Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-464

Opinion No. 464. Cities and Towns-City TreasUI'cr- Bond, Reduction of-Cit.y Council. HELD: In the absence of statute or contract prohibiting it, the amount of the bond required of the City treasurer may be reduced if the city council deem it excessive. February 16, Hl34. You have submitted the question: "'Vhere the uond of a City Treasurer has been fixed by ordinance in the amount of $100,000.00, amI a subse- quent Council has deemed the amount of the bond is excessi\'e, can the Coun- cil reduce the amount of the hond dur- ing the term of the City Treasurer'!' Section 5017 Revised Codes of Mon- tana 1921 provides: "The city treas- urer, city clerk, and city marshaL alHI such other city officers as the council ur ordinance may require, must give official bonds, in such sums and seem'- ities as the ordinance may prescribe, which bonds must be approved by the council and filed with the city clerk, except the bon!l of the city clerk, which must be filed with the city treasurer. and no officer must become 'suret~' upon the official bond of another." Hection 6236. R. C. M. 1!)21, as amended by Chapter 145, Laws of 1923, provides that the premium on a surety compan~' bond furnished by a city official shall be a proper charge against the general fund of the City. I find no statute prohibiting the re- duction in the amount of snch bond where it is deemed excessive. Since the amount of the bond is not fixed by statute, but left to the discretion of the city counCil, in the a hsence of statute or contract prohibiting it, I am of the opinion that the amount of snch bond lllay be reduced if the city council deem it excessive. There appears to be no good reason why this may not be done and the cost of city government thus reduced.