CHAPTER XVII. OF AUDITING ACCOUNTS BY BOARDS OF TOWN AUDITORS. § 605. General principles governing auditing offices. § 606. Jurisdiction derived from the statute. § 607. When they exceed their jurisdiction. § 608. While acting within their jurisdiction. § 609. Power to reject accounts. § 610. Majority of Board may act. § 611. Boards of Audit act judicially. § 612. Want of funds. § 613. When auditing officers have no discretion. § 614. It is their duty to act. § 615. Cannot be compelled to re-audit discretionary claim. § 616. When vested with discretion. § 617. When amount may be fixed by courts. § 618. When not concluded by former action. § 619. When concluded by judgment. § 620. When concluded by former action of Board. § 621. When not concluded. §622. Claims which cannot be audited. § 623. Claims must be itemized. § 624. May reject claim or require proofs. § 625. Accounts, how to be presented. § 626. Accounts may be amended. § 627. Duty in auditing accounts. § 628. Accounts for services, how presented—form. 629. Where compensation is not fixed. 630. Vouchers to be produced. 5631. Time of presenting accounts. § 632. Form of accounts with verification. 633. Boards of Audit. 634. Boards of Town Auditors, of whom composed. 635. Boards of Town Auditors under Laws 1875, chap. 188. § 636. Boards of Town Auditors under Laws, 1886, chap. 585. § 637. Local Boards. ACCOUNTS OF TOWN OFFICERS. § 638. Auditors of Supervisor's accounts. $639. Supervisor to account. § 640. Certificate of the state of his accounts. § 641. Overseers of Poor and Commissioners of Highways. § 642. Town officers to account. § 643. Auditors to state accounts. § 644. Accounts of Overseer of Poor. 645. Accounts, how audited and settled. § 646. Penalty for neglect of Overseer. § 647. Relief of the poor under Livingston County Act, with forms. $648. Highway Commissioner's account, with forms. $649. Auditors to state accounts of town officers, with forms. OF JUSTICE'S AND CONSTABLE'S ACCOUNTS IN CRIMINAL CASES. $650. Justice's and Constable's accounts. 651. Appeal from audit of Constable's accounts. § 652. Such appeals where to be taken. § 653. Action pending appeal. $654. When to be levied and collected. $655. Justice's accounts, what to contain. $656. By whom Justice's accounts to be audited. 657. Justice's fees in criminal cases. $658. Justice's fees while holding special sessions. §659. In assault and battery cases. § 660. Form of Justice's accounts. § 661. Amending Justice's accounts. 662. Constable's fees in criminal cases. § 663. Constable's fees in St. Lawrence County. § 664. Constable's mileage subpoenaing witnesses. § 665. In serving subpoenas out of the county. § 666. Additional compensation may be allowed Constables. 667. Code of Civil Procedure not applicable. BOARD OF TOWN AUDITORS FOR ACCOUNTS AGAINST TOWNS. § 668. Who constitute the Board. 669. Board to meet and audit claims. $670. Notice of their meeting not required. § 671. Town charges. § 672. Expenses incurred in repairing roads and bridges. §673. Claims for sheep killed by dogs. 674. Board to make certificates of audit, with form. $675. Amount audited to be raised by Supervisors. § 676. Auditors to make abstract of accounts, with form. 677. Costs in suits. CANCELLATION OF TOWN BONDS. $ 678. Railroad Commissioners to present bonds to Auditors. § 679. Cancellation of bonds and coupons. § 680. Cancelled bonds, how disposed of. 681. R. R. commissioners to pay bonds and report. 682. R. R. commissioners to give bonds. § 683. Tax to buy bonds or provide sinking fund. § 684. Amount, how determined. § 685. Money raised how disposed of. § 686. Action of Auditors concerning town bonds. §687. As to gospel and school lots. § 688. May expend excess of excise money. §689. Powers of town officers. RELIEF OF INDIGENT SOLDIERS, ETC. §690. Town Auditors to provide funds. § 691. When there is no G. A. R. post in town. §692. When post assumes charge of relief. 693. Bond of relief committee. 694. Indigent soldiers not to be sent to poor-house. $695. This act practically nugatory. § 696. Boards of Town Auditors under Laws 1875. $697. Boards of Town Auditors under Laws 1886. § 605. General principles governing auditing officers. There are certain general rules of law applicable to all auditing officers, a thorough understanding of which will enable such officers to more fully understand their jurisdiction and duties and to more readily perform such duties. As auditing officers are, generally, men unfamiliar with the rules established by the courts, I purpose to briefly call attention to the cases in which such rules have been established as I proceed to state such rules § 606. The jurisdiction of auditing officers is derived from statute. Auditing