Texas Attorney General Opinion: DM-56 Page: 1 of 5
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Office of the ttornep general
tate of Texas
DAN MORALES November 8, 1991
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Honorable Bill Sims Opinion No. DM-56
Chairman
Committee on Natural Re: Authority of board of trustees of
Resources an independent school district to enact
Texas State Senate and enforce a policy banning the use of
P.O. Box 12068 tobacco products by district personnel
Austin, Texas 78711 and the general public on all school
district property (RQ-165)
Dear Senator Sims:
You have submitted questions to this office regarding the authority of the
Kermit Independent School District to enact and enforce a comprehensive "No
Tobacco" policy.' The policy in question, adopted by the board of trustees on July
18, 1991, reads as follows:
Use of tobacco products by District staff and the
general public shall be prohibited in all enclosed school
facilities; open air property, including parking lots,
outdoor athletic fields, outdoor seating areas, practice
fields, and all school vehicles, including buses.
Violation by employees shall result in reprimand or
possible suspension.2
The policy appears to be responsive to a resolution issued by the State Board of
Education on January 12, 1990, encouraging "local boards of trustees of Texas
school districts to exercise their authority voluntarily to establish policies that
1Your original request suggested that the policy had been instituted by the superintendent of
the district and questioned his authority to enact and enforce such a rule. As you later informed us that
the policy had been adopted by the board of trustees, we address the question of the board's authority
in this matter.
2Tobacco use by students on school property or at school-sponsored activities, also prohibited
by the school district's policies, is statutorily prohibited by Education Code section 21.927.p. 284
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: DM-56, text, November 8, 1991; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth273865/m1/1/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.