Royalty v. Nicholson

411 S.W.2d 565, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2864
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 19, 1967
Docket15034
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 411 S.W.2d 565 (Royalty v. Nicholson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Royalty v. Nicholson, 411 S.W.2d 565, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2864 (Tex. Ct. App. 1967).

Opinions

Majority Opinion

WERLEIN, Justice.

This suit was brought by appellants to contest a schoolhouse bond election held in Brazosport Independent School District of Brazoria County, Texas, on June 4, 1966. The School District has only one high school which is located in Freeport. Sometime before the election a citizens committee was appointed by the president of the Board of Trustees to consider the alternatives for meeting an acute shortage of classrooms in the District, especially on the high school level. The alternatives were: (1) to replace the present high school in Freeport with a new central high school in the Lake Jackson-Clute area. The present Freeport high sthool would be converted to a junior high school for three [567]*567or four years and then reactivated as a high school; (2) to expand the size of and continue the present single central high school in Freeport; (3) to repair, enlarge and continue the present high school at Freeport and also construct a second high school in the Lake Jackson area. The first alternative of the citizens committee was submitted to the electorate in a school bond election on April 2, 1966, and was defeated.

The School Board decided to submit the other two alternatives at an election on June 4, 1966, pursuant to a petition submitted to the Board on May 24, 1966, requesting a bond election. The petition requested the Board to submit two propositions. Proposition No. 1 was to authorize the Board to issue $3,860,000.00 District bonds “for the purpose of purchase, construction, repair and equipment of public free schools within the limits of said District, and the purchase of the necessary sites therefor [including (1) additions to present Brazosport high school to increase the permanent facilities to 2,600 student capacity; (2) a new elementary school, and (3) additions to elementary and junior high schools]” and the levy of the tax in payment thereof. Proposition No. 2 was to authorize the Board to issue $5,998,000.00 District bonds “for the purpose of the purchase, construction, repair and equipment of public free school buildings within the limits of said School District, and the purchase of the necessary sites therefor [including (1) a new 2,000 student capacity high school in the Clute-Lake Jackson area; (2) additions to present Brazosport high school to increase permanent facilities to 1,400 student capacity; (3) a new elementary school, and (4) additions and improvements to elementary and junior high schools],” and the levy of the tax in payment thereof.

The petitioners requested that if in said election each of said propositions “shall receive a greater number of votes ‘For’ than ‘Against’ such proposition, the proposition, receiving the greater number of votes ‘For’ such proposition shall be declared adopted, and bonds shall not be issued nor shall taxes be levied pursuant to the other proposition. The School Board granted the petition as requested by the petitioners and set June 4, 1966 as election day. Notice of the election was given by posting exact copies of the order calling the election, which were posted on the morning of May 25, 1966 between the hours of 8:30 to 9 o’clock at three public places in the School District. The election was held on June 4, 1966, and the returns were duly made to the Board of Trustees, who met in regular session on June 7 with all members present, and declared that Proposition No. 1 received 2616 votes “For” and 2321 votes “Against”, ¡ and Proposition No. 2 received 2656 votes “For” and ¿367 votes “Against”; and that since Proposition No. 2 received more favorable votes than Proposition No. 1, the election resulted favorably to Proposition No. 2, and for the issuance of bonds and the levy and collection of taxes in payment thereof. The Board further declared “that said election has resulted unfavorably to the issuance of the schoolhouse bonds described in Proposition No. One and said bonds shall not be issued.”

Thereafter appellants filed this suit, alleging among other things that the notice of the election was improperly given; that certain voters were not qualified to vote because their names were not on the tax rolls; that the tax assessor-collector failed to furnish election judges a certified list of taxpayers; and that the Board was not empowered to submit two propositions and provide in its order calling the election that only the proposition receiving the greater number of “For” votes would carry.

The trial court entered judgment on October 12, 1966 declaring that the June 4, 1966 special bond election resulted favorably to the issuance of the bonds described in Proposition No. 2 and that the Board was authorized to issue the bonds described in Proposition No. 2 and levy taxes in payment thereof. No findings of [568]*568fact or conclusions of law were requested or filed.

Appellants contend that the court erred in finding and holding that notice of the election was properly posted, since less than ten full day’s notice of such election was given, and secondly, that the court erred in concluding that only ten days’ notice was required by law. They have no point complaining that there was any failure to timely begin absentee voting. They do complain of the failure to timely post notices. Article 2785, Vernon’s Annotated Texas Statutes, is the only statutory provision that purports to specify the notice required in a school bond election. It expressly provides for ten days’ notice. It is appellants’ contention, however, that the Texas Election Code, by providing for twenty days’ absentee voting, repealed by implication the special notice provision of Article 2785. Article 4.05 of the Texas Election Code, V.A.T.S. provides, however, that in any “special election specially provided for by the laws of this State, the notices of the election shall be given in compliance with the laws governing said elections respectively.” There is no provision in the Election Code concerning notice other than Article 4.05. Our Supreme Court, in Wallis v. Williams, 101 Tex. 395, 108 S.W. 153 (1908), has clearly distinguished between general elections and special elections which are provided for by the Special Laws of this State. It cannot be questioned that the election in question was a special election specially provided for by the laws of Texas.

The school bond election was held pursuant to Article 2784e-l, V.A.T.S., which provides that no bond shall be issued thereunder until authorized by an election and that the General Laws applicable to school districts shall govern the method and manner of calling and holding of tax and bond election. In Wiederkehr v. Luna, 297 S.W.2d 243, Tex.Civ.App., Waco 1956, n. w. h., the court held that Article 2785, V.A.T.S., was the general law referred to in Article 2784e-l. Such article may be considered as the general law with reference to school district elections, and yet be considered a special law in that it is limited in its scope to school district elections and does not embrace elections generally. There is no statute other than Article 2785, which specifies the notice required to be given in schoolhouse bond elections. See Wilkerson v. Otto, 289 S.W.2d 411, Tex.Civ.App., Beaumont 1956, n. w. h. Article 2785 provides that: “said elections shall be held and conducted as provided by law for general elections, except as provided herein.” It expressly provides as to the notice required to be given.

In Baker v. Scranton Independent School Dist., 287 S.W.2d 210, Tex.Civ.App., Eastland 1956, n. w.

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Royalty v. Nicholson
411 S.W.2d 565 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1967)

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411 S.W.2d 565, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2864, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/royalty-v-nicholson-texapp-1967.