State On Complaint of Kirchgatter v. Thompson

• Decision Date: 15 February 1921
• Docket Number: No. 32809.,32809.
• Citation: 190 Iowa 1160,181 N.W. 434
• Parties: STATE ON COMPLAINT OF KIRCHGATTER ET AL. v. THOMPSON, SECRETARY, ET AL. (BARTZ ET AL., INTERVENERS).
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

190 Iowa 1160

181 N.W. 434

STATE ON COMPLAINT OF KIRCHGATTER ET AL.

v.THOMPSON, SECRETARY, ET AL. (BARTZ ET AL., INTERVENERS).

No. 32809.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

Feb. 15, 1921.

Appeal from District Court, Worth County; M. F. Edwards, Judge.

Action in quo warranto to test the right of the defendants to act as school directors of the consolidated independent school district of Carpenter. The lower court found in favor of the defendants, and the relators and interveners appeal. The facts are stated in the opinion. Affirmed.C. O. Gunderson, of Northwood, and R. W. Pugh, of Williamsburg, for appellants.

W. A. Westfall and Blythe, Markley, Rule & Smith, all of Mason City, for appellees.

FAVILLE, J.

This is an action in quo warranto submitted upon the pleadings of the parties and a stipulation of facts. The relators and interveners bring the action for the purpose of testing the validity of the organization of the consolidated independent school district of Carpenter, and of the right of the defendants to act as a board of directors and officers of said alleged school corporation.

From the pleadings and stipulation of facts it appears that in 1915 an attempt was made to organize a consolidated independent school district, including territory lying in Mitchel and Worth counties and adjacent to the town of Carpenter. This attempt, however, was a failure; the project being defeated at the election. Subsequently proper proceedings were had as provided by statute for the organization of a consolidated independent school district, and an election was duly held on September 15, 1915, at which time the election was carried. The territory embraced in the said consolidated independent school district included territory in Newberg township, Mitchell county, and in Barton township, Worth county. The territory included within the said consolidated district embraced all of subdistricts 1 and 2 in said Barton township, Worth county, and a portion of subdistricts 5 and 6 in said township, but left less than four government sections of land in subdistrict No. 5, and less than four government sections of land in subdistrict No. 6, but the entire school township of Barton was left with approximately 27 government sections. In like manner certain subdistricts in Newberg township were reduced to less than four government sections of land, but after said consolidation there remained in Newberg township, outside of the territory so taken by the new district, approximately 26 government sections of land. In each of the townships the greater portion of the sections remaining were intact, but a portion of them were subdivided by the lines run by the formation of the new district.

The district so organized proceeded to hold its election of officers, and also held an election and voted bonds, secured a schoolhouse site, and erected and equipped a schoolhouse at a cost of $37,400, and school was conducted therein and taxes were levied within the said consolidated district for the purpose of operating said school.

Subsequently proceedings were had, as contemplated by the statute, for the organization of a new consolidated independent school district, which should include all of the land incorporated within the said consolidated independent school district formerly organized, and in addition thereto other territory lying in Newberg township and in Barton township. The lines of this new territory were more irregular than those of the original territory and left less than four government sections of land in certain subdistricts in each of said townships, but left a total of something like 20 government sections of land in Newberg township and more than 23 government sections of land in Barton township. As in original organization, the lines of the district did not conform to section lines, and some of the subdistricts remaining in each of the said townships contained, after the consolidation, irregular tracts embracing portions of sections and containing a total of less than 4 government sections.

Said last consolidation also included a portion of subdistrict No. 1 in Deer Creek township, Worth county, and left in said subdistrict after said consolidation less than 4 government sections of land, but left in said Deer Creek township after said consolidation a total of approximately 34 government sections of land. This last election was held on June 25, 1917.

From the foregoing it will be noticed that these proceedings for consolidation were all had prior to July 4, 1917, the date upon which chapter 432 of the Acts of the Thirty-Seventh General Assembly went into effect, and therefore said proceedings were had under section 2794a of the Supplemental Supplement to the Code 1915.

I. The contention of the appellant is that the proceedings for the organization of the original consolidated independent school district of Carpenter were void and also those for the organization of the new district, because in each instance the lines of the district were so arranged as to divide subdistricts and leave less than four government sections of land in various subdistricts. It is conceded, however, that in each district township, after the consolidation, there remained more than four government sections of land which were contiguous. Appellants lay great stress upon the fact that the Thirty-Sixth General Assembly (chapter 342) amended the statute as it existed prior to that time and added thereto the following:

“And where after the formation of such consolidated school corporation, whether heretofore or hereafter formed, there is left in any school township one or more subdistricts each of such subdistricts containing four or more government sections, each of such pieces of territory shall thereby become a rural independentschool corporation, and it shall be the duty of the officers of the former school township to call an election in each of such rural independent districts for the purpose of electing school officers in the manner provided by law for the election of officers in rural independent...