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thence west to the said headwaters; thence down the middle of the channel of said river to the high bluff below Goddard's ranch; thence northerly to the point where the road between Rhodes' valley and Salt Lake City crosses the summit of the range south and east of the headwaters of East Canyon and Silver creeks; thence north to said point of crossing; thence southwesterly along said last mentioned summit to the summit of the Wasatch range at a point north of a point on the Provo river one-fourth of a mile up stream from the middle of the mouth of the north fork of said river; thence south to the summit of the range east of the headwaters of Hobble and Spanish Fork creeks; thence southeasterly along said last mentioned summit to the point where the White river and Spanish Fork road crossed said summit in February, eighteen hundred and eighty; thence south to the line between townships ten and eleven south; thence east to the line between ranges nine and ten east; thence south to the line between townships eleven and twelve south; thence east to the one hundred and tenth meridian of west longitude; thence north to the point of beginning. [C. L. § 62*.

484. Washington county: Beginning at the northeast corner of section twenty-four, in township thirty-eight south, range ten west, thence west to the northeast corner of section twenty-four, township thirty-eight south, range thirteen west; thence north to the southeast corner of township thirty-seven south. range thirteen west; thence west to the line between ranges fourteen and fifteen west; thence north to line between townships thirty-seven and thirty-six south; thence west to the northwest corner of township fifteen west; thence south to the northeast corner of township thirty-seven south, range sixteen west; thence west to the state boundary; thence south to the southwest corner of the state; thence east to the line between ranges nine and ten west; thence north to the point of beginning. [C. L. § 52*; '92, p. 47*.

485. Wayne county: Beginning at the middle of the channel of Green river at latitude thirty-eight degrees and thirty minutes north, thence west to the line between ranges five and six east; thence north to a point east of the point where the wagon road crosses the summit between Marysvale and Monroe; thence west to the summit of the range between Rabbit and Grass valleys; thence southwesterly along said summit to the Salt Lake meridian; thence south to the line between townships thirty and thirty-one south; thence east to the middle of the channel of Colorado river; thence northerly up the channel of Colorado and Green rivers to the point of beginning. ['92, p. 79*.

486. Weber county: Beginning at the intersection of the summit of the Wasatch range north and east of Ogden valley and the summit of the range separating Bear Lake valley from Cache valley, thence westerly to the Hot Springs near the county road north of Ogden, along the summits of the Wasatch range and the spur range terminating at said Hot Springs; thence west to the line between ranges three and four west; thence southwesterly in a straight line to the middle point of a line drawn from a point on the east shore of Great Salt Lake west of the middle of the channel of the Weber river north of the northwest corner of Kingston's fort to a point on the west shore of said lake at latitude forty-one degrees north; thence northeasterly along said last described line to the east shore of Great Salt Lake; thence east to the middle of the channel of Weber river; thence up the middle of said channel to a point where crossed by the summit line of the Wasatch range; thence northeasterly along the summit of said range, around the headwaters of Ogden river, to the point of beginning. [C. L. § 66*.

487. Whenever any dispute or uncertainty shall arise as to any county boundary, the same may be determined by the county surveyors of the counties interested, and in case they fail to agree, or otherwise fail to establish the boundary, the board of county commissioners of either or the boards of both counties interested, may engage the services of the surveyor of any other county who, with the aforesaid county surveyors, or either of them, if but one appear for

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that purpose, shall proceed forthwith to permanently determine such boundary line by making the necessary surveys and erecting suitable monuments to designate said boundaries, which shall be deemed permanent until superseded by legislative enactment. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to give the surveyors, mentioned herein, any further authority than to erect suitable monuments to designate said boundaries as they are now established by law. [C. L. § 86*.

CHAPTER 2.

CORPORATE POWERS.

488. Are bodies corporate. Powers. The several counties of the state as they now exist, and such other counties as may be hereafter organized according to law, are bodies corporate and politic, and as such have the powers specified in this title, and such other powers as are necessarily implied. [C. L. § 169; '96, p. 516.

Existing counties recognized, Con. art. 11, sec. 1.

489. Who exercises powers. The powers of a county can be exercised only by the board of county commissioners, or by agents and officers acting under authority of the board or authority of law. [C. L. § 170; '96, p. 516*.

490. Corporate name. The name of a county designated in the law creating it is its corporate name, and it must be designated thereby in all actions and proceedings touching its corporate rights, property, and duties. [C. L. § 171; '96, p. 516.

491. Powers enumerated. It has power:

1. To sue and be sued.

To purchase and hold land within its limits necessary and proper for county purposes and tax sales.

To make such contracts and to purchase and hold such personal property as may be necessary to the exercise of its powers.

4. To manage and dispose of its property as the interests of its inhabitants may require.

To levy and collect such taxes, for purposes under its exclusive jurisdiction, as are authorized by law. [C. L. § 172; '96, p. 516.

No suit can be maintained against a county as such in the absence of a statute authorizing Counties to be sued. Taylor v. County Court of

Salt Lake Co., 2 U. 405. The right to sue is a power incident to the creation of a county by the legislature. Salt Lake Co. v. Golding, 2 U. 319.

