Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-01-28
AN OBSCURE PROVISION.

Tie city officers, elected last NoVeIh-
no. .ul NOT receive the salaries fixed
by the ordinance passed Ia peeemucr'
uniess some further proceedings are
taken IN the courts, And IT Is exceed
,ry,v doubtful, even In that event that
the intent OF the ordinance VIII DE- ac'
complished.
That the compensation fer number
NJ hose offices was inadequate for the
services required, was a recognized iaot'
And that the raise In the salaries was
moderate and reasonable IS not disput-
Cd. But on the construction put by
the Supreme court upon SectiOh go VI
tbe Revised Statutes Of Utah, the pres
ont incumbents cannot receive the oene-
ats NJ the change, So decides the CITY
Attorney, In his opinion In response 10
the query by Auditor Felt Judge pey
IA governed ag he should be, by the ru'-
lnrs Of the court and II is pleasing TO
know as is seen In each OF his olllciai
opinions that we have a lawyer IN the
Office of city Attorney.
The section of the law on which the
Supreme court has ruled. denying the
right OF city officers to an Increase OF
the salary existing at the time OF lhelr
election, reads as follows
"All officers OF any city shall receive
such compensation as may be hxed Dy
ordinance but the compensation OF any
of such officers shall not be Increased or
diminished TO take effect during the
time for which any such oltlcer was
elected or appointed
That Is worded In peculiar manner
Taken as II stands no salary OF any
city officer can be increased or dlmln-
ished from the date Of the statute, In
which IL appears. 1t has been In force
since January l. 1898, The Supreme
court, however, in the cases OF Hulanis-
XII vs.. Ogden, and Meissner vs., Boyle,
construed the provision in this way
"There is no ambiguity in the Ian
gauge used. II Is plain that the lnten.
tion OF the Legislature was TO prohibit
ony change OF the salary of city OFF,
Ger after his election or appointment
10 take effect during the time for when
he was elected or appointed
That Interpretation stands as the law
governing the present case, II viii be
observed by the careful reader that the
learned justices had to read into the
letter of the law the words, after his
election or appointment IN order TO
reach their decision. Those words are
not to be found in the statute. They
may be necessary to give II good sense
and application, but they are not there
II the Legislature intended what the
court assumed the provision ought to
be amended by the Legislature so as to
make that clear
As commonly understood, the law was
framed to prevent the raising or low
ering OF municipal salaries during the
terms of the incumbents, so that they
should not be engaged In the work OF
changing their own salaries or those OF
their associates In office The words
ito take effect were interpoated EVIL
IDENTIFY without full comprehension OF
their peculiar meaning. Suppose the
city Council had changed the salaries
before the November election to take
effect during the term OF the next set
of officers, Would not the law prohibit
that attempted change Of compensa-
ton, ito take effect during the time for
which any such officer was elected or
appointed" 1t certainly would, taking
It as 1t stands. hut it would involve an
absurdlty,
There are two views, then, that may
be nationally taken Of the meaning Of
the provision. one IL that generally
supposed and which was held by tht
late city Council the other Is that af-
firmed by the court and which nccessl-
tated the Insertion by the court of tho
words "aftcr his election or appoint
ment." The latter IL the law becnus
the court has so decided ana the cts
Attorney very properly bows to mat de-
cision,
What nov? Either the present IN
cumhents Of the city offices affected by
the ruling Will have to be content viii
the salaries dNed before the recent or
dinance was passed or they win have
TO take steps for a review Of the who'll
question by the supreme court viii
the probability that the matter viii re-
main unaltered In any event the noS
Legislature ought to change the word
ing Of section 2g5 Of the Revised stat
utog nf Iftfih