Mississippi Advisory Opinions April 19, 2002: AGO 000014991 (April 19, 2002)

AGO 000014991.

Dear Mr. Freeland:

Attorney General Mike Moore has received your request for an official opinion from this office and has assigned it to me for research and reply. Your letter states:

I am the attorney for the Holly Springs School district. As required by statute, the district recently held an election and a run-off for the trustee for that part of the school district that falls outside the Holly Springs city limits. At the request of the school board, the election was conducted by the circuit clerk and county election workers; they prepared the registration list, had ballots printed, and actually conducted the election and the run-off on two different Saturday afternoons.

Thereafter, they submitted to the school district a bill for their time and for the cost of printing the ballots.

While in preparation for the election, the Superintendent called the Attorney General's office and was told that the conduct of the election was the responsibility of the county elections officials.

I am therefore asking for your opinion as to whether the school district can pay these bills, and, if so, whether there is any statutory limitation on the amount paid for poll workers for the conduct of an election.

We make the assumption that the Holly Springs School District has 3,500 or more qualified electors residing in said district.

Mississippi Code Annotated, Section 37-7-203 (Revised 2001) provides, inter alia, that the election of municipal separate school district trustees from added territory outside the corporate limits is to be conducted in the manner provided for in Section 37-7-215. Section 37-7-215(2), which is applicable to school districts with 3,500 or more qualified electors, requires the school board to designate by order the time and place or places at which such election shall be held.

Section 37-7-217 prescribes the specific procedures that must be followed by school districts operating under Section 37-7-215. Section 37-7-217 provides that the qualified electors of a school district operating under Section 37-7-215(2) will meet on the date and at the time and place or places specified in the board of trustees order and "immediately organize by electing a chairman and a secretary of the meeting and shall thereupon proceed to elect the necessary number of trustees by secret written ballot from the list of candidates properly qualified."

Section 37-7-219 provides:

For the purpose of holding such an election, it shall be the duty of the trustees of such school district whose terms do not expire in that year to prepare from the records in the office of the county registrar a list of the qualified electors of such school district who are eligible to participate in such election. Such list shall be furnished to the chairman and secretary of said meeting. No person who is not present at the time and place of holding said election shall be eligible to vote therein.

We are of the opinion that the election in question is the responsibility of the school district.

In response to your specific question, any expenses involved in preparing and printing the ballots and the preparation of the list of qualified electors must, in our opinion, be borne by the school district. However, we find no authority for the compensation of individuals who conduct this particular type of election. See MS AG Op. (Gex, February 7, 1990).

Sincerely,

MIKE MOORE, ATTORNEY GENERAL

By:

Phil Carter

Special Assistant Attorney General