492. Lending credit. Incurring indebtedness. No county shall, in any manner, give or lend its credit to or in aid of any person or corporation, or appropriate money in aid of any private enterprise. No county shall incur any indebtedness or liability, in any manner or for any purpose, exceeding in any one year the taxes for the current year, without the assent of a majority of such qualified electors thereof as shall have paid a property tax therein in the year preceding such election, voting at an election to be held for that purpose, nor unless, before or at the time of incurring such indebtedness, provision shall be made for the collection of an annual tax sufficient to pay the interest on such indebtedness as it falls due and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof within twenty years from the time of contracting the An indebtedness or liability incurred contrary to this provision shall be void. [C. L. § 173*; '96, p. 517.

same.

County shall not lend its credit, Con. art. 6, sec. 31. Limitation on creating indebtedness, Con. art. 14. secs. 3. 4. Election to vote on creating bonded indebtedness, 518.

Since the taxes for the current year are, in con

templation of law, collected as soon as the levy is made, the allowance of claims against the county equal to the tax revenue for the current year, is not a creation of indebtedness against the county. Fenton v. Blair, 11 U. 78; 39 P. 485. Where the

limit of indebtedness allowed by law has been reached, such county may issue warrants for future claims as they arise, as soon as an equal amount of legally issued outstanding warrants have been redeemed. Id. Sections 173, 187, and 195, C. L. 1888; held, first, to confer on the county court the power to create indebtedness against the county; second, that the amount of the indebtedness which it may create cannot at any time exceed the revenues of the current fiscal year in excess of the revenue and income for the two years immediately preceding; third, that it is immaterial when the indebtedness accrues. Id. The indebtedness of Salt Lake county

for the year 1895 exceeded its debt limit, but was validated by the act of 1896 (pp. 179, 524); held, that the indebtedness, though illegal at the time it was incurred, became by such authority of the legislature an indebtedness of the year 1895, and that the county board was therefore authorized by section 14, page 524 of the laws of 1896, and by the laws of 1897, to issue bonds for its payment; held, also, that bonds may be issued to cover an indebtedness of the year 1895, paid out of the revenues of 1896. Darke v. County Commissioners, — U. —; 49 P. 257. For other decisions on limitation on county indebtedness, see Con. art. 14, sec. 2.

493. Unlawful contracts void. All contracts, authorizations, allowances, payments, and liabilities to pay, made or attempted to be made in violation of this title shall be absolutely void and shall never be the foundation or basis of a claim against the treasury of such county. And all officers of said county are charged with notice of the condition of the treasury of said county and the extent of the claims against the same. [C. L. § 174*; '96, p. 517.

CHAPTER 3.

COUNTY COMMISSIONERS.

494. Number. Each county must have a board of county commissioners consisting of three members. [C. L. § 178*; '96, p. 518.

495. Qualifications. Each member of the board of county commissioners shall be an elector of the county which he represents and must have been such for at least one year immediately preceding his election, and he shall be elected by the qualified electors of the county at large. [C. L. § 179*; '96, p. 518*. Election, tie vote, etc., 22 781, 788.

496. When elected. Term. County commissioners shall be elected at the general election held in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, and every two years thereafter, and shall hold office for two years and until their successors are elected and have qualified. They shall take office on the first Monday of January next following their election. ['96, pp. 518-9*.

497. Vacancies. Whenever a vacancy occurs in the board of county commissioners, the board must fill the vacancy by appointment. Should the board fail to make the appointment within thirty days after the vacancy occurs, the clerk shall notify the governor of the fact, and the governor shall, within thirty days after the receipt of notice, fill the vacancy by appointment. If at any time there shall not be a majority of the board remaining in office, the governor shall appoint one or two commissioners, as the case may be, until there shall be a majority, and the majority shall select the third as herein before provided. The appointee or appointees shall hold office for the unexpired term. Vacancies shall

in all cases be filled from the same political party or parties to which the person or persons belonged whose ineligibility, death, refusal to act, or other disability, has occasioned the vacancy. [C. L. § 180*; '96, p. 519*.

498. Chairman. Quorum. The county commissioners shall elect one of their number chairman. The chairman shall preside at all meetings of the board, and in case of his absence or inability to act, the members present must, by an order entered on the records, select one of their number to act as chairman temporarily. Any member of the board may administer oaths to any person when necessary in the performance of his official duties. Not less than two members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, and no act of the board shall be valid or binding unless two members concur therein. § 181*; '96. p. 519.

[C. L.

499. Regular meetings. The board of county commissioners must provide by ordinance for the holding of regular meetings of the board at the county seat. [C. L. § 184*; '96, p. 520.

500. Special meetings. If at any time the business of the county requires a special meeting of the board, such meeting may be ordered by a majority of the board or by the chairman thereof. The order must be signed by the members or chairman calling such meeting, and must be entered in the minutes of the board. Five days' notice of such meeting must be given by the clerk to the members not joining in the order. The order must specify the business to be transacted at such meeting, and none other than that specified shall be transacted at such special meeting unless all the members be present and consent thereto. [C. L. § 185*; '96, p. 521.

