COUNTY TREASURERS, STATE SUPERVISION OF COUNTY ACCOUNTS AND COUNTY FINANCES

M.G.L. pt. Part I, tit. Title VI, ch. c. 35

in effect

M.G.L. c. 35, § 1 Qualifications; election; tenure

c. 35, § 1. Qualifications; election; tenure Section 1. In Suffolk county the treasurer of Boston, and in Nantucket county the treasurer of the town of Nantucket, shall be the county treasurer. In all other counties, a treasurer, who shall be a resident of the county, shall be elected as provided in section one hundred and sixty of chapter fifty-four, for the term of six years beginning with the first Wednesday of January following his election and until his successor is qualified. No incumbent of the office of attorney general, district attorney, justice of the superior court, clerk of the courts or sheriff shall be county treasurer.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 2 Assistant treasurer; bond; duties

c. 35, § 2. Assistant treasurer; bond; duties Section 2. In any county, except Suffolk and Nantucket, the county treasurer may appoint an assistant in his office, who has served therein for at least one year, as assistant treasurer, removable at his pleasure. The assistant treasurer shall give bond, and the provisions of the second sentence of section three shall apply to such bond. If the treasurer is unable to act, the assistant treasurer shall perform his duties. If both the treasurer and the assistant treasurer are unable to act, the county commissioners may appoint a temporary treasurer, who shall hold office until the treasurer or assistant treasurer is able to resume his duties. The temporary treasurer shall give bond, and the provisions of the second sentence of section three shall apply to such bond.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 3 Oaths; bonds

c. 35, § 3. Oaths; bonds Section 3. County treasurers, except in Suffolk and Nantucket counties, shall be sworn before the county commissioners, who shall make a record thereof. Each treasurer shall give an annual bond to the county for the faithful performance of his official duties, in a form approved by the attorney general, with a surety company authorized to transact business in the commonwealth, as surety, and in such sum as the commissioners shall approve. An attested copy thereof and a certificate of the commissioners that the original is in their possession shall be filed with the state secretary within one week after its approval. Suit thereon may be brought in the name and for the benefit of the county by the commissioners or by the attorney general. The bond required herein shall cover the duties of the treasurer with respect to trust funds and funds of retirement systems which are in his custody by virtue of his office, and any such funds, for the purposes of said bond, shall be deemed to be public funds.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 4 Salaries; source of payment

c. 35, § 4. Salaries; source of payment Section 4. The salaries of county treasurers shall be payable by their respective counties.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 7 Commissioners acting by appointment; compensation; travel expenses

c. 35, § 7. Commissioners acting by appointment; compensation; travel expenses Section 7. The treasurer shall be provided by the county with an office and shall be allowed such clerical assistance as shall be approved by the county commissioners with compensation payable by the county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 8 Traveling expenses

c. 35, § 8. Traveling expenses Section 8. The county treasurer shall be paid his actual and proper traveling expenses incurred in the transaction of county business. An itemized statement thereof shall, on the first day of each month, be certified to the commissioners, by whom it shall be audited and approved.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 9 Wilful violation of duty; penalties

c. 35, § 9. Wilful violation of duty; penalties Section 9. For wilful violation of a duty imposed by law, a county treasurer shall forfeit not less than fifty nor more than one thousand dollars, recoverable at the suit of the attorney general to the use of the county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 10 Collection and disbursement of county funds; investment of funds

c. 35, § 10. Collection and disbursement of county funds; investment of funds Section 10. The treasurer shall collect, receive and safely keep all money belonging to the county, and disburse it according to law. He shall not make payments to the county commissioners or associate commissioners to be disbursed by them in behalf of the county. He shall pay all claims against his county within thirty days after their allowance. He may pay any claim by a bank check which, when paid and returned, shall be a sufficient receipt therefor. All monies held in the name of a county or a county retirement system, or any other account under the jurisdiction of a county government, or by a county officer, which are not required to be kept liquid for purposes of distribution for the thirty-day period next following, shall be invested in such a manner as to require the payment of interest on the money at the highest possible rate reasonably available. It shall be the fiduciary duty of all officers of a county government who control the investment of such funds to invest them prudently so as to accrue the highest amount of interest reasonably available on such funds. No officer of a county shall accept a loan or other thing of value from any institution or business where he has, as a part of his official duties, invested or committed county funds.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 10A Disbursement of matching funds for federally funded programs

c. 35, § 10A. Disbursement of matching funds for federally funded programs Section 10A. The county treasurer may disburse sums appropriated as matching funds for federally funded programs approved by the county commissioners.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 11 Payment of expenses, etc.; restrictions

c. 35, § 11. Payment of expenses, etc.; restrictions Section 11. No payments, except payments of expenses in criminal prosecutions or for assignment of counsel by a court, in either case as authorized by law, or of the compensation or salaries of elected county officers other than a clerk of courts, a district attorney, a register of probate or other officer whose salary is provided for in section ninety-four of chapter two hundred and twenty-one, or of outstanding notes or bonds and of interest thereon, reasonable expenses incurred by the treasurer as a party in representing the county which have been certified by the director of accounts, and non-contributory pensions authorized under any general or special law, shall be made by a treasurer except upon orders drawn and signed by a majority of the county commissioners, certified by their clerk and accompanied, except in Suffolk county, by the original bills, vouchers or evidences of county indebtedness for which payment is ordered, stating in detail the items and confirming the account. Said clerk shall not certify such orders until he has recorded them in the records of the commissioners. A treasurer may petition the superior court for a declaratory decree or judgment to determine the legality of any order or orders, in accordance with the provisions of chapter two hundred and thirty-one A. No expenditure of funds appropriated or authorized for the design of a capital facility project shall be approved by a county treasurer unless the executive head or governing body of the agency administering the project—or other person provided for by statute—certifies in writing the design work is or shall be such as to specify a project that can be accomplished (a) within the appropriation or authorization for the project or within the project cost limits specified by the appropriation or authorization and (b) without substantial deviation from any (i) study or program which must be prepared in accordance with the provisions of section 7K of chapter twenty-nine or (ii) any other pre-design document which must be prepared in accordance with any other statute, appropriation or authorization or administrative directive consistent therewith. In no event shall the design work be such as would result in a change in the number of square feet to be constructed in the project of more than ten per cent from the number specified in the study, program or other pre-design document referred to in (b)(i) and (b)(ii). No expenditure of funds appropriated or authorized for the construction of a capital facility project shall be approved by a county treasurer unless the executive head or governing body of the agency administering the project—or other person provided for by statute—certifies in writing that the construction work can be accomplished (a) within the appropriation or authorization for the project and (b) without substantial deviation from (i) any study or program which must be prepared in accordance with the provisions of section 7K of chapter twenty-nine or (ii) any other pre-design document which must be prepared in accordance with any other statute, appropriation or authorization or administrative directive consistent therewith. In no event shall the construction work be such as would result in a change in the number of square feet to be constructed in the project of more than ten per cent from the number specified in the study, program or other pre-design document referred to in (b)(i) and (b)(ii).

