Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-12

Opinion No. 12 County Surveyors-Salades-Funds. HELD: ~'he fact that the legislative assembly, by inadvertance, provided that the county surveyor should be paid from a fund which had been previously a bolished does not alter the fact that he is entitled to compensation as provided by statute. .lanuary 10, 1D33. Replying to your request for an opin- ion, the old law in regard to controlling the compensation of county surveyors, was on a per diem basis. As advised by you, the legislatil·e assembly of 1925 abolished the contingent fund. In the In31 session the compensa tion of county surveyors in counties with a registered vote of 15,000 was fixed at $3600.00 payable out of the contingent fund. Undoubtedly as you state, the as- sembly meant to have the salary paid out of the general fund o"ing to the fact that the contingent fund had been abolished. Chapter 179, Laws of 1931, fixed the county surveyor's salary in counties where the registered vote is 15,000, or more, at $3600.00. If it had not been specified what fund the salary of the county surveyor is payable out of, such county surveyor would have had an ac- tion against the county for compensa- OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 2i rion for services rendered and it is dis- ('!'etionary with the commissioners to pay it out of the general fund or any other fund that they might choose. The fact that the surveyor should be paid and that fund has been previously abol- ished, does not alter the fact that he is entitled to compensation as provided by statute, and the position of this office is that the county surveyor of Cascade County is entitled to his salary of $::IGoo.oo per year.