Morfeld v. Huddin
Morfeld v. Huddin
Opinion of the Court
This is an action in equity brought by the plaintiffs, appellees, taxpayers of School District No. 10, a rural school district of Cheyenne county, against defendants and appellants, Fritz Huddin, L. M. White and Jasper Jones, as acting officers of School District No. 10, and August Thies, who was employed by the school board of School District No. 10 to transport by bus pupils from School District No. 10 to School District No. 9, which joins School District No. 10 on the north. School District No. 10 had a school building within its boundary, but for three years prior to 1934 it had not used that school building, but had transported its pupils to the school in District No. 9. In June, 1934, and prior to the annual school meeting, the board of health of Cheyenne county issued an order purporting to condemn the schoolhouse in School District No. 10 for school purposes, and to order that a new school building be erécted, or that such school building be abandoned and the pupils of said district be given school advantages elsewhere. At the annual school district meeting June 16, 1934, the question of the school district hiring a bus and transporting pupils to School District No. 9 was voted upon and defeated. A motion to erect a new school building was also voted upon and defeated. A motion to vote $1,400 for general school purposes was adopted. No action was taken at the annual school meeting with reference to repairing present building; nor on question of permitting parents to transport their own children to neighboring districts and be remunerated therefor by the school district.
Subsequent to such annual school meeting and prior to the commencement of the school term in September, 1934, notwithstanding that, at the annual school district meeting, the proposal to hire a bus and transport pupils
This action was brought to enjoin the defendants, appellants, the officers of the school board, from carrying out that contract, and from paying to the defendant Thies any of the funds of the school district under said contract. The trial court entered a decree substantially as prayed; but further provided that such decree should “not prevent such school board from paying the families of school children for transporting such children under the provisions of section 79-1902, Comp. St. 1929.” Laws 1931, ch. 149, Comp. St. Supp. 1935, sec. 79-1902. From such decree all defendants have appealed.
Appellants in their brief state: “The only issue involved in this action * * * was the right of the school board to hire a bus to transport the pupils of school age to another district.” Appellees in their brief agree that the only issue involved was as stated by appellants.
School district board has power to contract with a neighboring district for instruction of pupils and to make provision for transportation of pupils to neighboring district only when authorized by two-thirds vote of those present at any annual or special school district meeting. Comp. St. 1929, secs. 79-2102, 79-2103.
Appellants in their brief urge: “The contention of the appellants being that because the actions of the voters at the annual meeting created a condition that seriously threatened the schooling of the pupils of District No. 10 for the coming year, in that, they were without school facilities, transportation to District No. 9 had been denied them, and something had to be done, it was not only the fight of the board to contract for transportation but its duty.” That it is the duty of the school board in rural districts to provide ways and means for the schooling of
“When no other means of transportation is provided and when the child or youth lives more than three miles from the public schoolhouse which he or she is authorized to attend by the nearest practicable traveled road where no free transportation is furnished such child or youth,' a transportation rate of five cents per family for each day of actual attendance for each one-half of a mile or fraction thereof covering the distance of the residence from the schoolhouse in excess of the three mile limit shall be paid such family monthly by such district on the basis of the record of attendance of such child or youth to be reported monthly by the teacher to the school board of such public school district; and no pupil shall be exempt from school attendance on account of distance from the public schoolhouse: Provided, that any child or youth whose family is entitled to pay for transportation, as aforesaid, may attend another school, if more convenient.”
The appellants, members of the school board, might have adopted either of the ways just mentioned to provide for the schooling of children of school age in their district without violating the specific instructions given by the voters at the annual school district meeting. After the voters of School District No. 10, at their annual meeting, had refused to authorize the hiring of a bus for transportation of the pupils of that district to School District No. 9, it was the duty ■ of the school board to have followed the expressed wish of the voters; they had no discretion left them as to that particular matter; and in pursuing the course they adopted, they were exceeding their authority as such officers and acted in violation of law. State v. Stoddard, 108 Neb. 712, 189 N. W. 299. The appellant Thies, in dealing with the school board, was charged with notice of the power of such officers to make
On retrial of the case in this court, we reached the same conclusion as did the trial court. The decree of the district court was right and is
Affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- M. B. Morfeld v. Fritz Huddin
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Published