-
ent of their approval of said report within
thirty days after receipt of same, should
same be~approved, and the State Superintend-
ent shall notify the board of trustees of
objections or of recommendations concerning
same should he desire to make any. All
vouchers showing items of the report shall
be flied with the board of trustees and the
Hon. J. W. Edgar, page 2 (v-1538)
State Superintendent may demand same when
passing on said report or for the purpose
of investigating same."
Section 5 of Article 2815h, V.C.S., provides:
"The Board of Trustees of Junior Col-
lege Districts shall be governed in the
establishment, management and control of the
Junior College by the General Law governing
the establishment, management and control of
Independent School Districts insofar as the
General Law is applicable."
Section 11 of Article 2815h, V.C.S., is in
part as follows:
"The Board of Education of the Junior
College District shall have the right to
select and designate a depository for such
District and the General Laws pertaining to
County depositories, so far as'appllcable,
shall govern in the selection of the DEB-
trict depository, and with resflectto the
depository bond, and the like.
A careful examination of the laws relating to
county depositories (Arts. 2544 et seq., V.C.S.) does
not reveal any authority for requiring a depository bank
to file an annual depository bank report with the Texas
Education Agency. In situations of this nature it is
universally held that the specific statute (Art. 2815h)
more clearly evidences the intention of the Legislature
than the general one. and will therefore control. See
Sam Bassett Lbr. Co..v. City of Houston, 145 Tex, 492,
8 2 8 9 (194 )* Canales v. Laughlin, 147 Tex.
iz9 safe s"W72d 4517(i948) State v.,Mauritz-Wells Co.,
141'Tex. 634, 175 S.W.2d &,m) .
In answer to your specific question it is our
opinion that the Texas Education Agency ia not authorized
to require depository banks of public junior college dis-
tricts to file annual reports.
Hon. J. W. Edgar, Page 3 (v-15381
SUMMARY
The Texas Education Agency Is without
authority to require depository banks of
public junior college districts to file an-
nual depository bank reports.
Yours very truly,
APPROVED: PRICE DANIEL
Attorney General
J. C. Davis, Jr.
County Affairs Division
Mary K. Wall
Reviewing Assistant
Assistant
Charles D. Mathews
First Assistant
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