Independent school district trustees have broad authority to govern district schools and manage district property, and a district that asks the attorney general for help must pay the associated costs.
Sec. 11.151. IN GENERAL. (a) The trustees of an independent school district constitute a body corporate and in the name of the district may acquire and hold real and personal property, sue and be sued, and receive bequests and donations or other moneys or funds coming legally into their hands. (b) Except as provided by Sections 39A.201 and 39A.202, the trustees as a body corporate have the exclusive power and duty to govern and oversee the management of the public schools of the district. All powers and duties not specifically delegated by statute to the agency or to the State Board of Education are reserved for the trustees, and the agency may not substitute its judgment for the lawful exercise of those powers and duties by the trustees. (c) All rights and titles to the school property of the district, whether real or personal, shall be vested in the trustees and their successors in office. The trustees may, in any appropriate manner, dispose of property that is no longer necessary for the operation of the school district. (d) The trustees may adopt rules and bylaws necessary to carry out the powers and duties provided by Subsection (b). (e) A school district may request the assistance of the attorney general on any legal matter. The district must pay any costs associated with the assistance. (f) For purposes of this section, a county board of education, as defined by a board of county school trustees, and office of county school superintendent in a county with a population of 2.5 million or more and that is adjacent to a county with a population of more than one million are included within the definition of a school district and subject to the oversight of the agency. Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 1995. Amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 201, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 2003. Amended by: Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 925 (S.B. 1566), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2017. Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1046 (S.B. 1365), Sec. 1.02, eff. September 1, 2021. Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 644 (H.B. 4559), Sec. 17, eff. September 1, 2023.