STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA
OFFICE OF
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
April 17, 1968
E. F. Wilkinson
State’s Attorney, Kingsbury County
DeSmet, South Dakota 57231
OFFICIAL OPINION NO. 67-68 pg. 466
Schools and school districts. Joint action required for release of school districts to another county.
You have requested an opinion on the following information:
“Pursuant to our phone conversation of last week, I called in regard to the minutes of the County Board of Education as published by the Hamlin County Board of Education which reads as follows:
“‘L.R. Fredrickson made a motion to pass a resolution to attach all of Kingsbury Common School District No. 16 of Kingsbury County to Lake Norden Independent No. 1 of Hamlin County after calling Mr. James Schooler of the State Dept. of Public Instruction to inquire as to the responsibility of the Hamlin County Board of Education, as this District is part of Hamlin County’s Master Plan. The Board will consider all petitions brought in for a change of District. Seconded by Donald Little. Motion carried.’”
“As I stated previously, I would request all minutes from the Superintendent of Schools, who is the Secretary for the Kingsbury County Board of Education. I have done this and enclose the original sheets I have received from her in this regard. You will note from the contents thereof that originally School District Nos. 16, 17, and 58 of Kingsbury County were permitted to be included in the Hamlin County Master Plan for the purpose of voting on said plan only. When the plan failed, i.e., the Hamlin County Master Plan for adoption, then a reconsideration of the release was given, and when Doris Boadwin, County Superintendent of Schools and Clerk of the Hamlin County Board, requested a copy of the resolution ceding the subject districts to Hamlin County on February 3, 1958, she was advised that in view of the Hamlin County Master Plan failing, that it was unanimously voted upon by the Kingsbury County Board that that the original release for Master plan only was revoked. Subsequent to that time and at all periods herein, the County Auditor assessed a levy, collected the finds and treated all of these districts as a part of the Kingsbury County System. The have never been attached to the Lake Norden system, the tax was never remitted to that Independent School System or to the Hamlin County District.
“There have been no joint meetings between the counties authorizing the release of School District No. 16 to Lake Norden or the Hamlin County District – all responsibility has remained with the Kingsbury County Board. It now appears that over 95 percent of the valuation has indicated a preference to be attached to districts of Kingsbury County, South Dakota. There has never been an election that has passed to dissolve these districts and attach them to Lake Norden. In fact, the one vote to dissolve and attach to Lake Norden was voted down something like 16 to 4 or 5 votes. You can, therefore, see that to attach this district to the Lake Norden District is opposed by the constituents of said district, and upon seeing the minutes of the County Board of Education from Hamlin County, they immediately protested to the Kingsbury County Board of Education. We request your opinion in this regard.”
SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2006, as last amended by Chapter 40, Session Laws of 1966 reads in part as follows:
“Any power or duty which a county board or county officer has under this chapter involving reorganization of its own school districts shall be performed jointly by all county boards and county officers of those counties containing territory involved in the reorganization of joint school districts, except that when by jount action of the county boags of education, an area of one county has been released to another county, then any additional action required shall be by the county board of education to which such area has been released, or except as hereinafter provided…”
SDC 1960 Supp. 15.2007(4) reads in part as follows:
“(4) It is recognized that local communities may extend beyond county boundaries in many instances. Where this is the case county boards of education of the counties affected must work jointly in the preparation of master plans. Any plan for the reorganization of school districts involving territory in two or more counties shall be prepared by joint action of the respective county boards…”
From information furnished, the minutes of the Kingsbury County Board of Education shows the following:
“Be is resolved inasmuch as Common School Districts No. 16 and No. 17 were being served by Lake Norden, that the Kingsbury County Board of Education release the Common School Districts No. 16 and 17 to become a part of the Lake Norden School District in Hamlin County, according to the Hamlin County Master Plan. Carried unanimously…”
The above action was taken by the Kingsbury County Board of Education at their meeting February 3, 1958. It is my opinion that the above action by the Kingsbury County Board of Education was sufficient to release Common School Districts No. 16 and 17 to Hamlin County and such was an unconditional release, provided, joint action was accomplished on such release by the Hamlin County Board of Education.
It is my opinion that the above statutes require joint action by the County boards of Education before such a release becomes official and binding. See 1965-66 AGR 40 an official opinion issued to Mr. Archie R. Moore, dated December 23, 1966.
I have not been furnished with any minutes of the Hamlin County Board of Education which indicates that the Hamlin County Board of Education acted on, approved or agreed to the action taken by the Kingsbury County Board of Education on February 3, 1958.
The Hamlin County Board of Education minutes of their meeting January 4, 1960 reads in part as follows:
“ ‘A’ moved and ‘B’ seconded, that a master plan be adopted to extend to county lines plus areas included in the Hazel Ind. School District in Codington County, the Estelline Ind. School District in Deuel County and the released Common School Districts No. 16 and No. 17 in Kingsbury County. Motion carried with unanimous vote.”
It is my opinion that the above action by the Hamlin County Board of Education on January 4, 1960 does not constitute joint action of the resolution adopted by the Kingsbury County Board of Education on February 3, 1958 and until this office is furnished with more specific information of joint approval of the resolution adopted by the Kingsbury County Board of Education on February 3, 1958 by the Hamlin County Board of Education, it is my opinion that there was no actual release of Common Districts No. 16 and No. 17 of Kingsbury County to Hamlin County.
