75 Pa. Super. 434 | Pa. Super. Ct. | 1921
Opinion by
This appeal brings up the other branch of the inquiry into the conduct of the school directors of Mauch Chunk Township, referred to in the opinion this day filed to No. 34, October Term, 1920, ante p. 428. After the audit of the financial account of the school district as required by section 2625 of the School Code of 1911, P. L. 429, appellant, a taxpayer, duly appealed pursuant to section 2626. At the trial it was stipulated that the objections to the account and the effort to surcharge the directors should be limited to three specified items. Relief was granted as to one of these and refused as to the other two; the refusal resulted in this appeal.
The account is for the fiscal year ended on the first Monday of July, 1917. The items in question are (1)
We must differ from the court below. The circumstances warrant and the law requires the surcharge. This appellant taxpayer, acting for itself and for other taxpayers, brought to the attention of the court in the manner specified by law “the illegality and gross impropriety” and the “vicious custom” before the accounts for the fiscal year under investigation became final. Pursuant to section 2625 the auditors must “carefully audit and adjust the financial accounts of the school district for the preceding school year.” Section 2626 provides
“ ‘The fol. bills were read and approved:
“‘E. R. Ronemus services as treas., 886.47
“ ‘S. A. Emanuel services as sec., 200.00’
*439 “These orders were drawn in payment of services rendered by the treasurer and secretary for the school year ending July 3, 1917, and are the only evidence of any action by the board in relation to the compensation of these officers.”
If a school teacher after having rendered satisfactory services for months cannot recover compensation therefor because the school board that employed her has not made the record required by section 403, though she may know nothing about the records of the board, the officers of a school board, who have neglected their own duty to make such records should be in no better position; it has been repeatedly held that in such circumstances a school teacher may not recover: see Waltman v. School District, 64 Pa. Superior Ct. 458, and cases there cited. The learned court below apparently concedes that if the secretary and treasurer had not been paid and sought to recover, they should fail because they made no record required by section 403. But he concluded that since the payments were actually made “for a proper purpose” they should not be disturbed “in the absence of any suggestion of design, or purpose to be served by the failure” to comply with the statutory requirement. But that is not the test; the board must comply with the statute. The decision in Clark v. Lower Providence School District, 53 Pa. Superior Ct., p. 5, does not help the directors. Section 403 of the School Code was not applicable to the expenditure in question in that case; that section makes material additions to the Act of April 11, 1862, P. L. 471, a fact in itself showing legislative purpose not to be disregarded.
We must therefore sustain the 23d and 24th assignments of error. Inasmuch as the decree of the court below sitting in equity to No. 2, October Term, 1917, (in this court No. 34, October Term, 1920, this day affirmed) ordered the payment into the treasury of the school district of $783.40, of which an examination of the findings of facts shows that $440.24 was a part of the compensa
The costs of this appeal shall be paid by the school directors who are appellees.