Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-213

Opinion No. 213 Schools-Buildings Destroyed by Fire -Insurance, Disposal of Proceeds of -Abandoned District. HI<JLD: Money received by a school district from insurance on a school huilding destroyed by fire should be used first to pay any indebtedness re- maining for the building ,vhich had hurned down, or to create a sinking fund to retire the indebtedness as it Illutures, in the event it cannot be called immediately, and the balance credited to the general fund to be used for any obligations of the district prop- erly chargeable to that fund, including outstanding warrants. (The district is to he abandoned.) May IS, 1!l33. "re acknowledge receipt of yours of )larch 2i adyisin~ that one of ~'our school district buildings has been de- stroyed b~' fire: tha t the district re- ceived $2000.00 from insurance on such huilding: that ~'ou ha,'e outstanding indebtedness in the form of registered warrants. none of which was incurred for erecting the building which was de- :;;troyed. or fUl'llishing the same: that it is the intention of the district to dis- contimlf' the school and tram,port the pupils to another distric-t al1(] von de- sire an opinion from this offic'e as to whethel' or not the insurance monev IlIay he placed in the genera 1 fund t~ retire thc outstanding warrant~. You state that there is an indebted- ness of $600.00 and that snch indebted- ness was created for the pnrpose of huilding the school house which had Inn'ned down. Sufficient of the monev receh'ed from insurance should be use~] to pay such indebtedness. or to create a sinking fund to retire the indebted- ness as it matures, in the event it can- not be called immediately. The balance lIlay then he credited to the general fund under the provisions of section 32. Chapter 14i, 1!)2i Session Laws, and he used for any obligations of the dis- trict property chargeable to that fund, including outstanding warrants.