The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1910-04-19


Published and filed.
Mayor and Council Of the
City of Brunswick,
City
Gentlemen At your last meeting
swas requested to render an opinion
u on the question of whether or not
an Alderman may lawfully contract or
agree for the doing Of eny wort; to e
done by the City CT for its account,
and to be paid for to the Alderman or
to any person, firm, or corporation,
in which CT whom, he, he alderman is
directly or indirectly interested. 1
stated orally at TIE lime this Al 9s'iOn
was submitted, tat ~ cannot law
fully make any such contract or agree
ment, or participate IN, or be interest
ed therein.
The law governing the subject is es
follows; using only he Georgia Stat
ute laws and deciTions Of the Courts
thereupOn, and omittiog all rext writ
ers.
Code of Georgia, Section 700.
"Officers shall not contract, when
No person holding Office under any
municipal incorporation, shall, during
the time which he was elected or al
pointed, be capable Of contracting
with such corporation for the perform
ance Of any work which is to be paid
for out of the treasury, nor seal any
such person be capable of holding or
havinf any interests in such con-
tract, either by himself or by another
directly or indirectly.
95th Georgia Reports, page 734.
1. "A county commission could &ot
legally demand or accept a commission
or profit for selling property for the
county whether he performed his dut-
les as commissioner with o. without
compensation. The purchasers of the
property, having paid the commission
exacted, cannot recover it; the con
tract for charging and paying It being
Illegal
2. The other county commissioners
could not authorize one of their number
to charge sucn commission for max
ing the sale.
8. If they could not so authorize,
they could not ratify.
(a) An officer is not rendered leg
ally incompetent to dicharge duties
which are clearly extra official and
outside of the scope of his 0fficial
duty. If employed to render service
in an independent employment no. ger
to t- off nia Int
les, he might recover for such service
21st Georgia Reports, page 327
/. "A contract entered into lctween
a private corporatio: and the CITY o.
Gainesville. under which the fornie"
is to perform certain work for which
payment is to be made out Of the CITY
treasury, is void if at The time Of its
execution one Of the members Of the
city council was also stockholGer in
such private corporation
2 Such contract does net become
valid and legal wheh, subsequently,
the interested member Of coancil sells
the stock which he owned at the lime
of the execution of the contract
Same citation pages 32S-129.
"A stakeholder in Il private corpora
ton has an interest in its contracts /,
and if the city can not make the con |
tract with the officer himself, it cHn- |
not make it with corporation II
which such officer is a stakeholder. !;
Such contracts as come WithlC ire !
provisions of Section 700, that is, those |
which are for the performance o. worn |
for which payment is &c be made 5ut |
of the city treasury, IRE by it forbid |
den and made contrary to plblic pol ,
icy. S0ch contracts are therefore !
void"
City Code, Section So.
Neither the mayor or any alder |
man shall at any time be interested
directly or indirectly, in any Contract
of any kind with the City or any Of
its Departments. and anyone who Shall
do so shall he guilty Of a misdemean- |
or, and may be indicted in the Super
ior Court of Glynn County, or pro- |
ceeded against by accusation in the !
City Court of Brunswick and on con i
viction shall be punished as provided ,
in Section 1889 of the Code of Geor- '
gia.'
Is the LEGAL law especially applicable |
to the City of Brunswick, as a part OF
its charter, but both the State laws
above set out and this section. are
equally applicable and of force in this
city. Very truly yours,
Boiling Whitfield. 49,,
City Attorney.
Ordinances.