The Bourbon news., 1905-12-15
The Law Regulating the Fixing OF
Salaries.

The Law Regulating the Fixing OF
Salaries.
The Paris Democrat, in it's last
issue, contained the following item
"FIsCAL COURT ERRED IN RAISING
SALARIES.
In the report of the grand jury,
yesterday, the Fiscal Court was noti-
fed that they had no right to raise
the salaries of the county officials
after they were elected, and quoted
the constitution to show why they
could not do SO.
| 1.-THE law is very plain, and the
officials will not get the increase in
their salaries voted them since the
November election by the Fiscal
Court"
The portion of the report of the
grand jury referred to in the above
article is as follows:
"We further desire to report that
! on investigation of the action taken
by the present Bourbon County Fiscal
Court, on November 18th, 1905, with
reference to the raising or advancing
of the salaries in various sums-all of
the salaried officials of said county
except the County Attorney, said
action being taken after said officials
had been elected at the regular
November election. On this subject
/ the Constitution of Kentucky reads as
follows: Section 161, &c."
The Editor of the Democrat is mis-
taken about three assertions in said
article:
1. The Fiscal Court was not noti-
fed that they had no right to raise
the salaries of the county officials
after they were elected.
2. The law is not very plain Gas he
would construe it,.
8. The officials will get the increase
! in their salaries.
That the taxpayers of the county
may know the law pertaining to this
question, and that they may not un-
justly censure their officials, THE
News herewith publishes the law re-
lating to the fixing of salaries.
Section 161 of the Constitution of
Kentucky provides:
"The compensation of any city,
! county, town or municipal officer
shall not be changed after his cleo
ton or appointment, or during his
term of Office; nor shall the term of
any such officer be extended beyond
the period for which he may have
been elected or qualified"
The Court of Appeals of Kentucky
in constituting the above section in the
case of City of Louisville VS.. Wilson,
SO KY, page SOB, said:
1.-THE purpose of Section 161 was to
prevent as well the reduction of COM
pensation of officers, sometimes the
result of prejudice and false economy,
as increase of it, sometimes brought
about by Importantly and undue in
fluence on their part, and so there can
not be any change at all of an Off
GERS compensation during his term;
but there is an essential difference
which we are satisfied the trainers of
the Constitution had in mind, be-
tween fixing the amount of compen-
sation an officer shall receive, not
hitherto ascertained and settled, and
changing it after it has been fixed.
SIT is the obvious and uniform pol
icy of government, State and muni-
cipal, as well as just to each officer,
to fix his compensation definitely and
certainly as to amount, except when
he is paid by fees. And section 161
does not in terms, nor was intended
to forbid or at all relate to any stat
ute or ordinance that for the first
does fix the salary of an officer; but
it is equally necessary for the protec-
ton of both the government and
officer that his salary, when once
fixed, should not be changed during
his term, and for no other purpose
than to prevent that evil was section
161 made part of the constitution
In considering the same question
further, the Court of Appeals, in the
case of Marion County Fiscal Court
VS.. Kelly, % KY. Law Reporter, page
174-176, said, after quoting Sections
80, 100. 161 and 235 of the Constitu-
tion:
"These sections clearly indicate the
purpose of the trainers of the Con-
stitution of a public or municipal
officer during his term of Office, that
he might be free from the danger of
an unjust reduction of his salary or
compensation and at the same time
leave the legislative body, in fixing