The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1905-12-27
AFFECTING COUNTY FINANCES.

An opinion recently rendered b!
Attorney General Galen will probabl!
cause embarrassment in most of tn
counties 10 Montana, where 1t ha'
been customary to make transfers O
money from one fund to another fol
the purpose of meeting current ex
penses. According to the attorney
general, this custom is not sanctioned
by law. He says no transfer can be
made until the end of the fiscal year,
when it may be determined wha,
amount of surplus remains 10 any Of
the funds. The opinion was given q,
the request of State Examiner T. E.
Collins, who is sending copies of it to
each board Of county commissioners
throughout the state.
"The commissioners" says the
state ex aminer, shave no authority,
prior to the close OF the fiscal year, to
transfer any moneys from the county
fund. or any other fund, to the poor
fund for the purpose Of providing for
q deficiency. Such transfer, the at.
torney general informs US, can only
be made at the close Of the fiscal year
from some fund other than the school,
bridge or bond funds, In which there
Is found to be q surplus"
Respecting the transfer OF funds, the
attorney general in his opinion quoted
by the state examiner says:
"Section 1856, Political Code, au.
thOrizes the transfer OF all surplus
moneys that may be on hand in any
of the several county funds, except the
school fund, such fund or funds as the
board may deem for the best interests
of the county, or to appropriate said
surplus to the payment of outstanding
Indebtedness.
I'm our opinion there is no ques.
ton but what this surplus means the
money on hand at the close Of the
fiscal year. after paying all warrants
issued against the respective funds.
This construction is sustained by the
language OF Section 425S, which says:
If a surplus remains in the coming.
ent fund at the end of the year such
surplus must be transferred to the
general fund.-
ut is the plain intention of the leg.
islature that the various funds pro.
vided by law should be used exclu-
sively for the purposes designated in
establishing such funds and they
should not be transferred or in any
manne diverted from the special pur.
poses for which the special tax is lev.
led until the close of the fiscal year.
II such was not the intention of the
law there would have been no occa-
sion for providing for several differ
ent funds, Or for Division ) OF Section
1850, requiring treasurer to 80 keep
his books as to show amount received
and paid on account of the separate
funds. Section 1890 strengthens this
view.
"Finally. upon making the levy OF
taxes, it Ia the duty of county commits
sioners to estimate as nearly as pos
sible the expenses for the fiscal year
that will be incurred against the re-
spective funds. Until the close of the
fiscal year these funds should be held
sacred for the payment of expenses In
Cured and legally chargeable against
the special fund created for the pur
pose of paying such expenses. Until
the close OF the fiscal year there 10 no
means of telling just what the expenses
against any special fund will be, and
therefore no way Of determining wheth'
err there Is q surplus until then.
''lf, after the t%reasurer's annual set.
Element, provided for in Division 4,
Section 1850, the board of county CON-
missioners find there Is a balance on
hand in any of the special funds, after
providing for oil outstanding war.
rants issued against such special fund,
then under Section 1855, the board has
the right to transfer such surplus so
found, excepting that ia the school,
bond or bridge fund, to such other
fund or funds as they may deem for
the best interests of the county
The bridge fund is, by Section Is,
Chapter ~, page 81 of the 1903 laws,
in the opinion Of Attorney General
Galen, put in the same class as the
school and bond funds, i. e. no rams.
fer a be made from it at any time.
'In yer there is in any fund ex
cept the school and bond" says the
examiner, money for which there is
no probable use for several months,
then at your discretion a temporary
borrowing OF it for another fund made
to save interest on warrants will no
be disapproved, provided all entries O
such trans actions read 'BOrrowed.''
A RECORD OF NATIONAL PROGRESS