M.G.L. c. 35, § 12 Expenses of court sittings; court costs for indigent parties; delivery of bills to treasurer

c. 35, § 12. Expenses of court sittings; court costs for indigent parties; delivery of bills to treasurer Section 12. Original bills or vouchers for services and expenses incident to the sittings of the supreme judicial or superior court under section eight of chapter two hundred and thirteen or for court costs for indigent parties in the supreme judicial, appeals, or superior courts, or in any probate, district, municipal, juvenile or housing court under section twenty-seven A to twenty-seven G, inclusive, of chapter two hundred and sixty-one, shall be delivered to the state treasurer.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 13 Filing of bills

c. 35, § 13. Filing of bills Section 13. Bills, vouchers and other evidences of county indebtedness shall be carefully filed and safely kept by the treasurer, so as to be accessible for future reference.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 14 Statement of law authorizing payment of accounts; liability for payments; exceptions

c. 35, § 14. Statement of law authorizing payment of accounts; liability for payments; exceptions Section 14. The treasurer may, before payment of an account rendered against the county by a county officer, in writing require of him a written statement of the specific provision of law authorizing it, which shall be filed with the vouchers. The treasurer shall be personally liable for money paid out by him, except when specifically required by law, unless there is an unexpended balance of an appropriation made therefor sufficient for such payment, except as provided in section thirty-four, and for any money paid by him without the voucher and certificate required by law.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 15 Accounts; form and contents

c. 35, § 15. Accounts; form and contents Section 15. The treasurer shall keep a full and accurate account stating when, from or to whom, and on what account money has been received or paid. Except in Suffolk county, his books shall be kept in the form prescribed by the director of accounts.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 16 Fiscal year

c. 35, § 16. Fiscal year Section 16. The fiscal year of each county shall be the year beginning with July first and ending with the following June thirtieth; but the treasurer shall, until July tenth, enter in his books the items for the payment of bills incurred and salaries earned during the previous fiscal year. Immediately after July first, he shall pay to every officer in his county any salary balance remaining due.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 18 Suffolk and Nantucket counties; applicability of laws

c. 35, § 18. Suffolk and Nantucket counties; applicability of laws Section 18. Sections ten, fourteen, twenty-five to twenty-nine, inclusive, and forty-four shall not apply to Suffolk county, nor shall sections fifteen, sixteen, twenty-five to thirty, inclusive, and thirty-two to thirty-four, inclusive, affect the special laws relative to Suffolk or Nantucket county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 19 County salaries; payment; payroll deductions; deposits to employee bank accounts authorized

c. 35, § 19. County salaries; payment; payroll deductions; deposits to employee bank accounts authorized Section 19. County salaries shall, except as otherwise provided, be payable in monthly installments on the first day of the month. No county treasurer shall pay any salary, wages or other compensation to any person in the service of a county unless the payroll, voucher or account is signed under the penalties of perjury by the officer in charge of the department, or the person immediately responsible for the appointment or employment of the persons named therein, or, in the absence or disability of such officer then by a person designated by him and approved by the county commissioners. Every such payroll shall contain at least the following information: the payroll period; the full name of each officer or employee; title of office or position held; rate of salary or wages or other compensation; and any portion of the payroll period for which salary, wages, or other compensation is being paid on account of sick leave, vacation or other leave. Each treasurer making deductions from the salary, wages or compensation of an employee shall notify in writing such employee of the amounts and nature of such deductions at the time of payment of the salary, wages or compensation from which such deductions are made. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to Suffolk county. Any county treasurer may pay salaries, wages, or other compensation to any person in the service of the county by means of deposits to the employees' bank accounts provided employees have expressly authorized said deposits.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 19A Accumulated vacation allowance; payment upon death or separation from service

c. 35, § 19A. Accumulated vacation allowance; payment upon death or separation from service Section 19A. In any county which accepts this section by vote of the county commissioners, advances of pay may be made to any county officer or employee in advance of his regular vacation to the extent of the pay to which he is about to be entitled during such vacation period under such regulations as the county treasurer may prescribe. Upon the death of a county employee who is eligible for vacation under the rules of the county personnel board, payment shall be made in an amount equal to the vacation allowance as earned in the vacation year prior to the employee's death but which had not been granted, and, in addition, that portion of the vacation allowance earned in the vacation year during which the employee died, up to the time of his separation from the payroll; provided, that no monetary or other allowance has already been made therefor. The county commissioners, upon request of the appointing officer of the deceased employee, shall authorize the payment of such compensation upon the establishment of a valid claim therefor, in the following order of precedence:— First: To the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries, if any, lawfully designated by the employee under the employee's retirement system; Second: If there be no such designated beneficiary, to the estate of the deceased. Employees who are eligible for vacation under the rules of said county personnel board whose services terminated by dismissal, through no fault or delinquency of their own, or by retirement, shall be paid an amount equal to the vacation allowance as earned in the vacation year prior to such dismissal or retirement which had not been granted, and, in addition, that portion of the vacation allowance earned in the vacation year during which such dismissal or retirement occurred, up to the time of separation; provided, that no monetary or other allowance has already been made therefor.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 19B Deceased officers and employees; payment of salary to next of kin; effect

