Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1916-12-29
Secretary OF State May Not Ret s't
Fees.

Of $4,000 year prescribed for him in the
Constitution. but that he may receive the
$500 salary paid him as secretary Of the
Board OF Public Works. that being employ
ment outside his official duties as Secretary
Of State.
Mr.. Richie advised the Comptroller that
he awaited instructions as TO whether he
should institute proceedings against the
former Secretaries of State for the funds
they received in excess Of their stated sala-
I ries.
| Mr.. McMuIlen asked the Atteney-Gen-
eral for the opinion after the publication
Of a letter inquiring whether the Secretary
was entitled to fees in addition to his
salary.
Il am giving you at length" said Mr..
Richie in his opinion. "the reasons for this
conclusion. because it involves departure
from what has for years been the practice
OF those who have filled the Office of Sec
rotary Of State and because II not only
materially affects the compensation of the
gentleman who now occupies that Office.
but also involves the obligation of former
Secretaries Of State to reimburse the State
for the fees they respectively retained in
excess of their salary"
Mr.. Richie then referred painstakingly
to the provisions Of the present and prior
constitutions Of the State. and to the de-
bates of the constitutional conventions
bearing on the subject. and showed that
the salary Of the Secretary Of State is
specified in the Constitution itself. with
no power to the Legislature to change it
and that any act Of the Legislature at
tempting to increase the salary by way Of
fees or otherwise would be void. He next
took up the statutes under which the Sec
Rotary Of State has been collecting and re-
tanning fees. and held that. as a matter of
fact. these statutes do not even purport to
authorize the Secretary Of State to keep
the fees Of the Office as his own.
Mr. Richie followed with statements Of
the sources from which the Secretary Of
State had received revenue in addition to
his salary. They were fees paid upon
the Incorporation Of Maryland companies
which under the act Of 1914 were one and
half times the fees usually paid clerks
Of courts for recording documents Of SINH
lar length. and under the act of 1916 were
$3.50 per charter. except in the case of
consultations. when they we're IS; the
part Of the charge Of $25 remaining after
payment Of expenses, which foreign cor
porations entering this State are required
TO pay. and all Of their annual renewal
costs Of 81 each the charges for certify
ing documents. and the part Of the appro-
priation for the Maryland Manual remain
ing after the payment Of the costs of COM
piline, printing and distributing it.
THE fees collected by the Secretary OF
State belong to the State" continued Mr.
Richie, land therefore he should account
for them to the Comptroller and pay them
to the Treasurer. exactly as any other sala
ried official accounts for and pays ovel
any receipts which come into his hand.
officially"
He explained. however, in this connec
ton that the Secretary of State could b,
employed as the secretary Of the Board o
Public Works and receive the salary o
$500. because under the decisions of tn,
Court Of Appeals public officer. such a
the Secretary of State. may also hold
clerical position. such as the secretary o
the Board OF Public Works, and receive tn,
salary Of each position.
IN my opinion" Mr.. Richie concluded
"the State is legally entitled to recove
from those who formerly held the office o
Secretary Of State any compensation which
they may have received for the duties o
their Offices in excess Of the $4,000 salar,
allowed by the Constitution.
when the Governor the Comptrolle
and the Treasurer come to determine
whether such suits should be brought o
not. it is only fair to the former Secreta
ries Of State that due consideration SHOULD
be given, as Of course ii will be, to the fac
that the fees which the former Secretaries
Of State retained in excess Of their salarie
were retained by them with the knowledg
and acquiescence Of the State officials. an,
doubtless under the belief that they wert
entitled to them.
ALSO. the 81 which was retained by IN,
Secretaries of State out Of automobile ant
chauffeur licenses from 1906 to 1910 wa
expressly authorized by the Act of 1906
Chapter 449, Sections 1871 and 1891, to b.
retained by the Secretary of State "for hi
services" The other statutes above refer
red to contain no such provision as this
and while think that this provision wa
unconstitutional. yet in determining wheth
or or not the State should now sue to recove
back these automobile fees the fact SHOULD
not be overlooked that at the time the,
were retained State statute existel
which expressly provided that the Secre
tary Of State should be entitled to retail
them.
1T is also doubtless true that the gen
tlemen who formerly held the office o
Secretary OF State as well as the incumbent
would not have accepted the Office haC
they known that the constitutional salar,
would be the limit Of their compensation.
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