Private Acts of 1939 Chapter 414

COMPILER'S NOTE: The County Hospital also comes under this Act.

SECTION 1. That it shall be the duty of the Lawrence County Highway Commissioners on or before the first Monday in May of each year, to prepare and file with the County Court Clerk an itemized statement or budget of the funds which said commission estimates to be necessary for the construction, maintenance, upkeep, and operation of the roads; bridges in Lawrence County, and expenses incident thereto, for the year commencing on the first day of July following the making of said report; the said budget shall show in detail and in separate items the estimated amounts necessary for salaries and office expenses of old equipment, new equipment, maintenance or repair of old equipment, bridges, lumber, gravel, etc., the said budget shall likewise show in parallel columns the amounts expended in the previous year for the respective purposes.

That it shall likewise be the duty of the Lawrence County Board of Education on or before the first Monday in April of each year to prepare and file with the County Court Clerk of Lawrence County an itemized statement or budget of the funds which said Board of Education estimates to be necessary for the maintenance and operation of the schools in Lawrence County, and expenses incident thereto, for the year commencing on the first day of July following the making of said report; the said budget shall show in detail and in separate items the estimated amount necessary for the office expenses and salaries of the County Superintendent and his assistants, salaries for the different county schools, the aggregate of the salaries for each individual being shown, for the purchase of new equipment, for the maintenance and repair of old equipment and school buildings, janitor service, bus service, insurance, and all other expenses of said department. The said budget shall likewise show in parallel columns the amounts expended the previous year for the respective purposes.

That it shall likewise be the duty of the Judge of the County Court of Lawrence County on or before the first Monday in May of each year to prepare and file with the County Court Clerk of Lawrence County an itemized statement or budget of the funds which he estimates necessary to be expended for the general county fund during the year commencing on the first day of July following the making of his said report, for the payment of salaries, maintenance of insane, jail bills, improvements and repairs of court house and jail, court costs, jail buildings, work house, etc., and all expenses which are properly paid out of the General County Fund. It shall also be the duty of the Judge of the County Court of Lawrence County at the same time to prepare and file with the Clerk a statement or budget showing the amounts that will be necessary to pay the various county bonds, together with interest thereon, which have been issued by the county, which will mature or become due during the ensuing year. The budgets of the Judge of the Court will likewise show in parallel columns the amounts expended the previous year for the respective purposes.

That it shall be the duty of all other county agencies and parties not hereinabove specifically mentioned, having authority to expend or expending county funds to file with said Clerk each year on or before the first Monday in May an itemized statement or the budget of the funds estimated to be necessary to be expended by said agencies or Department for the year commencing on the first day of July following.

That it shall be the duty of the County Trustee on or before the first Monday in May of each year to prepare and file with the County Court Clerk an itemized statement or estimate of all funds, exclusive of the funds to be derived from the county tax on property, which he has reasonable grounds to believe will be paid into his office during the year commencing on the first of the following July, and which will be available for the purpose of defraying the expenses of the county government during said year; and said statement shall show the source of each fund and said trustee shall likewise show in a parallel column the amount received for the same purposes from the same sources during the year ending on the preceding June 30th, as near as may be practicable, and he shall likewise show in said statement the actual amount collected from the county tax on property during the year ending on the preceding June 30th.

SECTION 2. That it shall be the duty of the Judge of the County Court with the approval and confirmation of the Quarterly Court of Lawrence County, Tennessee, at its April term every two years to appoint a committee of four members of the Court who shall be and constitute the Budget Commission of Lawrence County, Tennessee; the County Judge to be ex-officio chairman. That the members of said Commission shall each receive three dollars per day, except the chairman, not to exceed Thirty Dollars in any one year per member. Three members of said Commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. That the Secretary of the County Judge shall act as the Secretary of said Commission but shall have no voice or vote in the deliberations of said commission. That the duties of the Secretary shall be to keep all records of the commission, including a complete record of the proceedings thereof, assist it in the compilation of the data necessary for the commission to prepare the budget herein provided and to assist in the preparation of said budget, and he shall perform such other duties as shall be prescribed by said commission. That the County Court shall compensate said Secretary for services rendered in said capacity, but in no event shall such compensation exceed $3.00 per day for every day actually required to perform his duties as Secretary to said commission; and said commission shall certify to the Quarterly Court at the time it submits its budget as hereinafter provided for, the number of days the said Secretary has been actually engaged in the performance of his said duties.