c. 35, § 19B. Deceased officers and employees; payment of salary to next of kin; effect Section 19B. Whenever any officer or employee or former officer or employee of a county dies, and such county owes his estate any sum or sums by reason of the terms of his employment, the aggregate amount of which does not exceed twenty-five hundred dollars, and neither a duly appointed executor or administrator nor a voluntary administrator has made written demand for payment upon the treasurer of such county and such treasurer does not otherwise have actual notice that proceedings relative to the formal or informal settlement of such estate have been commenced in any probate court, such sum or sums may, in the discretion of such treasurer, be paid after the expiration of one month from the death of such officer or employee to the husband, widow or next of kin of such officer or employee. Payments made as provided in this section shall discharge all liability of the county to all persons with respect to such sum or sums.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 19C Deposits in credit union; pension or retirement allowances

c. 35, § 19C. Deposits in credit union; pension or retirement allowances Section 19C. Any county treasurer may deduct from the pension or retirement allowance of a retired person who was a member of such county retirement system, such sum as such retired person may specify in writing and shall transmit the same to a credit union designated by such retired person.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 20 Prosecution of suits upon bonds, notes, etc.; joinder of treasurer as party

c. 35, § 20. Prosecution of suits upon bonds, notes, etc.; joinder of treasurer as party Section 20. A county treasurer may prosecute suits upon bonds, notes and other securities given to or held by the county or its treasurer. He may also prosecute for injuries to the land, buildings or other property of his county, subject to section thirty-six of chapter forty-one. The treasurer shall be joined as a party in all legal proceedings brought against the county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 21 Delinquency of officers as to money payments; notification of district attorney

c. 35, § 21. Delinquency of officers as to money payments; notification of district attorney Section 21. If a public officer, or other person, required by law to account with and pay money to a county treasurer, fails so to do for ten days after the time prescribed by law therefor, the treasurer shall notify the district attorney, who shall forthwith proceed to recover the sum due.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 22 Disposition of surplus money; deposits; investments; interest

c. 35, § 22. Disposition of surplus money; deposits; investments; interest Section 22. Except as otherwise provided, county treasurers, clerks of the courts, clerks of district courts, sheriffs and superintendents of jails and houses of correction, probation officers, registers of probate and insolvency and registers of deeds, having more money in their hands than is required for immediate use, shall deposit it, in their official names, in national banks or trust companies in the commonwealth or banking companies doing business in the commonwealth and qualified to receive demand deposits under the provisions of section six A of chapter one hundred and seventy-two A, at the best practicable interest rates. County treasurers may also deposit in time deposits in such national banks, trust companies or banking companies and invest in United States treasury bills. Interest thereon shall be paid to the county, except that interest accruing to deposits by registers of probate and clerks of courts shall be paid to the commonwealth; provided, that interest accruing on the deposit as aforesaid of any money paid to any official mentioned in this section which is so paid under order of a court or which is otherwise subject to the direction of a court shall, if the court so directs, be paid to the parties entitled to the principal fund of such deposit.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 22A Deposit of funds restricted

c. 35, § 22A. Deposit of funds restricted Section 22A. County treasurers, court clerks, sheriffs and superintendents of jails and houses of correction, probation officers, registers of probate and insolvency and registers of deeds shall not deposit any of the funds for which they are accountable in any national bank, trust company or banking company with which such treasurer or officer is associated as an officer or employee or has been associated as an officer or employee at any time during the preceding three years.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 23 Money paid into courts; disposition; interest

c. 35, § 23. Money paid into courts; disposition; interest Section 23. Money paid into the courts in any county shall, if possible be placed at interest by the clerks thereof, and the interest shall be available for the uses of the commonwealth unless the court directs it to be paid to the parties to the litigation in connection with which such money was paid into court. All interest in the custody of any clerk of said courts not directed to be paid as aforesaid, remaining after payment by order of the court of the principal fund to parties litigant entitled thereto, shall annually be paid to the state treasurer between the first and tenth days of each fiscal year, to be used for the general purposes of the commonwealth.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 23A Unclaimed funds; disposition

c. 35, § 23A. Unclaimed funds; disposition Section 23A. County officers holding funds unclaimed after two years from the time of receipt thereof and not otherwise subject to statutory disposition shall pay over such funds to their county treasury for the use of the county; provided, that any person or persons establishing a lawful claim thereto before the county commissioners within six years of such payment over may receive satisfaction thereof from any available funds in the county treasury.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 24 Overdue accounts; interest charge

c. 35, § 24. Overdue accounts; interest charge Section 24. If a time is fixed for payment of money due a county or a county retirement system, the debtor shall, if notified by the county treasurer at least thirty days before such time, pay interest thereon at the rate of eight per cent per annum from such fixed time until payment.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 25 Annual report; contents

c. 35, § 25. Annual report; contents Section 25. Immediately after July tenth, the county treasurer shall annually prepare a report of the county receipts and expenditures for the preceding fiscal year, stated separately under the heads prescribed by the director of accounts for keeping the treasurer's books. Such statement shall contain a table setting forth the budget as approved by the advisory board on county expenditures for each specific object, the amount expended therefrom, the unexpended balance thereof, and any excess of payments over said approved budget.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 26 Annual report of county commissioners; contents

