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![handle is hein.sag/sagde0040 and id is 1 raw text is: Aty Gen. Op, No, , o Z
M. JANE BRADY STATE OF DELAWARE
ATrORNEYGENERAL DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
NEW CASTLE COUNTY KENT COUNTY SUSSEX COUNTY
Carvel State Building Sykes Building 114 E. Market Street
820 N. French Street 45 The Green Georgetown, DE 19947
Wilmington, DE 19801 Dover, DE 19901 (302) 856-5352
Criminal Division (302) 577-8500 Criminal Division (302) 739-4211 Fax: (302) 856-5369
Fax: (302) 577-2496 Fax: (302) 739-6727
Civil Division (302) 577-8400 Civil Division (302) 739-7641
Fax: (302) 577-6630 Fax: (302) 739-7652
January 6, 2000
PLEASE REPLY TO: Civil Division-Kent County (739-7641)
The Honorable Valerie A. Woodruff
Acting Secretary
Department of Education
P. 0. Box 1402
Dover, DE 19903
Dear Acting Secretary Woodruff:
On June 17, 1999, then Secretary of Education, Iris T. Metts, Ed.D., requested a formal Opinion of
the Attorney General. Specifically, Dr. Metts asked whether a member of the Christina School Board is
eligible to retain his or her board seat if he or she moves from the nominating district from which they were
elected to another nominating district within the school district? We apologize for the delay in responding to
your request, but there are some peculiarities in the law about which we wished to be certain. For the reasons
set forth below, we conclude that a member of the Christina School District Board of Education does not forfeit
his or her seat by moving from one nominating district to another.
Cadidates for election to the Christina School District Board of Education are nominated from seven
nominating districts, but elected at large by all of the voters in the school district. Fourteen Del. C. Sec.
1066(e)(5) provides that a nominee for election must be a resident of the nominating district in which his or
her predecessor resides. The General Assembly also specifically addressed the forfeiture of a school board
member's seat as a result ofa change in residence. Fourteen Del. C. Sec. 1054(a) requires that [i]f any school
board member ceases to be a resident of the reorganized school district, he shall cease to be a member of its
school board.
Accordingly, the existing statutory scheme provides a system where a candidate runs from a
nominating district, but forfeits his/her seat only upon a change of residence from one reorganized school
district to another. The statutory reference to reorganized school district cannot be interpreted to include a
nominating district. First, reorganized school district is defined by 14 Del. C. Sec. 1002 (2) to mean a
school district which is constituted and established in accordance with this chapter .... Further, it is settled
Delaware law that one cannot engage in the interpretation of a statute that is clear and unambiguous. Matter
of Surcharge Classification 0133 By Delaware Compensation Rating Bureau, Inc., Del. Super., 655 A.2d
295 (1994), affirmed, Del. Supr. 655 A.2d 309 (1995); Williams v. Dyer, Del. Super., C.A. No. 91C-1 1-010,
Graves, J. (Aug. 12, 1992); Hutton v. Phillips, Del. Super., 70 A.2d 15 (1949). Where the meaning of the
statute is clear, one is limited to the application of the literal meaning of the words. Matter of Surcharge](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.sag/sagde0040&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)