Board of Education of Ouachita County v. Morgan

34 S.W.2d 1063, 182 Ark. 1110, 1931 Ark. LEXIS 129
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJanuary 19, 1931
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 34 S.W.2d 1063 (Board of Education of Ouachita County v. Morgan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Board of Education of Ouachita County v. Morgan, 34 S.W.2d 1063, 182 Ark. 1110, 1931 Ark. LEXIS 129 (Ark. 1931).

Opinion

Humphreys, J.

This suit was brought on September 25, 1930, 'by appellants against appellees in the Second Division of the Chancery Court of Ouachita County to- obtain a transfer to the common school fund from the general county revenue fund of that portion of the treasurer’s commissions in excess of the constitutional limit of $5,000, allowed him as salary, derived from the collection of the county common school funds and credited to the county general revenue fund during the years 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927 and 1928, aggregating $14,350.83; and for interest collected from county depository banks and credited -to the county general revenue fund for the years 1924 to July 1, 1927, inclusive, amounting- to $345.55; and for a transfer to the county common school fund from the several county funds that portion of interest allocated to them which was collected from the county depository hanks during the last half of the year 1927 and all the year 1928, aggregating $8,472.62.

The complaint alleged that the excess commissions aggregating $14,350.83 collected by the county treasurer on the county common school funds were improperly credited to the account of the county general revenue fund contrary to law and to § 11, article 16, of the Constitution of the ¡State of Arkansas which provides that no moneys arising from a tax levied for one purpose shall be used for any other purpose. It also alleged that pursuant to act No. 304 of the Acts of 1913,- interest paid by county depositories should be placed to the credit of the respective funds from which said interest was derived, and that interest in the amount of $345.55 was collected on school funds deposited in county depository banks during the years 1924 to July 1, 1927, inclusive, and improperly credited to the county general revenue fund. It also alleged that pursuant to act No. 163 of the Acts of 1927, interest paid by county depositories should be placed to the credit of the county common school fund, whereas, during the last half of 1927 and all of 1928 interest aggregating $8,472.62 was paid by the county depository banks and improperly credited to the several county funds aforesaid.

Appellees filed an answer and demurrer to the complaint, both of which challenged the right of appellants to have the funds transferred to the county common school fund from the respective county funds to the credit of which they had been deposited, and in addition pleaded the three years’ statute of limitations in bar of appellants ’ claim for excess commissions and interest for the years 1924, 1925, 1926 and 1927 and for interest during the last half of 1927 and all of 1928.

The suit was submitted to the trial court upon the pleadings and a stipulation of facts, which resulted ini denying appellants’ claim for interest and that portion of its claim for excess commissions of the treasurer accruing more than three years before the institution of the suit, and ordering the county .judge and the county clerk to transfer from the county general revenue fund of said county the sum of $6,191.79, excess commissions for the years 1927 and 1928 and interest thereon, amounting to the total sum of $6,568.94, to the several school districts for Ouachita County, same to be apportioned under the orders and directions of the county board of education as required by law.

Both appellants and appellees have appealed from the decree in so far as same is adverse to each.

The agreement of facts is as follows:

“It is agreed by and between all of the parties herein for the purpose of the trial of the-issues in this suit:
“First: That the figures set out in the complaint and the amendment thereto correctly show the amount of money collected by the treasurer of Ouachita County, Arkansas, for and during the years set out in the complaint, and the amounts of money turned back to the county as excess commissions and the amount of interest collected by the said treasurers of Ouachita County, Arkansas, and which has accrued on the said funds.
‘ ‘Second: That the excess commissions turned back to Ouachita County, Arkansas, for each of the years named in the complaint, were by the several treasurers placed to- the credit of the county general fund, together with the interest which accrued thereon as alleged in the complaint.
“Third: That during all of the times named in the complaint, and at the present time, there has been and now is in the county general fund money in excess of the amounts now claimed by the plaintiff to have been and to be now wrongfully diverted to said fund.
“Fourth: That the records of the county court of Ouachita County, Arkansas, show that the treasurers of Ouachita County, Arkansas, immediately after the close of each of the years during which the excess commissions were collected filed their settlements with the county court showing the total commissions collected, the amount of their expenses and the excess commissions turned hack to the county, and said settlements were approved by the county court at the beginning of each succeeding year following the year in which the excess commissions were collected.
“Fifth: That, since the passage of the general county depository law, act No. 163, for the year 1927, which went into effect March 18, 1927, all of the interest derived from county funds paid by the depository has been credited to the several funds from which said interest was derived, and that the amount of interest which accrued to the several funds of Ouachita County are correctly shown in the. itemized statement attached to the complaint. The sum of $2,867.12 interest as shown in said itemized statement, includes interest on the school funds claimed to have been wrongfully diverted to said county general fund as well as interest on other money in the county general fund not claimed to have been wrongfully diverted.
“Sixth: That the sum of $4,000 interest on severance tax fund shown in said statement, together with all of said severance tax fund, was transferred by the present county judge after he went into office in January, 1929, to the county highway fund. That said severance tax fund represents the proportion of the severance tax received by Ouachita 'County, Arkansas, from the State of Arkansas, for use on county roads. It was the practice of the county treasurers during the years complained of, upon receipt of remittance of severance tax from the State of Arkansas, to divide the funds equally for' school purposes and for road purposes. The proportion of the fund going for school purposes was at once apportioned among the several school districts and credited to each school district fund. The portion going for road purposes was placed in the severance tax fund which was on deposit with the county depository. After the present county judge, Watt Jordan, went into office, the severance tax fund was transferred to the county highway fund, and there has been in the county highway fund since that time, up to and including the date of the temporary injunction made in this suit, in excess of $5,000; since the present county judge has been in office, the severance tax fund has been discontinued.

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Bluebook (online)
34 S.W.2d 1063, 182 Ark. 1110, 1931 Ark. LEXIS 129, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/board-of-education-of-ouachita-county-v-morgan-ark-1931.