c. 35, § 26. Annual report of county commissioners; contents Section 26. Immediately after July tenth, the county commissioners shall annually prepare a report on county affairs, showing their acts during the preceding fiscal year, so as to give the taxpayers of the county a full and clear understanding of its affairs and of the objects and methods of county expenditures. They shall state specifically what petitions relating to highways have been received, and what highways have been laid out, altered, relocated or discontinued, the manner of their alteration or new construction, the time of their intended completion, what have been completed, at what cost and at whose expense, and what remain to be completed, what damages or betterments have been awarded or estimated and to or against whom, what damages have been paid or betterments collected, and what suits are pending in relation thereto. They shall also state what highways have been laid out under orders stating that betterments are to be assessed, their action relative to public and private ways, what applications relative to state highways they have made to the department of highways, and, so far as ascertainable, what highways have been laid out within the county by said department, what have been constructed and at what expense, what sums expended by the commonwealth in the county for highways have been repaid by said county, what sums remain to be paid, and when. They shall also make a detailed statement of the repairs upon the several county buildings, stating separately the work done by contract and by day, and the money paid, and the liabilities incurred in the construction of new buildings, and shall also state what reservoirs, reservoir dams and mill dams have been examined by them under section forty-five of chapter two hundred and fifty-three. They shall present a table showing the salaries paid to county officers, stating separately those prescribed by law, a statement of the county debt, giving the date when each obligation will mature and the rate of interest, stating separately the loans made in anticipation of taxes and permanent loans, a statement of the amount of county taxes due and unpaid, and a list of the assets of the county, including land, buildings, furniture in jails and other public buildings.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 26A Capital facilities and capital facility projects; jurisdiction of capital planning and operations division

c. 35, § 26A. Capital facilities and capital facility projects; jurisdiction of capital planning and operations division Section 26A. Notwithstanding the provisions of sections ten, fourteen, seventeen, twenty-five of chapter thirty-four or any other general or special law to the contrary, county capital facilities and capital facility projects, as defined by section thirty-nine A of chapter seven shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the division of capital asset management and maintenance according to the provisions of section forty A of chapter seven to the same degree and extent as other state agencies, as defined by said section thirty-nine A.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 27 Annual reports; publication and distribution

c. 35, § 27. Annual reports; publication and distribution Section 27. The county commissioners shall at the expense of the county print the annual county report containing the report of the county commissioners, statements in tabulated form prepared by the treasurer under section twenty-five, the annual budget as approved by the advisory board on county expenditures and any supplementary budgets thereto, and of such other officers and boards as consider it expedient to make a report, and such other matters as the law requires or as the commissioners consider expedient. The county treasurer shall send a copy of such report to the state library, to the director of accounts, and to the mayor of each city and to the chairperson of the board of selectmen of each town in the county before the first day of November. He shall, at the close of each fiscal year, advertise in not more than three newspapers published in the same or an adjoining county an account of the county receipts and expenditures arranged under distinct heads, and a specific statement of the county debts, the purposes for which incurred and their dates of maturity.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 27A Treasurer and custodian of certain funds

c. 35, § 27A. Treasurer and custodian of certain funds Section 27A. The county treasurer of each county shall act as the treasurer and custodian of the funds of every institution, organization, board, commission or other public body to the use of which funds of his county are contributed, provided that in case any such public body serves a district comprising more than one county, the county treasurer of the county in which such public body is chiefly located or has its headquarters, as determined by the director of accounts, shall so act.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 28 Estimates of county receipts and expenditures; preparation; recordation

c. 35, § 28. Estimates of county receipts and expenditures; preparation; recordation Section 28. (a) The head of each department or institution, and each board or other agency whose activities are maintained or supported wholly or in part by county funds, shall submit to the county commissioners on or before October first a written statement of their estimates of revenues and expenditures for the ensuing fiscal year, including number and cost of personnel, quantities and estimated cost of supplies and equipment and any other proposed expenditures, in sufficient detail to enable said commissioners to explain any increase or decrease as compared with the appropriation of the then current fiscal year. In such statement any proposed contract or any project involving the estimated expenditure of a sum in excess of one thousand dollars shall be set forth separately. Estimates shall be submitted in such form and shall contain such additional information as the county commissioners shall prescribe. In the event that such head of a department or institution, or such board or other agency fails to submit an estimate by the date specified, the county commissioners forthwith shall prepare and estimate for such department, institution, board or other agency. (b) The county commissioners shall annually prepare an itemized budget containing estimates of county revenues and expenditures for the ensuing fiscal year in the form prescribed by the director of accounts and upon blanks furnished by him, including estimates for construction and repair of county buildings and for effecting insurance providing indemnity for or protection to the officers and employees of the county against loss by reason of their liability to pay damages to others for bodily injuries, including death at any time resulting therefrom, or for damage to property, caused by the operation, within the scope of their official duties or employment, of motor or other vehicles owned by the county, to an amount not exceeding one hundred thousand dollars on account of injury to or death of one person, or not exceeding one million dollars for any one accident, and not exceeding one hundred thousand dollars on account of damage to property, or for providing indemnity or protection as aforesaid without insurance, with a statement of the corresponding appropriations for the then current fiscal year, and expenditures for each of the three preceding fiscal years, explaining any difference between the amount of any such estimate and the latest appropriation for the same purpose, and citing the laws relating thereto. The clerk of the county commissioners shall record the foregoing in a book kept therefor, and, on or before November first, shall send sufficient copies thereof, by him attested and signed by the chairman, to the county treasurer, to the members of the advisory board on county expenditures, to the director of accounts and to the selectmen of each town and the mayor of each city in the county. (c) The county commissioners of each county having a tuberculosis hospital established under sections seventy-eight to ninety, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and eleven, shall, in each year, prepare an itemized budget containing estimates of receipts of said hospital and of the cost of its care, maintenance and repair for the ensuing fiscal year in the form prescribed by the director of accounts and upon blanks furnished by him. (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, and unless otherwise specifically provided for by statute, county capital facility projects, as defined by section thirty-nine A of chapter seven, shall be subject to the provisions of sections seven A, seven B, seven C, and seven D of chapter twenty-nine and any other provisions of chapter twenty-nine applicable to capital facility projects to the same degrees and extent as other state agencies, as defined by section thirty-nine A of said chapter seven. (e) Prior to the submission by the clerk of the county commissioners of any county to the advisory board on county expenditures, of any proposed expenditures including proposed expenditures from a general revenue sharing allotment from the federal government, said county commissioners shall hold a public hearing to determine priority needs in said county. Said county commissioners shall cause notice of said hearing to be posted in each city and town hall within the county at least fourteen calendar days prior to the hearing and shall also cause notice thereof to be published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the county at least fourteen calendar days prior to said hearing. Notice of the hearing date and amount of revenue sharing money to be expended shall be mailed by the county commissioners to the selectmen of each town and mayor of each city in the county at least fourteen calendar days prior to the hearing.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 28B Advisory board for county expenditures; action on proposed budget; public hearing; capital improvement fund