That each year prior to the meeting of the July term of the Quarterly Court of Lawrence County, it shall be the duty of said Budget Commission to consider and examine the budgets referred to in Section 1 hereof and such other records and data as may be necessary, and to prepare on appropriate forms a complete itemized budget covering all of the proposed expenditures of every kind and description to be made by or on behalf of the county for the year beginning on July 1st, and in preparing said budget, said commission is not to be bound by the amounts fixed in the several budgets of the various departments of the county referred to in Section 1 hereof, but shall make such changes therein as in the opinion of said commission are to the best interest of the county, subject at all times to the approval of the County Court. The Budget Commission shall cause to be prepared appropriate printed forms on which the budget of the various departments of the county referred to in Section 1 hereof are to be submitted by said commission. That said forms shall be of such nature as to enable said commission to submit to the Quarterly Court as hereinafter provided a complete itemized budget and financial statement of the county in simple, intelligible form, to the end that the Quarterly Court shall have before it in said budget all of the data necessary to enable it to intelligently determine the proper amount to be allowed the various departments of the county during the year for which the budget is proposed and the amount of revenue that will be available to pay the nature and kind of said forms.

That said budget, when prepared by said Budget Commission, shall be filed with the County Court Clerk and by him recorded along with the budgets prepared by the several departments of the county, as hereinabove provided for, in a well bond book and kept as a permanent record in the office of the County Court Clerk; and shall be submitted by the County Judge each year to the July term of the Quarterly Court of Lawrence County in open court; and it shall be the duty of said court before fixing the tax rate for the current year to fully consider in open court said budget prepared by said Budget Commission, but the same shall not be in any way binding on said court. That said Court shall have full right and power to alter, vary or change in any way it deems right and proper said budget so submitted by said Budget Commission or any part thereof, but it shall be the positive duty of said court at its July term each year, to fix, establish and adopt a complete, itemized budget of the amounts to be expended by each department of the county government during the year beginning on the first day of July, and no warrant drawn against county funds after July 1, 1939, shall be binding on the County unless the items or expenses for which said warrant is issued shall have been included in a budget adopted by said court as herein provided for; and no warrant shall be valid or binding on the county after the aggregate amount of warrants heretofore drawn during the fiscal year by or on behalf of any department of the county government, shall equal the amount allowed said department in the budget adopted for that year.

That in preparing said budget herein provided for, it shall be the duty of said Budget Commission to take into consideration any unexpended balances that may remain at the end of the year to the credit of any department from the amount allowed such department for the previous year.

That as nearly as may be practicable, said commission shall show in its budget the amount of actual expenditures of each department of the county government during the preceding year covering each item or head in the budget, said amounts for such previous year to be shown in a column parallel to that containing the amounts proposed for the ensuing year, so that when completed said budget will show not only the proposed expenditures for the ensuing year, but the actual expenditures under each year or the preceding year.

That from the data and information herein required to be prepared and filed by the County Trustee and such other data as it may be necessary to examine, said Budget Commission shall likewise show in its budget an itemized statement or estimate of all funds, exclusive of the funds derived from the county tax on property, which said commission has reasonable grounds to believe will be available during the year for payment of the amounts allowed in its said budget for said year, and it shall also show as nearly as may be practicable, the amounts of revenue derived from the same sources during the preceding year, together with the amount actually collected from the county tax on property during such preceding year.

