175 S.W.2d 341 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1943
Affirming.
The case is resolved, through many amended petitions and a cross petition, to one by the County Attorney, directly and by appeal from the orders of the Fiscal *755 Court, and a taxpayer to have it adjudged that the county had no authority to pay part of the salary and expenses of one called a "Child Welfare Agent" during the fiscal year now drawing to a close on June 30th. The circuit court held that the Fiscal Court had the right to make the appropriation and rendered a consistent judgment.
The points of attack upon the appropriation may be thus summarized: (1) So much of Chapter 17, Acts of 1928, published as Sections 331L-15, and 331L-16, Kentucky Statutes, as purports to authorize a fiscal court to make an appropriation for a County Children's Bureau or Executive Secretary for such Bureau is unconstitutional because such provisions are not embraced in the title; (2) no Children's Bureau or office of Child Welfare Agent was ever legally established by the county; (3) there was no legal authority for the appropriation; (4) the appropriation is void because it had the effect of increasing the county's debt beyond constitutional limitations and required an expenditure in excess of the revenues provided for the year; (5) the office or purpose is not an essential governmental function; and (6) the budget for the year beginning July 1, 1942, was not adopted according to law.
The Act of 1928 established the Kentucky Children's Bureau as a State administrative body, with a separate corporate existence, as successor to the Kentucky Child Welfare Commission. Chapter 17, page 129 of 1928; Sections 331L-1 et seq., Kentucky Statutes, Edition of 1936. Among other duties the Bureau was authorized to assist in the establishment of County Children's Bureaus and to co-operate with them in accomplishing the purposes of helping and promoting the welfare of children who are dependent, neglected, delinquent, defective or handicapped, physically, or mentally, and to aid needy mothers. By the Reorganization Act of 1934, the Bureau was abolished kind all of its duties and functions were vested in the Department of Public Welfare. Chapter 155, Article XIV, Section 2, Acts of 1934, published as Sections 4618-35, 4618-101, Kentucky Statutes.
It is provided in Section 15 of the Act (Section 331L-15, Kentucky Statutes) that the fiscal court of any county may appropriate funds to be paid out of the county levy for the payment in whole or in part for the care or treatment of such children committed from the county. *756
Section 16 of the Act, Section 331L-16, Kentucky Statutes, provides that "The fiscal court or the county commissioners of any county, with the advice and assistance of the Kentucky children's bureau, shall establish for such county a county children's bureau." When that has been done it prescribes that the county judge and the county superintendent of schools shall submit to the State Bureau a list of persons from which the State Bureau shall recommend three of them (five in more populated counties) who shall then be appointed by the county judge and superintendent of schools as members of the County Children's Bureau. They serve without compensation. The section concludes: "The fiscal court or county commissioners of each county are hereby authorized and empowered to provide funds for the establishment and maintenance of the said county bureau."
Subsequent sections provide for the organization and operation of the County Bureau. Its duties are particularly defined. Some of them are performed in cooperation with or as agencies of the State Bureau, now the Department of Public Welfare. We are particularly concerned here with Section 18 of the Act (Section 331L-18, Kentucky Statutes) which is as follows:
"The county children's bureau shall have authority to appoint an executive officer whose qualifications for the position shall have been approved by the Kentucky children's bureau and who shall be known as the executive secretary of the bureau. The executive secretary shall have such salary as may be fixed by the county children's bureau and shall serve during its pleasure. The executive secretary may appoint such properly trained assistants as may be authorized and approved by the county children's bureau, at such salaries as may be designated by it. The county children's bureau is authorized to pay, out of such sums as may be appropriated to pay its use by the fiscal court or county commissioners of the county, the salaries of its executive secretary and his or her assistants and the necessary traveling expense of its members, executive secretary and other agents and such other expenses as are incidental to the discharge of its lawful duties. The county children's bureau of two or more counties, with the approval of the fiscal court or county commissioners of their respective counties, may unite in the employment of an executive secretary and such other assistants as may be deemed necessary, and *757 shall agree upon the part of the total expense which each county children's bureau shall pay."
1. The title of the Act of 1928 is as follows: "An Act to promote the welfare of the delinquent, neglected, dependent or defective children of the State; repealing Chapter one hundred and seven of the Acts of one thousand nine hundred and twenty-two and abolishing the Kentucky Child Welfare Commission created thereby; creating in its place a bureau with the duties, functions, rights and powers of the Kentucky Child Welfare Commission to be known as 'The Kentucky Children's Bureau,' and defining and prescribing its duties and functions; providing for the creation of children's bureaus in each county, and defining and prescribing their duties and functions; providing for the establishment of a County Mother's Aid Fund in each county to be administered under the County Children's Bureau; providing for the administering of Mother's Aid throughout the State; making an appropriation for the benefit of the Kentucky Children's Bureau and authorizing county levies for the establishment of County Mothers' Aid Funds."
It is argued that this title is restrictive and not general, so that any specific provision in the act not referred to in the title must be held invalid. It is pointed out that the title mentions the "establishment of a County Mother's Aid Fund in each county" and states that the act is one "authorizing county levies for the establishment of County Mothers' Aid Funds," and does not make any mention of any county levy or appropriation for the establishment or maintenance of a County Children's Bureau or the payment of the salary of a child welfare worker or an executive secretary of the County Child's Bureau.