c. 35, § 28B. Advisory board for county expenditures; action on proposed budget; public hearing; capital improvement fund Section 28B. (a) In every county other than Suffolk and Nantucket, there shall be an advisory board on county expenditures consisting of the city manager or his designee, who must be a member of the city council or board of alderman in a Plan D or Plan E city, or the mayor or his designee, who must be a member of the city council or board of alderman in each other city, or any member of the board of selectmen of each town or any member of the town council in a town which does not have selectmen. Each city and town shall have a weighted vote based on that city or town's assessment for expenses of county government. Each city or town's weighted vote will be computed based on the most recent biennial report of the commissioner of revenue submitting the final equalization and apportionment upon the several cities and towns of the amount of property and the proportion by every one thousand dollars of state or county tax which should be assessed upon each city and town and assessment ratios for classes of property in each city and town under section ten C of chapter fifty-eight. Said vote shall be determined by dividing that city or town's property valuation by the total of the county property value to the nearest one hundredth in accordance with the schedule in the commissioner of revenue's most recent biennial report referenced above. Said vote shall be determined by the director of accounts and delivered in writing to the advisory board thirty calendar days after the biennial report has been accepted by the general court. A quorum of the advisory board shall consist of that number of persons who represent a majority of the aggregate weighted vote. A majority shall be defined for the purposes of this chapter as a majority of the quorum. (b) The advisory board on county expenditures, upon receipt of the proposed itemized budget prepared by the county commissioners, together with any supplementary material prepared by the head of each department or institution and each board or other agency, shall review the proposed budget. The advisory board may increase, decrease, alter and revise the proposed budget, provided that:— (i) The statement of the amount to be expended for any object or purpose for which an expenditure is required to be made by law shall not be reduced below estimated expenditure of the current year unless the advisory board shall enter into its minutes a statement of the basis for the reduction. (ii) The advisory board shall enter into its minutes a statement of the basis for any change in any statement of estimated revenues. (iii) If the advisory board shall make any change in the proposed itemized budget, provision shall be made that the total estimated revenues, together with the amount of county tax to be levied shall equal the total estimated expenditures. (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, before the final adoption of the expenditure resolution, the advisory board on county expenditures shall hold at least one public hearing to inform the residents of the county of its proposed budget and to hear testimony and argument before the adoption of the expenditure resolution. The county commissioners shall cause notice of said hearing to be posted in each city and town hall within the county at least fourteen calendar days prior to the hearing and shall also cause notice thereof to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county at least fourteen calendar days prior to the hearing. The notice shall include, but is not limited to, the date, time and place of the hearing, announcement of the citizen's right to provide written and oral comments and suggestions respecting the possible use of funds, a summary of the entire proposed budget, and the place where the proposed budget may be inspected or procured by any interested person during business hours. (d) After completion of the public hearing required by subsection (c), the advisory board on county expenditures, by resolutions, may further increase, decrease, alter and revise the proposed itemized budget, subject, however, to the conditions and restrictions imposed by subsection (b). The proposed itemized budget as increased, decreased, altered and revised shall be finally adopted by an expenditure resolution by a majority vote of the advisory board as set forth in subsection (a) at a duly called meeting on or before April second and shall be the approved budget. (e) The advisory board, prior to the submission of any proposed capital facility budget request by the county clerk to the director of accounts, or of any long range capital facilities development plan and budget request to the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance, shall hold at least one public hearing to discuss the proposed budget request or plan. After such hearing or hearings, the advisory board, by a majority vote determined in accord with the provisions of subsection (a), may delete, add to, alter and revise any line item appearing in said budget request or plan. Said action shall be incorporated into the budget request or plan submitted to the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance in accord with the provisions of sections seven A, seven B, seven C and seven D of chapter twenty-nine, and shall be binding upon the county. (f) If the advisory board on county expenditures shall fail to finally adopt an expenditure resolution for the ensuing fiscal year on or before April second, the itemized budget as proposed by the county commissioners together with such changes, alterations and revisions as shall have been made by a majority vote of the advisory board on or before June first, as set forth in subsection (a), shall constitute the approved budget for the ensuing year, and the expenditure resolution shall be deemed to have been passed by the advisory board as of that date. (g) The approved budget shall govern the expenditures of the county during the fiscal year. No expenses may be incurred in excess of those shown in the approved budget, but the budget may be from time to time amended by the preparation and submission of a proposed supplementary budget by the county commissioners to the advisory board on county expenditures. The advisory board shall, not less than fifteen calendar days, except in emergencies, nor more than thirty calendar days after such submission to it, approve or amend any such supplementary budget as provided by subsection (a). A copy of the approved budget and any approved supplementary budget shall be transmitted to the director of accounts within fifteen days of the advisory board's action thereon. (h) At the closing of the treasurer's books on July tenth, the balance to the credit of each appropriation shall become a part of the general unappropriated balance in the county treasury, but no appropriation voted for special, non-operating purposes, shall lapse until the work for which it has been made has been completed. Such appropriation, however, may not be carried forward for more than one extra fiscal year. Any remaining unappropriated balance thereafter, shall become a part of the general unappropriated balance in the county treasury. Written notification of such balance to be carried forward shall be submitted by the county commissioners to the county treasurer, the advisory board, and the director of accounts on or before the tenth day following the close of the fiscal year for which it was originally appropriated. The county commissioners shall send written notification of such balance to the county treasurer, the advisory board, and the director of accounts on or before the tenth day following the close of the fiscal year. This subsection shall not apply to funds appropriated for the purposes of construction of buildings. (i) For the purpose of creating a Capital Improvement Fund the advisory board may appropriate in any year an amount not exceeding ten per cent of the amount raised in the preceding fiscal year by assessment upon the cities and towns or of such larger amount as may be approved by a two-thirds vote. The aggregate amount in the fund at any time shall not exceed ten per cent of the total equalized valuation of the municipalities in the county as defined in section one of chapter forty-four. Any interest shall be added to and become a part of the fund. The treasurer shall be the custodian of said fund and may deposit the proceeds in national banks or invest the proceeds by deposit in savings banks, cooperative banks or in participation units in a combined investment fund under section thirty-eight A of chapter twenty-nine, or invest the same in such securities as are legal for the investment of funds of savings banks under the provisions of chapter one hundred and sixty-eight or in federal savings and loan associations situated in the commonwealth. The Capital Improvement Fund may be appropriated by the county commissioners with the approval of the advisory board for any purpose authorized under sections seven and eight of chapter forty-four or for such other county purpose as is approved by a two-thirds vote of the advisory board. (j) To create and maintain a County Stabilization Fund the advisory board may appropriate in any year an amount as may be approved by a 2/3 vote of the advisory board. Any interest shall be added to and become part of the fund. The treasurer shall be custodian of the fund and may deposit the proceeds in national banks or invest the proceeds by deposit in savings banks, cooperative banks or in participation units in a combined investment fund under section 38A of chapter 29, or invest the proceeds in those securities as are legal for the investment of funds of savings banks under chapter 168 or in federal savings and loans associations situated in the commonwealth. The County Stabilization Fund may be appropriated for any purpose by the county commissioners with the approval of a 2/3 vote of the advisory board.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 30 Taxes; approval; computation

c. 35, § 30. Taxes; approval; computation Section 30. The amount which the county commissioners of each county, except Suffolk and Nantucket, shall levy as the county tax shall be as voted by the county commissioners and approved by the advisory board on county expenditures, and as computed by adding together the amounts of the approved annual budget and of any approved supplementary budget, so far as the money therefore is to be raised by taxation, and deducting therefrom the probable receipts from all sources, except loans, and so much of the unexpended balance from the county treasury at the closing of the treasurer's books for the previous fiscal year as is in excess of ten per cent of the tax levy for said year; provided, however, that the county commissioners shall deduct the unexpended balance from the previous fiscal year from the tax voted by the county commissioners and approved by the advisory board prior to the apportionment and assessment of said tax among and upon the several cities and towns. The county commissioners shall also levy annually as the county tax a sum sufficient to meet the debt and interest maturing in that year, if no other provision therefor has been made.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 31 Taxes; apportionment, assessment and collection

c. 35, § 31. Taxes; apportionment, assessment and collection Section 31. The county commissioners shall apportion and assess all county taxes among and upon the several cities and towns according to the most recent equalization and apportionment reported by the commissioner of revenue to the general court pursuant to section ten C of chapter fifty-eight, and shall, by their clerk, certify the assessments to the assessors thereof. The several amounts so apportioned and assessed shall be collected and paid similar to that of the state tax into the respective town treasuries, and the commissioners in their warrants shall require the selectmen or assessors of each town to pay, or to issue their warrants requiring the treasurer thereof to pay, to the county treasurer the amount so assessed. The county commissioners shall prescribe that one half of the total certified assessment of each city and town shall be paid on November first of each year and the remaining one half of such assessment shall be paid on May first of the next year. The selectmen or assessors of each city and town shall return a certificate of the name of the treasurer of such city or town, with the sum which he may be required to collect, to the county treasurer within the time fixed by the warrant of the county commissioners in accordance with the provisions of this section.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 32 Provisions of appropriation acts for counties and county hospitals; approved schedules; certification; transfers; purposes; expenditures in excess of appropriations; reserve fund

c. 35, § 32. Provisions of appropriation acts for counties and county hospitals; approved schedules; certification; transfers; purposes; expenditures in excess of appropriations; reserve fund Section 32. Sums appropriated in appropriation acts for counties and in appropriation acts for the care, maintenance and repair of county hospitals shall be based upon detailed schedules approved by the county advisory boards, copies of which shall be deposited with the director of accounts. Said director shall file with the county commissioners and the county treasurer of each county a certification of the amounts appropriated as set forth in the approved schedules. Except as provided by such acts or except as otherwise provided by law, no liability may be incurred and no expenditure shall be made in excess of the amount available in an existing appropriation for a function, a main group, a class or a subclass. Transfers within an appropriation from one main group to another main group may be made upon written request of the authorized official of the organization unit with the written approval of the county commissioners, and copies of said request and approval shall be filed with the county treasurer; provided, however, that no transfer shall be made from the main groups ''personal services'', ''equipment'', ''structures and improvements'' or ''improvements to land'' to another main group nor shall any transfer be made from any other main group into any of the aforementioned main groups. Transfers within an appropriation between classes and between subclasses within a main group may be made by the authorized official of the organization unit whenever in his opinion public necessity and convenience so requires; provided, however, that no transfer shall be made within the classes of the main groups ''personal services'' or ''equipment''. Amounts included for permanent positions in such acts for personal services shall be based upon schedules of permanent positions and salary rates as approved by the county advisory boards, and, except as otherwise shown by the files on said boards, a copy of which shall be deposited with the county personnel board, no part of sums so appropriated shall be available for payment of salaries of any additional permanent positions, or for payments on account of upward reallocations of permanent positions, or for payments on account of any change of salary range or compensation of any permanent positions, except that an attendant who becomes a licensed practical nurse and a graduate nurse who becomes a registered nurse may be paid an increased salary rate on account of such promotion, subject to approval by the county personnel board, and a person may receive an increased cash salary in lieu of maintenance formerly received, with like approval. Moneys appropriated under such acts for the purchase of equipment shall be expended for the purposes specified in the schedules as approved by the county advisory boards, and for no other purpose. No expense incurred for mid-day meals by county officers and employees, other than those who receive as part of their compensation a noncash allowance in the form of full or complete boarding and housing, and those county officers and employees who are stationed beyond commuting distance from their homes for a period of more than twenty-four hours, shall be allowed; provided that officers or employees who have charge of juries or who have the care and custody of prisoners, insane persons or other persons placed in their charge by a court or under legal proceedings for transfer to or from court to an institution or from institution to institution and persons certified by a district attorney as engaged in investigation shall be reimbursed for the expense of mid-day meals when necessarily engaged on such duty; and provided, further, that county officers and employees in attendance at meetings and conferences called by or for any group or class on a statewide basis shall be so reimbursed. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, not more than two employees of a county may be reimbursed for meals and other expenses incurred in attendance at a meeting or conference called by or for any group or class on a statewide basis. No moneys appropriated under such acts shall be expended by county officers or employees for monthly telephone service furnished to such officers or employees at places other than regular offices. The allowance to county officers and employees for expenses incurred by them in the operation of motor vehicles owned by them or by any member of their immediate families and used in the performance of their official duties shall not exceed the rate established for state employees, except in cases where a higher allowance is specifically provided by statute; provided that in the case of commitments of the insane the justice of the court ordering the commitment may order a higher rate but not to exceed forty cents a mile one way. No expenditure shall be made for travel outside the commonwealth for attendance at conferences or conventions. No county expenditures shall be made or liability incurred, nor shall a bill be paid for any purpose, in excess of the appropriation therefor, except as provided in sections fourteen and thirty-four. No direct draft against the account known as the Reserve Fund as appearing in advisory board appropriations for counties shall be made, but transfers from such accounts to other accounts may be made to meet extraordinary or unforeseen expenditures upon the request of the county commissioners to and with the approval of the county advisory boards or their designated executive committee; provided, however, that if such county advisory board or its designated executive committee has not acted upon such request within forty-five days after such request has been received by it, then the county commissioner may submit such request to the bureau of accounts. The director of accounts shall be notified of the approval of such transfer by the county commissioner within fifteen days.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 32A Contributory retirement systems; anticipated costs; recovery of pension costs

c. 35, § 32A. Contributory retirement systems; anticipated costs; recovery of pension costs Section 32A. In order to offset the anticipated costs for funding for the contributory retirement systems, upon the recommendation of the county retirement board advisory council, a county may appropriate in any year an amount not exceeding five per cent of the amount of county taxes raised in the preceding year by assessment pursuant to paragraph (c) of subdivision (7) of section twenty-two of chapter thirty-two upon the several governmental units participating in the county retirement system. Such amount shall be in addition to that assessed in said section and shall be credited to the Pension Reserve Fund provided for in section twenty-two of said chapter thirty-two. The aggregate amount in such fund at any time shall not exceed ten per cent of the total equalized valuation of such participating cities and towns in the county. Any interest shall be added to and become part of such fund. All sums in such fund shall be appropriated and used only for the purpose of offsetting the anticipated future cost of funding the contributory retirement system of such county. The treasurer of the county shall be the custodian of such fund and may deposit the proceeds in national banks or invest the proceeds by deposit in savings banks, co-operative banks or trust companies organized under the laws of the commonwealth, or invest the same in such securities as are legal for the investment of funds of savings banks under the laws of the commonwealth or in federal savings and loan associations situated in the commonwealth or may participate in the PRIT Fund in accordance with clause (8) of section twenty-two of said chapter thirty-two. Counties shall establish procedures for the recovery of employee pension costs from federal grant monies. Each spending agency of counties shall, at the commencement of each fiscal year, and no later than July thirty-first, authorize the treasurer to initiate such procedures to transfer to such fund an amount equal to the future pension costs which are incurred because of the federal grant. The cost of the future pension cost liability must be recovered in cash. Expenditures for the payment of salaries to be made from any federal grant shall not be allowed until the full amount of such pension costs are recovered.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 34 Expenses and liabilities incurred prior to appropriations; limitations; exceptions

c. 35, § 34. Expenses and liabilities incurred prior to appropriations; limitations; exceptions Section 34. On and after July first in each year and before the regular appropriations have been made by the advisory board on county expenditures, the county commissioners and other officers authorized to incur liabilities payable by the county may incur liability for general maintenance and operation of regular county activities at a rate of expenditure which does not exceed in any month the sum spent for a similar purpose in any one month in the preceding year; provided, that said commissioners or officers may expend in any one month for any office or board created by law an amount not exceeding one twelfth of the estimated cost for said year for said office or board. Payments therefor may be made from any available funds in the county treasury, to be charged to the regular appropriation when made. No new or unusual expense shall be incurred, or permanent contract made, or salary increased, until an appropriation sufficient therefor has been made by the advisory board on county expenditures; except that salary increases in accordance with the salary schedule may be granted as set forth in section fifty-one B, and contracts made by a county for the exercise of its corporate powers or for any purpose as provided in sections fourteen and seventeen of chapter thirty-four may during any fiscal year, at the time of, or after, the making thereof, be extended without an appropriation, upon like or more favorable terms and conditions, for the whole or any part of the next fiscal year up to December thirty-first of that year or up to sixty days after passage of the budget of the next fiscal year, whichever date is later, provided that in no event shall the average monthly liability incurred with respect to the next fiscal year exceed the average monthly liability for such contract during the last six months of the then current fiscal year. Rentals and leases of real property may be entered into for a period not to exceed five years, provided that such limitation shall not apply to leases with the judicial branch of the commonwealth. Notwithstanding the foregoing limitations upon the authority of the county commissioners and other officers to incur liabilities during said interval, such county commissioners and other officers may incur liabilities and make payments therefor from any available funds in the treasury to such extent as may be necessary for the purpose of contracting and paying for group insurance in accordance with the provisions of chapter thirty-two B.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 34A Expenses incurred prior to appropriation; highway agreements excepted

c. 35, § 34A. Expenses incurred prior to appropriation; highway agreements excepted Section 34A. Notwithstanding the provisions of sections thirty-two and thirty-four, county commissioners may in any fiscal year enter into agreements with cities and towns for the allocation of funds for highway maintenance and construction in accordance with the provisions of chapters eighty-two and eighty-four for such year; provided, that the aggregate amounts so allocated by any county shall not exceed the amount appropriated for highways for such county in the appropriation act for the previous fiscal year; and provided further that any unexpended balance of such allocations remaining at the end of a fiscal year may be expended under such agreements until September thirtieth of the following fiscal year.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 35 Enforcement of provisions; conditions