That said Budget Commission shall, along with its budget, submit its recommendation to the Court with respect to the tax rate on property for the current year together with its estimate of the amount that will be actually collected during the year beginning on the 1st day of July, from the tax so recommended. That at the same time and in the same report said Budget Commission shall submit to the Quarterly Court a full and complete statement of all outstanding and unpaid warrants and the outstanding bonded indebtedness of the county, showing the amounts and maturities of all outstanding bonds, the purpose for which issued and any other information relative thereto which said commission shall deem pertinent.

That along with its budget and report said commission shall submit to said court such other data information and recommendations as it may deem advisable and necessary to enable said Quarterly Court and the public to fully understand the financial condition of the county and the necessity for the amounts fixed in said budget and the tax rate on property recommended by said commission.

That the Secretary of said commission shall mail a full and complete copy of the report and budget prepared by said commission to each member of the Quarterly Court at least fifteen days before the July term of said court.

SECTION 3. That in the event that said Budget Commission fails, refuses or neglects to prepare and submit that budget herein provided for to the said Quarterly Court at its July term, then it shall be the duty of said Quarterly Court, at said term of said court to establish and adopt an itemized budget covering the amounts to be expended by each department of the county government for the year beginning on the 1st day of July, said budget to be of the same kind and form as that herein required to be prepared by said Budget Commission, and it shall be a misdemeanor in office for any official of Lawrence County from and after July 1, 1939, to draw, sign or issue the warrant of Lawrence County against any fund of Lawrence County unless a budget has been adopted by said Quarterly Court as herein provided for; and no warrant shall be valid or binding on the County of Lawrence unless the item of expense for which said warrant is drawn shall have been included in a budget adopted according to the provisions hereof. That the budget as finally adopted by the Quarterly Court at its July term each year shall be spread on the minutes of said court, and from and after July 1, 1939, no warrants shall be drawn against any funds of Lawrence County by any official of said county unless and until a budget has been adopted by said Quarterly Court as herein required, provided that warrants may be issued covering any obligation or indebtedness of said county actually incurred prior to said date.

SECTION 4. That it shall be the duty of each department of the county government that disburses public funds, including the Lawrence County Board of Education, County Highway Commission, and the Judge of the County Court to keep all such books and records as will enable them to fully and specifically comply with the provisions of this Act. Each of said departments and officials shall close the books kept by it or him as of the 30th day of June each year, showing the balance to its or his credit, said balance to represent the difference between the amount allowed said department or fund in the budget for the year ending on that date and the aggregate amount of the warrants issued and charge-able against said amount allowed in said budget, and it shall likewise be the duty of each of said departments and said officials to open its or his books on the 1st day of July of each year, bring forward the balance, if any, arrived at in the manner herein provided for, remaining to the credit of said department or fund from the previous year, to which shall be added the amount allowed said department or fund in the budget adopted by the Quarterly Court at its July term.

That said books shall be kept in such a manner as to at all times show the amount allowed that department or fund in said budget adopted at the July term of the Quarterly Court and the amount of all warrants drawn and chargeable against said funds regardless of whether said warrants have been paid or not, said warrants to be posted in said book as the same are issued.

That hereafter the amount allowed each department or disbursing agency of the county government or county funds in said budget shall also be placed at an appropriate place on the stubs in the several warrant books containing the warrants to be used by said department or county agency in drawing on county funds and said amount shall be added to any balance remaining from the previous years; and at the end of each day it shall be the duty of every official issuing warrants of any kind against any such funds to subtract the aggregate of the warrants issued that day from the previous balance arrived at as herein provided for, and the balance thus arrived at shall be brought forward each day at an appropriate place on the stubs remaining in said warrant books; and at the end of each month it shall be the duty of every official drawing warrants against any fund of Lawrence County to reconcile the balance to the credit of the fund drawn against as shown on the warrant stubs with the balance to the credit of said fund as shown by the books required to be kept by said official; provided that for the year beginning the 1st day of July, 1939, the books of each department shall be opened by placing to the credit of each department amount allowed it in the budget adopted at the July term, 1939, of the Quarterly County Court, and said amount so allowed said department for the year beginning July 1, 1939, shall also be placed at an appropriate place on the stubs of the warrants used by said department before any warrants are drawn or issued by said department after the beginning of said year, and thereafter the balance from day to day shall be arrived at and carried in said warrants stubs as herein provided for.

