West Orange-Cove Consolidated I.s.d., Petitioners v. Felipe Alanis

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court reversed the lower courts and remanded for further proceedings, holding that the plaintiff school districts have adequately pleaded a claim that the statutory $1.50 maintenance‑and‑operations tax cap forces them to levy a state ad valorem tax prohibited by Article VIII, §1‑e. The Court clarified that to state a violation, plaintiffs must allege that they are compelled to tax at the maximum rate to provide an accredited education (or the constitutionally required general diffusion of knowledge). A dissent argued lack of standing and the majority’s construction of the constitutional provisions, while a concurrence agreed with the judgment but emphasized a narrower pleading requirement.