CHAPTER 4.

SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

1799. Each school district a corporation. Powers. Every school district or high school district now or hereafter created shall be and is hereby constituted a public corporation to be designated as school district (or high school district as the case may be,) of county, State of Utah, with its proper name inserted in the blank before the word school, and the proper name of the county inserted in the blank before the word county; and in its own proper name as such corporation may sue and be sued, contract and be contracted with, and it may acquire, purchase, convey, and hold real and personal property for school purposes.

1800. Extent of school district. Each county and each city, unless divided by proper authority, shall form a school district.

1801. County commissioners may create or modify districts. Special taxes. The board of county commissioners of any county may create into a school district any territory not already so created, or may create a district out of a part or parts of one or more districts upon being petitioned so to do by as many residents of such territory as have the care and custody of not less than twenty school children of school age residing therein, or upon the recommendation of the county superintendent.

May divide or consolidate school districts,

The board of county commissioners may change the boun daries of, divide, and consolidate existing school districts. Whenever the board of county commissioners of any county shall divide, consolidate, or change the boundaries of existing school districts, such board shall have the power, as an incident to the division, consolidation, or change, equitably to adjust the property rights and burdens of the several districts.

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affected thereby, by apportioning existing school property and debts, and by modifying or re-apportioning taxes already voted in such manner as the justice of the case shall, in the opinion of the board, demand.

Levy special taxes.

To accomplish the adjustment, the board of county commissioners may from time to time direct necessary special taxes to be levied and collected on particular areas of districts so changed.

In

1802. Division of new county into school districts. any county hereafter created the board of county commissioners thereof shall so divide the county, or any part thereof which has residing therein not less than twenty children of school age, into school districts as will best promote the permanent interests of the district schools in the county, upon the same pétitions and subject to the conditions and restrictions provided in the last preceding section.

1803. Trustees for new district. Whenever any new district shall be created by the board of county commissioners, said board shall forthwith appoint three trustees of said district, who shall be qualified electors therein, to serve until the next ensuing regular election for trustees.

CHAPTER 5.

ELECTION OF TRUSTEES.

1804. Election of trustees and term of office. Oaths and bond. Except in cities of the first and of the second class. there shall be held an annual election on the second Monday in July, in each school district. At such election there shall be elected by the registered voters residing in such school district, one school trustee to serve for the term of three years and until his successor is elected and qualified. In each newly organized

district, at the first annual school election occurring after such organization, there shall be elected three trustees, one for three years, one for two years, and one for one year, and until their successors are elected and qualified; and annually thereafter there shall be elected, at such annual election, one trustee to hold office for three years and until his successor is elected and qualified. Trustees shall qualify by taking and subscribing the oath of office and giving bonds to the district in which they reside in such sums and with such sureties as the county clerk of the county wherein said school district is situated, may approve, conditioned for the faithful discharge of the duties of their office; the oath of office and bonds to be filed with said clerk.

Ballot to state term.

The ballots used at such election shall state the names of the persons and the office, and the length of the term voted for.

1805. Organization of school board. The trustees, or any two of them whose official bonds have been approved, shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. They shall meet and organize within twenty days after their election or appointment, by appointing one of their number chairman, another clerk and another treasurer, and shall at once notify the county superintendent of such organization. Said trustees when thus organized, shall constitute the district school board. The treasurer shall give bond to the district with sufficient sureties and for a sufficient amount, to be approved by the board of trustees and filed with the county clerk.

1806. School elections, how called. Meetings for the election of trustees of district schools and for voting on the rate per cent of taxes to be assessed, and on the question of issuing bonds, shall be called by the trustees causing notices to be posted in at least three public and conspicuous places within the district, at least twenty days before the time for holding such meeting. Such notice shall state the time, place, and object of such meeting, and the officers to be elected, and if the

polls are to be opened at any such meeting to determine any question, the notice shall state the hours at which the polls will be opened and closed.

Business confined to object stated in notice.

All business transacted at such meeting other than specified in said notice shall be void. The voting at such meeting shall be by secret ballot.

1807. Id. County clerk to furnish registration list. Judges. Polls. It shall be the duty of the county clerk to furnish the board of trustees of the district at least five days previous to the day of election, a certified copy of the registration list, showing the names of all registered voters residing in the election districts covered in whole or in part by such school district.

Judges and clerk of election.

The board of trustees of the district shall act as judges of election, and the clerk of the district school board shall act as clerk. The polls shall be kept open during at least four successive hours on the day of election. In case of a vacancy occasioned by the absence of any of the said officers at any election for trustee, the registered voters who are present at the time of opening the polls shall choose a person to fill such vacancy..

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1808. Conduct of elections and qualification of electors. Voting. Ballots. School elections held under the provisions of this chapter shall be conducted, and the qualification of electors shall be, as provided in the general election laws, except as in this chapter otherwise provided. It shall not be necessary to file certificates of nomination of candidates, nor to publish a list of nominations. It shall be the duty of the county clerk to furnish the board of trustees of every school district with a sufficient number of plain envelopes for election purposes, and such envelopes shall be uniform in size and quality,

without any marks, writing, printing, or other device upon them, and no other kind shall be used at any election. Ballots shall not be printed at public expense. Every voter shall designate on a single ballot, written or printed, the name of the persons voted for, with a pertinent designation of the office to be filled. The ballot shall be neatly folded and placed in one of the envelopes hereinbefore provided for, and shall be delivered to the presiding judge of election, who shall, in the presence of the voter, on the name of the proposed voter being found on the registry list and on all challenges to such vote being decided in favor of such voter, deposit it in the ballot box without any mark whatever being placed on such envelope; otherwise the ballot shall be rejected. The registry and poll lists shall be preserved by the clerk of the school board.

Excess and defective ballots.

The ballots cast and those rejected as "excess" or "defec tive" shall be carefully sealed in a strong envelope and shall be preserved by such clerk for one year.

1809. Id. Canvass of votes. Ties. Immediately after the polls are closed, the judges shall proceed to count and canvass the votes cast at such election and the person receiving the highest number of votes for trustee shall be declared elected. All ties shall be decided by lot.

The clerk of the school

1810. Id. Certificate of election. board shall, within five days after such election, furnish each trustee with a certificate of election, a copy of which, with the oath of office, must be forwarded immediately to the county superintendent.

1811. Who qualified to vote for tax, bonds, etc. Every citizen of the United States of the age of twenty-one years or over who has been a resident of the State of Utah for one year, of the county four months, and of the school district sixty days, both immediately preceding the day on which any meeting is held for the purpose of voting on the question of levying a