SECTION 5. That is shall be unlawful and a misdemeanor in office for any official or employee of Lawrence County to draw, sign, issue, deliver, or to authorize the drawing, signing, issuance or delivery of any warrant against any fund of said county, when the aggregate of the warrants heretofore issued or signed, whether the same have been paid by the Trustee or not, equals the amount allowed in the budget adopted by the Quarterly Court to that department or fund of the county against which said warrant would otherwise be chargeable, plus the balance, if any, that may have been brought forward to the credit of such department or fund from the previous year, and it shall also be a misdemeanor in office for any official to sign or issue, or authorize the signing or issuance of a warrant or warrants against any county fund, in excess of the amount said fund in the budget adopted by the Quarterly Court plus any balance remaining to the credit of such fund from the previous year.

That it shall be the mandatory duty of every official drawing warrants against any county fund to keep advised and know before he signs, issues or delivers any warrants, whether or not the aggregate of the warrants theretofore issued against said funds out of which said warrant is payable equals the amount allowed said fund or department in the budget for that year plus any balances brought forward from the previous year, and it shall be the duty of said Budget Commission before submitting its annual report to the Quarterly Court to examine the books and records of each department of the county government for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not the warrants issued by or on behalf of any said department during the year ending on the June 30th have exceeded the amount allowed said department in the budget adopted for that year, and said commission shall show in its report to be filed with its budget each year the departments, if any, that have issued warrants in excess of the amounts allowed such department in the budget of said year, and it shall be the mandatory duty of the Quarterly Court to certify the facts to the District Attorney General for presentation to the Grand Jury at the next term of the Circuit Court; and it shall be the duty of the District Attorney General to present the facts of said Grand Jury and to institute such other proceedings as may be necessary to give full effect to the provisions of this Act.

SECTION 6. That it shall be a misdemeanor in office for any county officer or agent or employee, including the members of the Lawrence County Board of Highway Commissioners, the members of the Lawrence County Board of Education, County Superintendent of Education, the Judge of the County Court, and the County Court Clerk, to violate any provision of this Act or to fail or refuse to do or perform any of the duties placed upon them or any of them by this Act, and any such officer or officers failing to perform the duties imposed by this Act, shall be subject to a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) or more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), and imprisonment of not less than thirty days or more than six months, and be subject to removal from office, in any appropriate legal proceeding brought for that purpose.

SECTION 7. That the County Judge shall keep a record of the expenditures of each of said Boards of all other County expenditures, and his books shall be kept in such a manner as to at all times show amount allowed each department or fund in the budget adopted at the July term of the Quarterly Court, the total amount of all warrants drawn and chargeable against each of said funds whether paid or not and the unexpended balance of the budgeted allowance to each department or fund. Whenever the total or aggregate of the warrants drawn against any fund of the County equals or exceeds the amount allowed in the budget to that department or fund by the Quarterly Court, it shall be unlawful for the County Judge to sign any warrant or issue any warrants against said fund. He shall furnish reports to the Quarterly Court of the County at every regular quarterly meeting showing the status of the budget of each department, and at any special meeting when advisable or necessary. He shall allow the Budget Commission referred to in Section 2 hereof, or any member thereof, or any member of the Quarterly Court, to inspect his books and records at any time, and they shall be audited at such times as may be prescribed by the Quarterly Court. Any taxpayer of the County shall likewise be allowed to examine his books at any time.

SECTION 8. That the General Assembly hereby declares it to be the legislative intent that this Act shall be severable and that the invalidity or unconstitutionality of any section, sentence, or provision hereof shall not affect or render invalid the remaining parts or portions of the Act.

SECTION 9. That all laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

SECTION 10. That this Act shall take effect from and after its passage, the public welfare requiring it.

Passed: March 10, 1939.