If the title is regarded as wholly specific, the point is well made for it was not constitutionally proper to include in the body of the act anything not within the specifications of the title. Jefferson County Fiscal Court v. Thomas,
2. The Fiscal Court of Estill County never entered an order establishing a Children's Bureau. It will be observed that the statute provides that such bureau shall be established by that body. When that shall have been done the machinery for choosing its personnel goes into operation and the bureau begins to function. There is no other duty placed upon the fiscal court except to provide funds therefor. For several years prior to 1937, the Fiscal Court had made an appropriation of $50 a month to supplement the compensation of Mrs. Hallie Johnstone, a representative of the Red Cross doing social work in Estill County. In June, 1937, the county judge and superintendent of schools proceeded substantially in the manner outlined by the statute to recommend to the Department of Public Welfare and then to appoint a County Children's Bureau of three members. They elected Mrs. Johnstone "County Social Worker." In the fall of 1938, there was a closer adherence to the method prescribed by advising the Department that they had established a child welfare program and chosen Mrs. Johnstone as executive secretary, which is the title given by the statute. This was approved by the Commissioner of Welfare and the Federal Children's Bureau, and those bodies made allotments to Estill County for the purposes designated in the Statutes. The personnel, including Mrs. Johnstone, was reappointed in 1941. It does not appear that the County Children's Bureau has kept an official record of these and later actions concerning its organization as should have been done, since it is a public body and public bodies usually speak only through their records. The original correspondence with the Department of Public Welfare was introduced to prove what had been done.
During these years the fiscal court regularly made appropriations for Mrs. Johnstone's salary and traveling expenses and for supplies in supplement of the allotment and salary made by the State Department of Public Welfare and the Federal social agency, working with and through that department. She has been variously called in the orders of the Fiscal Court, "County Distributor," "County Welfare Worker," "County Welfare agent," and "Executive Secretary." At a special session, held *759 July 14, 1942, the Fiscal Court, among other important transactions, made the tax levies and adopted the budget for the county for the fiscal year which had begun July 1st. The budget had been prepared by a County Budget Commission and approved by the State Department of Revenue through the State Local Finance Officer. Section 938q-13, Kentucky Statutes Supp. 1939. The budget carried an item of appropriation of "Child Welfare Agent's salary, $750.00." It also had several items for "Public Charities" which apparently embraced funds for children's care, and had a special item of $800 for "'Mothers' Aid." In addition the Fiscal Court unanimously adopted the following resolution:
"Whereas, an order has heretofore been made for the maintenance of the Child Welfare Department and for the payment of Mrs. Hallie Johnstone, in charge thereof, the sum of $720.00 (sic) per year, payable monthly, of which sum she pays back $10.00 per month as rent for offices; and, further, some legal question having been raised as to the validity thereof,
It is now ordered that said appropriation be, and the same is, hereby made for the maintenance of the Child Welfare Department for one year for the sum of $720.00, with provision that $10.00 per month is to be repaid to the county for rent, and the clerk of this court will draw monthly vouchers payable to Hallie Johnstone for $60.00 per month, which vouchers shall be paid by the county treasurer."
The absence of an order of the Fiscal Court expressly establishing a County Children's Bureau and other loose methods of procedure, as well as the absence of formal records of the County Children's Bureau, with the carelessness evidenced thereby, are not to be sanctioned. But the organization and operation of such a bureau were established facts. In recognizing and impliedly approving what had been done by the county judge and school superintendent with reference to the personnel of the Children's Bureau without an initial authorization, we think the Fiscal Court ratified their action and the effect was the same as if it had been done antecedently. It is generally recognized that a fiscal court may ratify and confirm any action of an agent whom it might in the first instance have appointed and authorized to do something if it was within its power to have done so previously; also that it may ratify and confirm *760
a contract if it is legal in all respects except for the absence of an initial authority. J. I. Case Threshing Machine Company v. Commonwealth,
In the recent case of Estill County v. Noland,
3. The argument that the Fiscal Court had no authority to make the appropriation is embraced in the other grounds.
4. It is disclosed that the outstanding general bonded debt of the county on July 1, 1942, was in round figures $16,500 above the constitutional limitation of indebtedness of 2% of the assessed valuation of taxable property, and that in addition there were outstanding warrants aggregating over $8,000, so on the face it appears that there was an excess debt of at least $24,500. Section 158, Kentucky Constitution. We pass over the appellees' response that the apparent excess indebtedness was created for necessary governmental purposes and that the entire debt is presumed to be valid; also that the care and maintenance of the poor mothers and *761 children covered by this service is a necessary governmental expense and must be incurred irrespective of the constitutional limitation. We consider the point that appropriations for current operation of the county do not constitute a debt within the limitations prescribed by Section 158 of the Constitution.
As we have stated, the budget for the current fiscal year was prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Statutes. It sets forth the sources and estimates of the revenue and allocates it among the many items of prospective expenses. The Fiscal Court at the time it adopted the budget made the tax levies for the year. With the assessments and the experience of the past year as to other revenues before them, it was calculated that the receipts and cash on hand would amount to $60,950. The budget appropriations aggregated the same sum. There is no intimation in the record that these estimates were unreasonable, and, since the budget was approved by the State Local Finance Officer and the rigid provisions of the statute were strictly observed in its preparation, it may be presumed that the expenses for the year will not exceed the revenues therein provided. Section 157 of the Constitution; Payne v. City of Covington,
5. The other ground of attack upon the action of the Fiscal Court and the county officers is that the budget, was not adopted according to law. It appears to have been read and signed in substantial compliance with the statute relating thereto. Section 1851c-5, Kentucky Statutes, now KRS
The judgment is affirmed.
Whole Court sitting. *764