Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1942 )

Honorable V. B. Gdar
County Attorney
Blanc0 County
Johnson City, Texas
Opinion No. O-4934
Re: (1) Whether notices of bond
assumption and maintenance
tax elect&on were posted in
sufficient time;
(2) Whether property may be
placed on the rolls of rural
high school district on ,Octo-
ber 1st.
Dear Sir:
We have received your letter of October 16, 1942,
which we quote, ln part, as follows:
'"On the 17th day of September, A.D. 1942
the Board of Trustees of Johnson City Rural
High School District ordered an election on
the question of levying and collecting a tax
for the maintenance of the public free schools
In Johnson City Rural High School District;
and also upon the question of the assumption
of the outstanding indebtedness, Issued prior
to the formation of the present District.
"The Secretary, Board of Trustees of
Johnson CityRural High School District, on
the 18th day of September, A. .D. 1942 posted
a true and correct copy of said Notice of
Election at three different places,to-wit:
One at Post Office, Round Mountain, Texas; one
at Post Office, Sandy, Texas; and one at Post
Office, Johnson City, Texas, wlthln the bounda-
ries of said District. ,The above mentioned
election was held on the 28th day of Sep-
tember, A.D. 1942.
"Question: Was the notice posted long
enough, in the above, for the election to be
legal under the law?
Honorable V. B. Goar, page 2
"After this above election was held,
on the 28th day of September, A.D. 1942, the
Board of School Trustees, through their Sec-
retary, notified the Tax Assessor-Collector
of Blanc0 County, Texas, on the 30th day of
September, A. D. 1942, and requested that
said property In the territory be assessed
for the tax voted on the 28th day of Septem-
ber, A. D. 1942. At the time that the Tax
Assessor-Collector received this notice, he
had not closed his rolls for the year 1942,
and so he placed the tax voted above on the
property affected.
"Question: Was it legal for this prop-
erty to be placed on the tax rolls at this
late date, viz. on October 1st 19421 How-
ever the tax rolls were not closed for the
year and were not closed until the 15th of
October, A. D. 1942."
This opinion will be confined to a discussion only
of the questions asked. We assume that all required legal
steps pertaining to the election had otherwise been taken,
that the tax was properly.levied and the property otherwise
validly assessed, and that the only points in which you are
interested are the ones about which you inquire.
Article 2922h, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes,
provides for an election for the assumption by a rural high
school district of the outstanding indebtedness of the dis-
tricts which were grouped or annexed to form the rural high
school district. Article 2922h reads, In part, as follows:
"The said election providing for the
assumption of such bonded or other indebted-
ness shall be called and held in accordance
with existing provisions of law relating to
elections for the issuance of bonds by inde-
pendent school districts."
Article 2922L, Revised Civil Statutes, as amended,
provides that the board of trustees of a rural high school
shall have the power to levy and collect a maintenance tax
after an election wherein a majority of the qualified tax-
paying voters authorize the same, "which election shall be
held in accordance with the law now governing such elections
h
Honorable V. B. Goar, page 3
in independent school district. . . .' See Landrum v. Cen-
tennial Rural Hi h School District ,No.,2,et al (Dismissed
Judgment Correct7 .
Article 2785, Vernon's Annotated Clvll,Statutes,
reads, in part, as follows:
"Before an election is held to determine
the proposition of the levy of such tax or the
Issuance of such bonds, a petition therefor,
signed by twenty (20) or more, or a majority-;1~ :
of those entitled to vote at such election,
shall be presented to~the County~Judge of the
county if for a common school district, and to
the dlstrlct trustees if for an independent
school district. On presentation of said
petition, said officer or officers shall order
an election for such purpose, and order the
sheriff to post notices thereof In three (3)
places In the district for ten (10) days prior
thereto, or if for an Independent district, the
secretary of said board of trustees shall post
such notices."
We see that Article 2785 specifies that notices of the
election are to be posted for tendays prior thereto. You state
that the notices were posted on September 18th and that the
election was held on September -28th. ,We are of the opinion
that the statute is satisfied, for that period of time from
September 18th to September 27th, both dates inclusive, is
ten days.
In any event, It has been held that 'ourstatutes
regulating the manner of holding elections are merely di-
rectory and a departure from the literal terms thereof will
not invalidate an election unless such Irregularity has
changed the result thereof. This rule is applicable to the
posting of notices. Hill et al v..Smlthville Independent
School District, et al, 239 S.,W. 987, affirmed, 251 S.W. 209;
Lightner et al v. McCord, 151 S.W. (2d) 362;Sykes et al v.
Pandora Independent School District, et al (Writ of error Pe-
fused), 14 S.W. (2d) 124; Williams et al v. Glover et al, 259
S.W. 95 ;.State ex rel, Miller et al v. Troell (Writ of error
refused3 , 207,s.~. 610; ,Wallis v. Williams; 110 S,W. 785.
. ’
Honorable V. B. ,Goar, page 4
Our answer to your first question is, therefore,
In the affirmative.
~You stat@ that,after the election was held and we
assume that a majority of the votes cast at the eleciion were
in favor of both assumption and the tax, the board of trustees,
through Its secretary, made a request to the tax assessor-
collector that the property within the district be taxed at
the rate voted on September 28th. This was done on September
30th. At that.time the tax assessor-collector had not closed
the tax rolls for the year 1942, and he thereupon placed the
property upon the same. You wish to,know,whether becaue of
the late date such property was legally placed,upon the rolls.
You have not,informed us'whether,the Johnson City
Rural High School district was formed by grouping contiguous
school districts, or by annexation of school districts to an
independent school district so that such enlarged indePendent
school district'continues to operate as an independent school
district under the laws governing such~districts. See Arti-
cles 2922a, 2922b, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes; Trinit
Independent School District v. Dlstrict'Trustees, District 2 1 l
Trinity County, et al (Writ of error refused), 135 S.W. (2d)l
1021.
Article 2922L provides that the "tax assessor
herein provided for shall make 'a complete list of all assess-
ments made by him, and when approved by the Board of 'Trustees
shall be submitted to the county tax collector not later than
September 1st of each year." It has been held that this part
of Article 2922L,."not later than September lst", Is directory
and that,its nonobservance will not vitiate the official
acts involved. McPhail et al v. Tax Collector of Van Zandt
County et al. (Writ of error refused), 280 S.W. 260.
In Volume 37 of Texas Jurisprudence, page 1013
(SCHOOIS, Taxatlon,.Sectlon 132), the following is stated:
"I,nthe absence of any law'dlrectlng when
the assessment shall be made, or when the board
of equalization shall meet, or when the rolls
shall be prepared and approved, these matters
are under the control of the local authori%ies."
And in Volume 40 of Texas Jurisprudence, pag;sftg+
129 (TAXATION, Assessment and Valuation, Section 90 ,
the statutes dealing with assessment and the compilation of the
.
Honorable V. B. Goar, page 5
tax rolla are summarized, the following paragraph appears:
“With respect to the times specified In
the etatute above summarized, it has been held,
applying the rule that revenue statutes are but
directory In so far as they prescribe a time
for doing any act by the officials, that the
making of assessments and verification of the
roll after the statutory time did not Invalidate
the assessments.”
In answer to your second question, you are advised
that, aseumlng that the proper ,steps were taken, the property
was legally placed on the tax rolls even though it was not
placed thereon until October 1st.
Yours very truly
ATTORNEY
GENEZALOF TEXAS
By George W. .Sparks
Assie tant
GWS/S
APPROVED
Nov.2, 1942
Gerald C. Mann
Attorney General of Texas
~Apprbved Opinion Committee
By BWB, ChaiFman