Show STATE EXAMINERS DECIDES attorney general bishop has baa trans milled the following opinion to be ats a auditor on the payment of atle salary of the assessors and ana collector I 1 hon HOD morgan richards jr salt lake city dear sir I 1 have before me your favor of the ath dinst asking king to lobe be advised 1 upon the following where the offices of assessor and collector are combined upon one person and county warrants have been issued in payment of such services as one salary to Is the state liable for one half of the amount section 9 page of the laws of utah of 1896 provides one half of the salary of assessor county attorney and treasurer shall be borne by the state and paid as an provided by law under this law there can be no question of the of the state to p pay one halt half of the salary of the assessor aln in section of the county government bill page laws or of 1896 is pointed one on the method by which such payment shall be made from this it will be observed that the county treasurer and county auditor of each county shall prepare in duplicate and verify under oath a full and complete itemized statement jentof of all warrants drawn for salaries of the county attorney county treasurer and county assessor one of these statements shall be transmitted to the state auditor and if lound found correct he shall draw his warrant in favor of the county I 1 treasurer upon the state treasurer for lone one half of the whole amount of said warrants including any warrants which which may have been drawn by the county in favor avor of the county assessor the question to be determined however is in cases where tome other office is combined with that of assessor whether the state is liable fox foi one half balf of the salary paid for the combined office section 11 ot of the salary bill page of the laws ot of 1896 provides what salary shall be paid to per iiona discharging the duties of more than one office whenever the board of count conaty commissioners at the re regular gular september session sea sion prior to any general election shall so order and enter said order on their jod Peal any two or more county offices which do not conflict so far as their duties are concerned may be combined and one person elected to fill the office thus combined in which case the salary of the person discharging the duties of both or of the said offices shall be fixed at not exceeding the highest salary paid to either or any of said officers whose offices are so eo combined in addition to an amount not exceeding one half of the salary fixed for the its other officer when only two offices are combined or when more than two such office are combined in addition to such highest salary one third of the combined salaries of such other officers 1 it may be assumed that the county commissioners ners have taken these provisions into consideration in determining the compensation to be paid to the person eperson discharging the duties dutie of the combined offices ot of assessor and collector leaving the only question to 10 be settled as to what portion ot of the said paid salary so fixed shall ge be paid by the state the latter part pan ot section 11 supra provides it the office ot of as asne Ressor saor treasurer or prosecuting attorney shall be combined with another office the state shall pay an equitable proportion of the whole salary calary to be fixed by the state board of examiners which shall in no case be less then than one third of the amount ol of the salary fixed for such office of assessor treasurer or prosecuting attorney prior to the same lin being 9 combined with another office under the law it is in clearly apparent that the legislature did not noi intend that the state should be liable lor for one half of the sal ary paid to either of these officers assessor geisor treasurer or prosecuting attorney when the same officer was discharging the duties of another office combined therewith and in cakes cabes of this kind without attempting to define just what portion the sate should be liable for the whole matter has been vested in the state slate board of examiners under certain limitations as to the minimum amount of the states liability I 1 am therefore of opinion that the question as to fo how bow much or what pro proportion portion should be borne by the state in t this in and similar questions should be referred to the state board of examiners for its consideration and action thereon I 1 haver the honor to be very respectfully yours A C BISHOP attorney general |