Case Information
*1 THEAYTORNEYGENERAL OF TEXAS
GROVER SELLERS
Honorable T. M. Trimble
First Assistant
State Superintendent of Public :Instruction Depaptmeyt of Education
Austin, exas Opinion No. O-7017 Dear Sir: Re: Effect of tax reduction by school district during school year of 1943-1944, concerning equalization aid unSer S-B, 167, Acts 1945, 49th Legislature. Your recent communicat~ion to this department read as follows:
"Article 1, Section 2, Paregraph 2, of Senate Bill 1.67 of the 49th Legislatur:e, which is cormrionlg known as tke Rural Aid Bill, pr>ovidas 'No school dis- trict will be eligible for aid under2 the provisions of this Act ,which has retiuced tax ra,te within the itu ,two years immediately pieceding the yea? for which aid is applied for hereunder.'
"We nave on file in the State Deparxtmen: of Educat~ion several applications for aid from school district that are levying the same t,ax rate as they levied la& year, but it 1s a lesser tax r'a,te t.han the one which was levied the first year of the last bien- nium. The reduction in the tax rate was made prio:r to the time ,thaS the Act 1-efe:rred to above was written, and rural aid was paid to the school di3t,rlct during the last biennium on the tax rate as levied.
'!Under t,he provisions of the Act quoted above, is such a school district which reduced its tax rate during the school year, 1943-44, eligible Do receive aid? May I call your attention to the fact that there was no way for the school districts to know that an act which their~board took some ,two years ago would affect them in securing aid under the provisions of some future Rural Aid Bill when their maintenance tax rate is a minimum of fifty cents," *2 Honorable T. M. Trimble, page 2 O-7017
In view of the negative language of S.B. 167, quoted by you in the first paragraph of your letter, the question sub- mitted must be answered in the negative.
Statutory provisions affirmatively worded and provid- ing for the time and place in which an act is to be done are usually directory. However, when such provisions are negatively worded or contain words restraining the doing of an act after a certain time said provisions are mandatory. See City of Uvalde v. Burney, 145 S.W. 311; Gomez v. Timon 128 S.W. 656; Markowskg, et al v. Newman, et al., (Sup. Ct.) 136'S.W. (2d) 808.
Whether such provision is wise or otherwise, is not for this department to determine. The Legislature is the public policy forming body of this State. Its acts, when not in con- flict with our State Constitution, or OUP Federal Constitution, and the laws of Congress passed thereunder, are not for us to question,b& must be upheld and enforced. "When the intent is plainly expressed in the language of a statute, it must be given effect without attempting to construe or interpret the law.
39 Tex. Jur., p. 168.
In our opinion No. o-6768, a copy of which is hereto attached, we wrote as follows concerning Article 1, Section 2, Paragraphs 1 and 2 of S. B. 167, 49th Legislature:
"The foregoing provisions of Sec. 2 are plain and unambiguous. They rmzst be complied with In order for any school district to be eligible for any type of aid. * * * This opinion applies & to local maintenance tax rates."
Since your inquiry concerns a portion of paragraph 2 of Section 2 of said Article 1, the foregoing quotation from our opinion No. o-6768 is also applicable to the districts covered by your communication.
Very truly yours, ATTORNEY CtENERAL OF TEXAS By s/L.H. Flewellen L.H. Flewellen Assistant LRF:EP:wc APPROVEB JAN 31, 1946
s/Carlos C, Ashley
FIRST ASSISTANT
ATTORNEYGENERAL
Approved Opinion Committee By s/BWB Chairman