Judges: W.A. DREW EDMONDSON, Attorney General of Oklahoma
Filed Date: 12/19/2008
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 7/6/2016
Dear Senator Leftwich:
This office has received your request for an official Attorney General Opinion in which you ask, in effect, the following questions:
1. In the overlap areas between a college technology center school district (such as that operated by Oklahoma City Community College) and other technology center school districts authorized by 70 O.S.Supp. 2008, § 14-108[
70-14-108 ], may the technology center school districts collect the incentive levy previously approved by the voters of the entire district, without calling for a new election?2. If an additional election is necessary, are all registered voters in the respective technology center school districts allowed to vote or only those voters in the overlap areas?
3. If additional elections are necessary and if the voters reject the incentive levy for the overlap area, which election would control: the election in which the incentive levy was earlier approved by the entire technology center school district, or the election in which it was rejected for the overlap area?
That section states in relevant part that: "E. The Legislature may alter, amend, delete, or add to the provisions of this section by law." OKLA. CONST. art.
The term "area school districts" was changed in 2001 to "technology center school districts," and for purposes of this Opinion will be referred to as such. 2001 Okla. Sess. Laws ch.
A. The State Board of Career and Technology Education shall prescribe criteria and procedures for the establishment and governance of technology center school districts, as provided by Section
9B , ArticleX , Oklahoma Constitution, and such districts so established shall be operated in accordance with rules of the State Board of Career and Technology Education, except as otherwise provided in this title.
Id. The State Board of Career and Technology Education has adopted administrative rules relating to creating technology center school districts, though the rules are not determinative of the issues posed in your questions. See OAC
After 1966, other technology center school districts were created pursuant to Section 4419(A) of Title 70 (creating Tulsa Technology Center School District), and Section 4420(A) (creating Tulsa Community College Technology Center School District). College technology center school districts, like Oklahoma City Community College ("OCCC"), were *Page 3 also created under Section 4410 of Title 70. Amendments to Section 4423 of Title 70 made OCCC a part of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education but also allowed OCCC to continue to operate a technology center school district. Id. § 4423(A), (B).
Your inquiry, as evidenced by the letter from OCCC that accompanied your request, appears to involve the interaction between technology center school districts created under Section14-108 of Title 70 and OCCC, which operates a college technology center school district created under Section 4410; specifically, you inquire about the authority to collect incentive levies under Article X, § 9B(A) and (B).2 This Opinion and its analyses will thus be limited to technology center school districts created under these provisions of law.
Technology center school districts for technology center schools may be established and a levy of not to exceed five (5) mills on the dollar valuation of the taxable property in any technology center school district so established may be made annually, for the district, when the levy is approved by a majority of the electors of the technology center school district, voting on the question at an election called for that purpose.
Id. Subsection B of Article
B. In addition to any other levies authorized by this section, a technology center school district may make a local incentive levy for the benefit of the technology center school district in an amount not to exceed *Page 4 five (5) mills on the dollar valuation of the taxable property in the technology center school district when approved by a majority of those registered voters of the technology center school district voting on the question at an election called for that purpose.
Id. This incentive levy is in addition to any other levies. *Page 5
In 1974 the Oklahoma Supreme Court analyzed Article
The Moore-Norman case analyzed the historical background of Article
The Oklahoma Supreme Court stated, "Accordingly, we hold that Section
Article
[O]nly the levies made by the college technology center school district shall be applied to said overlap territory , and revenues from the overlap area collected pursuant to any incentive levy so made shall be apportioned one-half to the college technology center school district making the levy and one-half to the overlapped technology center school district[.]
Id. (emphasis added.) Thus, until 2007, only the college technology center school district was authorized to levy on property within the overlap areas, for either operational or *Page 6 incentive levies, and the revenues collected on the overlap area from the incentive levy were split equally between the two technology center school districts. Id.
That portion of Article X, Section 9B(A), as amended in 2007, now provides that incentive levies for certain districts may be applied to the overlap area by either the college technology center school district or technology center school district and the revenues collected on the overlap area from the incentive levy are to be split equally between the two technology center school districts. 2007 Okla. Sess. Laws ch.
Provisions of other subsections of this section notwithstanding, in any case where a college technology center school district recognized pursuant to Section 4423 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes and established by vote of the people after December 31, 1968, overlaps and includes territory which is included within the district of a technology center school established as prescribed by the State Board of Career and Technology Education pursuant to Section 14-108 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes, except as otherwise provided herein, only the levies made by the college technology center school district shall be applied to said overlap territory, provided that incentive levies may be applied to the overlap area by either the college technology center school district or technology center school district and revenues from the overlap area collected pursuant to any incentive levy so made shall be apportioned one-half to the college technology center school district making the levy and one-half to the overlapped technology center school district; provided, only one district shall make an incentive levy in such overlap territory during any given time period.
Id. (emphasis added). Thus, Article
Prior to July 1, 2007, only the levies made by the college technology center school district could be applied to the overlap territory. "Legislative intent governs statutory interpretation and this intent is generally ascertained from a statute's plain language." State ex rel.Okla. State Dep't of Health v. Robertson,
Both before and after 2007, the Legislature allowed technology center school district voters to consider incentive levies and the Constitution states:
*Page 8[A] technology center school district may make a local incentive levy for the benefit of the technology center school district in an amount not to exceed five (5) mills on the dollar valuation of the taxable property in the technology center school district when approved by a majority of those registered voters of the technology center school district voting on the question at an election called for that purpose.
OKLA. CONST. art.
Prior to July 1, 2007, the only impediment to collection of the incentive levy in an overlap area was contained in Article
Article
[R]evenues from the overlap area collected pursuant to any incentive levy so made shall be apportioned one-half to the college technology center school district making the levy and one-half to the overlapped technology center school district; provided, only one district shall make an incentive levy in such overlap territory during any given time period.
Id. Thus, collections of incentive levies from overlap areas are apportioned one-half to each, without regard to whether the levy was imposed by the college technology center school district or by a technology center school district.
Since additional elections are not necessary to authorize the collection of the incentive levy from lands within an overlap area, your second and third questions shall not be addressed.
It is, therefore, the official Opinion of the Attorney Generalthat:
1. In the overlap areas between a college technology center school district such as Oklahoma City Community College and a technology center school district authorized by Section 14-108 of Title 70, either district may levy and collect revenue from an incentive levy in the overlap area, provided, only one district *Page 9 shall impose an incentive levy in such overlap territory during any given time period. OKLA. CONST. art.X , §9B (A).2. A technology center school district may impose a local incentive levy for the benefit of the technology center school district in an amount not to exceed five (5) mills on the dollar valuation of the taxable property in the technology center school district when approved by a majority of those registered voters of the technology center school district voting on the question at an election called for that purpose. OKLA. CONST. art.
X , §9B .3. Because the impediment preventing a technology center school district from collecting revenue in an overlap area was removed by amendments to Article
X , Section9B of the Oklahoma Constitution in 2007, approval by a majority of those registered voters in the technology center school district permits the collection of revenue from an incentive levy for the overlap area. See 2007 Okla. Sess. Laws ch.123 , § 1. Any continuing incentive levy up to the limit allowed in Article X § 9B(A), including one approved in the past, may now be collected within the overlap area without further elections being held. Any collections of incentive levies from overlap areas are apportioned one-half to each district, without regard to whether the levy was imposed by the college technology center school district or by a technology center school district. 2007 Okla. Sess. Laws ch.123 , § 1; OKLA. CONST. art.X , §9B (A).
GLEN D. HAMMONDSASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL