American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1915-02-18
CENSURE STATE OFFICIALS
FOR CARELESS METHODS
House Investigating Committee Re-
ports on Nampa Bank C~ase-Finds
Duties of Officials Too 0nerous for
Absolute Performance of Duty.


The house Investigating committee
which was appointed to investigate the
conduct of state officers, has made a
report c%ensuring some of the state Of
ficials for careless methods In sub
stance as follows:
From the evidence produced be-
fore your committee we find that at
time of failure the state had on de-
post in said bank, the sum of $45,-
905.45. We also find that at that time
said bank had on file with the proper
state officer two bonds-one in the
penal sun of $4,000, on which bond
the surety was the United States FL
deity & Guarantee company, and an
other bond in the penal sum of S4O,-
600, on which the sureties were VIII
liam Strobe, C. r. Hickey and George
Duval, all of Nampa.
Date Bond Back.
"This personal bond is in proper
form and the sureties justified as re-
CURED by law; it is dated September
%, 1912, but from the evidence intro
duced, we find that the bond, in fact,
was not executed until on or about the
first day Of March, 1918, and that
the bond was not filed until after
that date. In short, the evidence
shows that the bond was dated back.
Though the sureties on this latter
bond, justified as required by law, the
evidence introduced before your com
mittee, is, In the judgment of your
committee. sufficient to prove that
two of the individuals 30 signing the
bond had not sufficient assets to war
rant their action, o the acceptance
OF the bond by the state officers, who
passed upon the same.
THE deposits made by the state
treasurer. were unlawful, inasmuch
as they were In xces Of the amount
permitted by law. The testimony
showed that IL the treasurer had made
deposits Of state money according to
law, the Bank of Nampa would have
had on deposit, $19.9sS.16. instead of
$45, 500.
1.-The evidence also shows that the
! examination or investigation made by
the officers in accepting these bonds
from the Bank of Nampa, was negli-
gent, careless and wholly superficial,
and that they shifted the responsible
ity one upon the ether, go that In final
analysis, the treasurer, practically
without further supervision, not only
accepted these bonds, but was the only
state authority to pass upon their suf-
ficiency.
Applies to Others.
This criticism is not confined to
the bonds given by the Bank of Nam
pa, for we find that so far as the at
torney generals office is concerned,
no formal investigation Of depositary
bonds or of the sufficiency Of the
sureties thereon had been made for
over a period OF ten years.
Your committee holds that because
the governor, the secretary of state,
and the attorney general failed to
carefully scrutinize all bonds, and be-
cause they followed careless and lax
methods, they are subject to censure.
However, in their extenuation, we be-
lieve their duties are too onerous to
permit Of their giving proper attention
to such bonds, and particularly per-
sonal or individual bonds; we there
fore recommend the enactment Of an
amendment to our present statutes
providing that surety bonds only shall
be accepted for the protection Of state
deposits in depository banks in the
state.
Takes Prompt Action.
Your committee finds hat imme-
diately upon the failure of the Bank
Of Nampa, Attorney General Peterson
took action for the protection of the
states interest therein, and that he
at once investigated the assets and liza
bflftes Of the bank and the sureties on
'thos bonds; ~ - nlsd astton