Request By:
Mr. Wayne C. Blevins
Johnson County Judge/Executive
Courthouse
Paintsville, Kentucky 41240
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
Your letter presents various questions relating to county government.
Question No. 1:
"Is it legal for an expense account to be given to a county employee each month?"
The answer is "no". No public officer or employee can be paid a lump sum expense account, except where such allowance is expressly provided by statute. KRS 64.710.
Question No. 2:
"Can an employee of the county serve on the budget committee; and can the commissioners handle the making of the budget? "
Under KRS 68.230, as currently drawn, the budget commission consists of the county judge/executive, the county attorney and one (1) member appointed by fiscal court. The appointive member can hold no other public office at the time of appointment. An employee (not an officer) of the county could technically qualify, but it would involve a common law incompatibility, since the budget would directly affect the employee. Such an appointment should not be made. See Hermann v. Lampe, 175 Ky. 109, 194 S.W. 122 (1917). In the language of Hermann v. Lampe, the county employee could not carry out both jobs with impartiality and honesty.
Under the present statutes, the proposed county budget adopted by the county budget commission must be submitted to fiscal court for final adoption. Under KRS 68.260(3), if the fiscal court rejects any part of the proposed budget, it shall make changes in the nature and amounts of funds by a majority vote. But it has no power to make any change in the form or classification of the budget units or subdivision of units.
Under H.B. 135 (1980 session) [eff. July 15, 1980], Section 1, KRS 68.240 is amended and 68.230 is repealed to eliminate the budget commission. The county judge/executive proposes a budget, and the fiscal court may amend the budget before it is sent to the State Local Finance officer, pursuant to KRS 68.250, who approves all budgets as to form and classification. The proposed budget, tentatively approved by fiscal court and approved by the State Local Finance officer, must be submitted to fiscal court for final adoption by July 1 of each year or within ten (10) days after receipt of the certified assessment from the Department of Revenue (KRS 133.180), whichever is later.
Question No. 3:
"Is there any such office as 'Administrative Assistant to the Fiscal Court'?"
The fiscal court has the authority to establish necessary county offices and positions, in proper implementation of express statutory county functions. See KRS 67.080(1)(f) and 67.083. Since the function of the fiscal court is primarily legislative in nature, and considering that the county judge/executive is the chief executive officer of the county, the office you speak of should in reality be "administrative assistant to the county judge/executive", if his function is primarily administrative and executive in nature. KRS 67.083(3) provides that the fiscal court shall not exercise executive authority except as specifically assigned by statute. However, if the administrative assistant is to assist the fiscal court in its legislative function, we see nothing wrong with that.
Question No. 4:
"Should separate offices, with private phones and secretaries, be provided for the commissioners?"
The fiscal court may properly provide the commissioners with separate offices, with phone and secretaries, within its sound discretion, depending upon the actual need for such facilities and secretarial help and available money. See KRS 67.080. And in exercising its discretion, the fiscal court must consider itself not as an executive body, but as a legislative unit. The point is there is no authority to provide the commissioners of fiscal court with offices and secretarial help for the purpose of exercising an executive role. The executive role was given to the county judge/executive by the General Assembly.
Question No. 5:
"Can the commissioners turn down a raise that was given to the judge at the beginning of the year?"
Where the fiscal court has authorized a raise in salary for the county judge/executive, it cannot later in the term reduce his salary. That would be a prohibited change in his compensation. See Sections 161 and 235 of the Kentucky Constitution; and Adams v. Slavin, 225 Ky. 135, 7 S.W.2d 836 (1928).
Question No. 6:
"Can any elected official come to the office of the county treasurer and take files out of his (her) office; this includes canceled checks, too?"
The answer is "no". The county treasurer is responsible for his own files, although they are public records. There is no authority for such files being taken out of the office, except under orders of a court (judicial).
Question No. 7:
"Can the commissioners do the screening and hiring of the CETA workers without the judge's knowledge?"
The answer is "no". That would be in violation of KRS 67.710(7), such action constituting a usurpation of the county judge/executive's function in nominating people for hiring. When the county judge/executive nominates some person for hiring, then it is up to the fiscal court as a body (including the county judge/executive) to finally vote on the nomination. But the commissioners have no authority to exclude the county judge/executive from such deliberations or screening process.