Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1950 )

- .
NEY GENERAL
EXAS
Aprfl 70 1950
Eon. W. R. Banks 0pinlon No. 109.
Aoting Chairmen
Board of Directors Re: The euthority of Texes
Texas State University Stete University for
for Negroes Iiegroesto refund cer-
Preirie View, Texes tein tuition peyments
under the submitted
facts, end related
Deer Sir: questions.
In connectionwith your requaat for an opinion
we have restated the facta submitted es followa:
One certain student, whose address Zs
Johnaboro,Loulsiane, end edmlttedly 8 resi-
dent of the Stete of Louisiena, enrolLed et
The Texas State University for Negroes for
the regular sessions of 1948-1949, and 19k9-
1950, peylng for eech semester of eeoh long
sassl.on,e tuition of $25.00, the amount
charged oitleens or resident student6 of Tex-
In January, 1950, it we8 dlsaovered thet
l$'wes a oitizen end resident of Louislena.
Whereupon, the authoritiesof said University
demended that he pey, not only $150.00 for the
current semester, but retroactively,for the
duretlon of his ettendence et the institution.
This student peld this indebtednesswith con-
tributions end loens from his friends. These
?riends have asked the Boerd of Directors of
the institutionto mfund to the student the
money advenced him for this purpose.
Furthermore,Ft hes recently been dis-
covered thet the institutionhas several other
non-residentstudents who, through resident
status error, heve not paid the non-resident
tuition of $150.00 per semester. On October
14, 1947, the Board of Directors of the Uni-
versity fixed the non-restdentstudent tui-
tion fee et $150.00 per semester.
The following questions ere eaked:
Ron. W. R. Banks, page 2 (V-1039)
1. Does the Boerd of Directors have
the authority to weive unpaid tuitfon fees
on Its non-resfdentstudents, end collect
only non-residentfees from its non-resident
students from the time it discovers the ep-
ror in the resident stetus of such students?
2. Does such Board, in the cese present-
ed, heve euthority to refund back-due tuition
fees collected as non-residentfees?
The Texes Stete University for Megroes is e
college creeted by the Legisleture under the euthority
of Section 48, Article III of the Constitution of Texas,
end is supported by ublic funds appropriatedb the
Legislature. S.B. lg0, Acts 50th Leg., R.S. 1& 7, oh.
29, p.36 (Art.2643b,V.C.S.); H.B. 319, Acts 51st Leg.,
R.S. 1949, oh. 584 .1133; S.B. 253, Acts 51st Leg., R.
5. 1949, ah.478, p:%E7; A.G. Opinion V-31. The division
of the University known es The Prairie View Agrioultural
and Mechanioal College of Texas is under the control end
supervision of the Board of Directors of The Agrioultur-
el end Meahenical College of Texas. Sec.2 of S.B. 140,
aupra.
Tuition rates to be collected from students
enrolling in State supported institutionsof collegiate
renk ere provided for in Article 2654`` Vernon's Civil
Statutes. A.G. OpinionNo.+-5891, Article 2654c, es
last amended by House Bill 507, 50th Leg,, R.S. 1947,
ch.218, p.389, effective at the tfme when the Texas
State Unlversfty for Negroes was created, protides:
"Seeo 1. The governing boards of the
several institutionsof collegiate rank sup-
DoPted in whole or in vart bv vubllc funds
appropriatedfrom the $tate Treasury shall
cause to be collected from students E-
terPng in th%XZ Fd schools after September
1, 1933, tuition at the followfng ratas:
"1* From each resident student, who
registers for twelve (12) or more semester
hours of work.per semester of four and one-
helf (44) months, Twenty-fiveDollars ($25.-
00) per semester; e e D
"2o Prom each non resident student who
regfsters for twelve (12) or more semester
I
Hon. W. R. Banks, Page 3 (V-1039)
hours of work per semester of four end one-
half (li*)months, a regfstratfonfee of not
less then Seventy-fiveDollars ($75) nor
more than one Hundred and Fifty Dollers ($150)
per semester as fixed end determined for each
fiscel year by eech governing board; e . 0
"(a) A nonresidentstudent is here de-
fined to be a student of less than 0 . ."s21)
gears of age, living away from his family, end
whose femily resides fn another State, or whose
family has not resided in Texas for the e . o
(12) months Immediatelypreseding the date of
registration;or a student of o . S (21) years
of age or over who resides out of the State or
who has not been a resident of the State . . .
(12) months subsequentto his twenty-first
birthday or for the . o 0 (12) months immed-
iately preceding the date of registration.
11
. . D
"(e) The governing boards of the sev-
eral State-supportedinstitutionsere hereby
euthorized to assess end collect from eech
non-residentstudent falling to comply with
the rules and regulatfons of the governing
boerds concerning nonresIdentfees a penalty
not to exceed Five Dollars ($5) per semester.
"4. From each residen% s%uden% regis-
tering for a summer sessfon, such an amount
as shell be fixed by the gow~rnfng board of
such fnstftution bud fn no event less than
Twenty Dollars ($20) for a twelve week term
nor more than Thirty-fiveDollars ($35) for
e twelve week term. From each nonresident
student registeringfor a summer session such
proportionateamoun% es is provided in pare-
graph 2 of Section E as the length of the
summer session bears to the length of the
semester or term, provided, however, that in
no event shall the summe'rsession fee levied
on a nonresidentstuden% be less then the
fee charged to a resident student; 0 o .,
"SetD 2 ., All tuition, local.funds or
fees collected by such ins%i%u%lonsshall be
retained and expended by such institutions
. .