officers are officers of local and inferior jurisdiction. Their jurisdiction or powers to act are prescribed and limited by the statutes: unless they can find warrant in some statute to do an act, they have no authority to do the act. Their authority is not necessarily restricted to the strict letter of the law, because they may perform such duties as come within the plain and necessary implication of the law. While they proceed within their jurisdiction as defined in the law, their action is valid, but when they over-step such jurisdiction their action is void. People v. Lawrence, 6 Hill, 244; Supervisors of Richmond Co. v. Ellis, 59 N. Y. 620; People v. Supervisors of Cortland Co., 58 Barb. 139; Matter of Tinsley, 90 N. Y. 231. § 607. When they exceed their jurisdiction Their action is invalid and creates no obligation upon the town or county, as the case may be. And where the Board of Supervisors audit and allow claims that are not valid charges against the county, the County Treasurer may refuse to pay them and he cannot be compelled to pay them by mandamus. People v. Lawrence, 6 Hill, 244 ; Supervisors of Richmond Co. v. Ellis, 59 N. Y. 620; Haswell v. Mayor, etc., of New York, 81 N. Y. 259. Where a claim not legally chargeable against the county has been audited and paid, an action will lie in behalf of the county to recover back the money paid thereon. Supervisors of Richmond Co. v. Ellis, 59 N. Y. 620. Where one of several items of an account is not a legal charge and it is audited with the other items a mandamus will lie to compel the Board to expunge the illegal item. People v. Supervisors of Westchester, 73 N. Y. 173. But where in the audit the illegal items are so intermixed that it is impossible to tell whether the deduction on the whole claim had reference to the illegal items or not, it is proper to set aside the whole audit. v. Rigney, 98 N. Y. 223. § 608. While acting within their jurisdiction Osterhoudt In the auditing of claims legally chargeable against the county the action of the Board in determining the amount of such claim is conclusive upon the county. Supervisors of Onondaga v. Briggs, 2 Denio, 26; People v. Stout, 23 Barb. 338; S. C. 4 Abb. Pr. 25; People v. Stout, 23 Barb. 349; S. C. 13 How. Pr. 314; 4 Abb. Pr. 22. And an excessive allowance, or an erroneous conclusion by the Board upon the facts, does not subject their action to review at the suit of a tax-payer, under Laws 1872, chap. 161. Osterhoudt v. Rigney, 98 N. Y. 222. § 609. Power to reject accounts. The power conferred upon Supervisors to examine, settle and allow all accounts chargeable against a county, involves the right to reject if sufficient reasons, in the opinion of the Supervisors, are not presented for the allowance. People v. Supervisors of Dutchess, 9 Wend. 508. But they have no right to reject a valid, legal claim; and if they do, mandamus will lie to compel them to audit it. People v. Supervisors of New York, 32 N. Y. 473; People v. Supervisors of Otsego Co., 51 N. Y. 408. 610. A majority may act. Where all the officers constituting the Board of Town Auditors have met, a majority of them may decide, and their certificate will be valid although the Supervisor refuses to sign it. People v. Supervisors of Queens Co., 1 Hill, 195. § 611. Boards of Audit act judicially. In the settlement of disputed claims, or in the audit and allowance of county charges, Boards of Audit are regarded as acting judicially where the whole matter is within their jurisdiction. People v. Supervisors of Montgomery Co., 67 N. Y. 114; Chase v. County of Saratoga, 33 Barb. 603; Supervisors of Onondaga v. Briggs, 2 Denio, 26; People v. Supervisors of Livingston Co., 26 Barb. 118; Supervisors of Chenango v. Birdsall, 4 Wend. 453; People v. Stocking, 50 Barb. 573; People v Stout, 23 id. 349; People v. Supervisors of Livingston Co. 12 How. Pr. 204. In People v. Supervisors of Broome Co., 65 N. Y. 225, the Commission of Appeals held that they act in a quasi judicial capacity. See also Osterhoudt v. Rigney, 98 N. Y. 222. 612. The want of funds Is no reason why a Board of Supervisors should not audit a claim chargeable against the county. People v. Supervisors of New York Co., 22 How. Pr. 71, affirming S. C. 21 How. Pr. 322. § 613. When Boards of Audit have no discretion. Where the salary of an officer is fixed by law, the fact that the Supervisors are required to "audit and allow" the accounts of such officers for salaries, does not confer any discretion upon the Board. They must allow the salary as fixed by law. Morris v. People, 3 Denio, 381; People v. Stout, 23 Barb. 338; People v. Supervisors of Cortland Co., 58 Barb. 139; S. C. 40 How. Pr. 53; People v. Supervisors of Dutchess, 9 Wend. 508. |