Sec. 271.004. REAL PROPERTY AND IMPROVEMENTS FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS. (a) The board of trustees of a school district may execute, perform, and make payments under a contract under this Act for the use or purchase or other acquisition of real property or an improvement to real property. If the board proposes to enter into such a contract, the board shall publish notice of intent to enter into the contract not less than 60 days before the date set to approve execution of the contract in a newspaper with general circulation in the district. The notice must summarize the major provisions of the proposed contract. The notice shall estimate the construction and other costs, but the board shall not publish the first advertisement for bids for construction of improvements until 60 days has expired from the publication of the notice of intent to enter into the contract.
(b) If, within 60 days of the date of publication of the notice of intent required by Subsection (a), a written petition signed by at least five percent of the registered voters of the district is filed with the board of trustees requesting that the board order a referendum on the question of whether the contract should be approved, the board may not approve the contract or publish the first advertisement for bids for construction of improvements unless the question is approved by a majority of the votes received in a referendum ordered and held on the question.
(c) Except as otherwise provided by this section, the referendum shall be held in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Election Code. The requirement that an election must be held on a uniform election date as prescribed by the Election Code does not apply to an election held under this section.
(d) The contract is a special obligation of the school district if ad valorem taxes are not pledged to the payment of the contract.
(e) If the contract provides that payments by the school district are to be made from maintenance taxes previously approved by the voters of the school district and are subject to annual appropriation or are paid from a source other than ad valorem taxes, the payments under the contract shall not be considered payment of indebtedness under Section 26.04(c), Tax Code.
(f) All or part of the obligation of the school district may be evidenced by one or more negotiable promissory notes.
(g) A lease-purchase contract entered into by the district under this section and the records relating to its execution must be submitted to the attorney general for examination as to their validity.
(h) If the attorney general finds that the contract has been authorized in accordance with the law, the attorney general shall approve them, and the comptroller of public accounts shall register the contract.
(i) Following approval and registration, the contract is incontestable and is a binding obligation according to its terms.
Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987. Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 752, Sec. 3, eff. Aug. 30, 1993.
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