Hon. W. R. Banks, page 4 (V-1039)
end eccounted for ennuelly ea provided in
the General AppropriationBill . . en
The governing boerds of our Stete institutions
of higher learning ere provided for by statute. The mem-
bers of these boerds ten exercise no authority unless the
seme is expressly conferred or erises by necessary impli-
cation from the powers thet are conferred. Givens v.
Woodward, 207 S.W.2d 234 (Tex.Civ.Ap 1947 error dism.
W.O.j., 146 Tex, 396, 208 S.W.2d 3637; Wed v. Univer-
169 S.W.2d 993 (Tex.Civ.App.lW2, error
Benedict, 122 Tex. 193, 55 S.W.2a 805
7 R.C.L. 139 Universities and Colleges Sec.8.
In the'metter of tuition rates to be charged students
(residentand nonresident)enrolling in such institutions,
the powers of the boards are prescribed in Article 2654~.
Exemptions from the payment of tuition by certein veter-
resident citizens of Texas ere provided in Article
zg4b-1, but such exceptions r&d no considerationhere-
in.
With respect to resident students, Article
2654~ requires that the governing board "shall cause to
be collected" from each such student who registers for
twelve or more semester hours er semester of four and
one-half months, twenty five ( 25) dollars per semester.
As to nonresidentstudents, the statute re-
quires that the governing board "shall cause to be col-
lected" from each such student registeringfor twelve
or more semester hours per semester of four and one-half
months "a registrationfee of no% less than 0 D . ($75)
nor more than o 0 Q ($150) per semester es fixed and de-
termined" by the governing board. Rerein the board does
heve the,discretlonaryauthority within the limits spec-
ified to determine what its nonresidenttuition fee shall
be. We are edvlsed that the tuition rate of the insti-
tution in question has been fixed at One Hundred and Fif-
ty Dollars per semester for each nonresidentstudent re-
gistering for twelve or more hours per semester of four
and one-half months.
These tuition rates having been fixed by ana
in accordancewith law, it follows that it becomes the
statutory duty of the governing board to cause them to
be collected, to demand the Twenty-fiveDollar fee from
each resident student OP the One Hundred and Fifty Dol-
ler fee frcnneach nonresidentstudent et the time he is
enrolled or at such time when his correct stetus es re-
sident or nonresidentstudent is correctly determined
Hon. W. R. Banks, pege 5 (V-1039)
or diaoovered. Under Article 26540, the governing board
he8 no euthority,expressed or implied, to waive in whole
or in pert eny uncollectedpeymentsof tuition by its re-
sident or nonresidentstudents. Foley v. Benedict supra;
Girerdeeu School Dist. No. 63 v. Frye 2m?.2d
(Mo.App.1949);A. G. Opinions Nos. 0-d94, 0-5267. In-
deed, the Boerd is further euthorieed to assess end collect
a penalty of five dollars per semester from eaoh nonresi-
dent student feiling to comply with its rules fixing non-
resident fees. Art.2654c, Sec.1, par.2(e). This penelty
provision of the law is designed, we think to impose re-
sponsibilityon the enrolling student, in cases of doubt,
to heve determined from all the fects in his commend what
hds true status as a resident or nonresident student mey
.
With reference to your second question It fol-
lows from what has been seid in answer to your first
question thet the answer is in the negative. The college
cennot refund such belated tuition payments lewfully col-
lected. The status of the student as a nonresidentis
undisputed. Being e nonr&sidentstudent, the law re-
quits him to pay tuitation et nonresidentrates end the
Boerd to collect the same. Therefore, the money collect-
ed as tuition was lawfully aollected end deposited es
local funds of the institution, H.B. 546; Acts 51st Leg.,
R.S. 1949, ch.145, p.267 (Ar&.2643eaV.G.3.); Art.2654d,
V.C.S. Local funds of such institutions,lewfully ool-
lected, oan be used or expended only for the urpose for
which they ere appropriated, R.B. 319, Sec.1Pa) end Gen-
era1 Provisions, subsec. (4 9 supra; A.G. Opinions Nos.
4
o-1662, o-1694,.o-7012, v-5 o
It is the statutory duty of the governing
boards of stete institutionsof higher leern-
ing to ceuse to be collected from eaeh student
as of the time of enrollmentthe tuition fees
specified in Article 2654c, V.G.S.9 for eech
semester of four end one-half months, which
for resident studen%s is $25-00, and for non-
resident students is such amount as may be fix-
ed by the boerd, but not less than $75.00 nor
more then $150.00. Such boerds heve no euth-
ority, express OP implied, to waive in whole or
in pert any uncollectedtuition required to be
Ron. W. R. Banks, page 6 (V-1039)
paid by resident or non-restdentstudents, nor
mey such boards refund tuition fees paid or
colleoted in the amounts required.
Yours very truly,
PRICE DANIEL
APPROVED: Attorney Generel
J. C. Davis, Jr.
County Affairs Division -&z&;rtL ?T&L.L.d
BY
'CharlesD. Methews Chester E. Ollison
Executive Assistant Assistant
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