501. Id. Must be public. Records. All meetings of the board must be public, and the books, records, and accounts, except such as are kept by the county auditor when he is not also clerk, must be kept at the office of the clerk, open at all times during usual business hours for public inspection. [C. L. $186*: '96, p. 521*.

502. Rules for government of board. The board of county commissioners shall have power to make and enforce such rules and regulations for the government of the board, the preservation of order, and the transaction of business, as may be necessary. [C. L. § 187, sub. 21; '96, p. 529.

503. Members not to be interested in contracts, etc. No member of the board must be interested, directly or indirectly, in any property purchased for the use of the county, nor in any purchase or sale of the property belonging to the county, nor in any contract made by the board or other person on behalf of the county, for the erection of public buildings, the opening or the improvement of roads, or the building of bridges, or for any other purpose. [C. L. § 201; 96. p. 535.

504. Id. In licenses and franchises. Procedure. Whenever an application is made to the board for an order, franchise, or license relating to any subject over which the board has jurisdiction, in which a majority of the board are interested, the clerk of the board must thereupon certify the application and all orders and papers relating thereto, to the district court of the county, and the judge, or any judge thereof, shall have full jurisdiction to hear and determine the application.

Supplement to Deering's An. Cal. Codes (1893), p. 602.

505. Liability for claims illegally allowed. Any county commissioner or other officer authorizing, or aiding to authorize, or auditing, or allowing any claim or demand upon or against said treasury or any fund thereof, in violation of any of the provisions of this title, shall be liable in person and upon his official bond to the person or persons damaged by such illegal authorization, to the extent of the loss by reason of the non-payment of his or their claims. [C. L. § 175; '96, p. 517.

506. Recovery of illegal payments. Whenever any board of county commissioners shall, without authority of law, order any money paid as a salary, fee, or for any other purpose, and such money shall have been actually paid, or whenever any other county officer has drawn any warrant or warrants in his own favor or in favor of any other person, without being authorized thereto by the board of county commissioners, or by law, and the same shall have been paid, the county attorney of such county is hereby empowered, and it is hereby made his duty, to institute suit in the name of the county against such person or persons and their official bondsmen to recover the money so paid, and no order of the board of county commissioners shall be necessary to maintain such action; and when the money has not been paid on such order or warrants, it is hereby made the duty of the county attorney of such county upon receiving notice

thereof, to commence suit in the name of the county to restrain the payment of the same, and no order of the board of county commissioners shall be necessary in order to maintain such action. ['96, pp. 517-8*.

507. Violations of law or neglect of duty. Any county commissioner who refuses or neglects to perform any duty imposed upon him, without just cause therefor, or wilfully violates any law provided for his government as such officer, or who, as commissioner, wilfully, fraudulently, or corruptly attempts to perform an act unauthorized by law shall, in addition to the penalty provided in the penal code, forfeit to the county five hundred dollars for every such act, to be recovered on his official bond, and shall be further liable on his official bond to any person injured thereby for all damages sustained. ['96, p. 536*.

508. Clerk of board. The county clerk is the clerk of the board of county commissioners. The records and minutes of the board must be signed by the chairman and the clerk. [C. L. § 91*; '96, p. 519.

509. Duties of clerk. The clerk of the board must:

1.

2.

Record all its proceedings.

Make full entries of all its resolutions and decisions on all questions concerning the raising of money for, and the allowance of accounts against, the county.

3. Record the vote of each member on any question upon which there is a division.

4. Immediately after the adjournment of each meeting of the board, prepare and certify duplicate lists of all claims passed upon by the board, giving the name of the claimant or payee named in the claim or order, the amount and date of each claim or order, and the date of the allowance or rejection thereof, which said lists shall be countersigned by the chairman of the board; and thereafter said clerk shall deliver to and leave with the auditor one of said lists, and shall deliver to and leave with the county treasurer the other list.

5.

File and preserve the reports of county officers to the board.

6. Preserve and file all accounts acted upon by the board, except such as are necessarily kept by the auditor.

7. Preserve and file all petitions and applications for franchises, and record the action of the board thereon.

8. Authenticate with his signature and the seal of the county clerk the proceedings of the board whenever the same shall be ordered published.

9. Authenticate with his signature and the seal of the county clerk all the ordinances or laws passed by the board, and record the same at length in the ordinance book."

10. Record all orders levying taxes.

11.

Perform all other duties required by law or by any rule or order of the board. [C. L. §§ 94*, 182*; '96, pp. 519-20.

510. Books to be kept. The board must cause to be kept :

1. A "minute book," in which must be recorded all orders and decisions made by the board, and the daily proceedings had at all regular and special meetings.

2. An "allowance book," in which must be recorded all orders for the allowance of money from the county treasury, to whom made, and on what account, dating, numbering, and indexing the same through each year.

3. A “road book," containing all proceedings and adjudications relating to the establishment, maintenance, change, and discontinuance of roads and road districts.

4. A "franchise book," containing all franchises granted by the board, for what purpose, the length of time, and to whom granted, the amount of bond and license tax required or other consideration to be paid.

5. A "warrant book," to be kept by the county auditor, in which must be entered, in the order of drawing, all warrants drawn on the treasury, with their

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