c. 35, § 35. Enforcement of provisions; conditions Section 35. The supreme judicial court, upon the suit of the attorney general or petition of one or more taxable inhabitants of a county, may in law or in equity enforce sections eleven, thirteen, fifteen, sixteen, twenty-five to thirty, inclusive, and thirty-two to thirty-four, inclusive, of this chapter, and sections fourteen and seventeen of chapter thirty-four.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 36 County receipts, cash on hand and expenditures; monthly account

c. 35, § 36. County receipts, cash on hand and expenditures; monthly account Section 36. On or before the fifteenth day of each month the treasurer shall render to the county commissioners an account of all county receipts, cash on hand and expenditures for the prior month, and when approved and allowed by them, shall deliver it to their clerk.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 36A Emergency borrowing for extraordinary expenditures

c. 35, § 36A. Emergency borrowing for extraordinary expenditures Section 36A. For the purpose of providing funds for any county for any emergency purpose approved by the majority of the members of the municipal finance oversight board, hereinafter referred to as said board, such county may borrow money in such amount and for such period not exceeding two years as may be determined by said board, and may issue a note or notes therefor, signed by the county treasurer and countersigned by a majority of the county commissioners, which may be sold at such interest or discount as the county commissioners deem proper, any discount to be treated as interest paid in advance. All applications for approval by said board shall be submitted by the county commissioners, but if any such application is made for funds for use for a purpose connected with a county institution in charge of trustees or with a reservation, supported in whole or in part by county funds, in charge of a special board or commission, such application shall not be approved by said board unless it is supported by a written request for such funds from said trustees or said special board or commission, as the case may be. The proceeds of any borrowing hereunder shall be expended by the county commissioners for the purpose for which made; except that, if such a borrowing is made for use for a purpose connected with a county institution in charge of trustees or with a reservation, supported in whole or in part by county funds, in charge of a special board or commission, the proceeds thereof shall be expended for the purpose for which made by said trustees or said special board or commission, as the case may be. As used in this section, the words ''emergency purpose'' shall mean a purpose arising from a sudden, unavoidable event or series of events which could not reasonably have been foreseen or anticipated at the time of submission of the annual budget for approval. It shall not be deemed to include the funding of collective bargaining agreements or such items as were previously disapproved by the appropriating authority for the fiscal year in which such borrowing is sought.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 37 Borrowing funds in anticipation of tax income

c. 35, § 37. Borrowing funds in anticipation of tax income Section 37. County commissioners may borrow money in anticipation of, and to be repaid from, the county tax of the current fiscal year. If said tax has been granted, such loans shall not exceed its amount; otherwise they shall not exceed the amount of the previous annual tax. They may issue therefor county notes maturing within one year after the date when the debt for which they are issued was incurred. Such notes, if issued for less than one year, may be renewed from time to time; provided, that the period from the date of the original loan to the date of maturity of any refunding loan shall not be more than one year. Notes issued hereunder may be sold at such discount as the commissioners may deem proper, the discount to be treated as interest paid in advance. Such notes shall be signed by the treasurer, countersigned by a majority of the commissioners, and shall expressly be made payable from the taxes of the current fiscal year, but shall nevertheless be negotiable. Except as otherwise expressly provided by law, neither county commissioners nor county treasurers, except in Suffolk and Nantucket counties, may borrow money or negotiate loans upon the credit of the county. Notes may also be issued between July first and July tenth, in accordance with this section, in anticipation of assessments payable to the county by cities, towns or corporations, under statutory provisions and unpaid at the end of the preceding fiscal year, in cases in which the total cost of the project for which the assessment is levied was paid by the county in the first instance.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 37A Bonds and notes; method of payment; use of proceeds; limitations

c. 35, § 37A. Bonds and notes; method of payment; use of proceeds; limitations Section 37A. Counties shall not issue any bonds or notes payable on demand, and they shall provide for the payment of all debts, except those incurred in anticipation of revenue or in anticipation of reimbursement from cities and towns, by such annual payments as will extinguish the same at maturity, and so that the first of such annual payments on account of any loan shall be made not later than one year after the date of the bond or note issued therefor, and so that the amount of such annual payment in any year on account of such debt, so far as issued, shall not be less than the amount of the principal payable in any subsequent year. The proceeds of any sale of bonds or notes, except premiums and accrued interest, shall be used only for the purposes specified in the authorization of the loan, and may also be used for costs of preparing, issuing and marketing such bonds or notes; provided, that the proceeds of any sale of bonds or notes for building, altering, furnishing or repairing public buildings or the construction or repair of public works may be used to pay management consultants hired under the provisions of chapter thirty B; and provided, further, that unexpended amounts may be applied to maturing annual payments of the same loan, and provided, further, that so much of such proceeds as has not been so applied at the expiration of two years from the completion of the project for which the loan was authorized shall become part of the next general unappropriated balance established under section twenty-nine or, if such loan was made on behalf of a district, shall be applied in reduction of assessments to be made upon it by the county. A treasurer of a county may invest not more than eighty per cent of the proceeds from the issue of bonds or notes prior to their application to the payment of liabilities incurred for the purposes specified in the authorization of the loan, in certificates of deposit in trust companies or national banks or in United States treasury bills. Any premium received upon such bonds or notes, less the cost of preparing, issuing and marketing them, shall be applied to the payment of the principal of the first bonds or notes to mature and any accrued interest received upon the delivery of said bonds or notes shall be applied to the payment of the first interest due thereon.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 37B Temporary notes; refunding; payment

c. 35, § 37B. Temporary notes; refunding; payment Section 37B. The county treasurer of any county, except Suffolk and Nantucket, with the approval of the county commissioners thereof, may issue temporary notes of the county payable in not more than two years from their dates, in anticipation of the issue of serial bonds or notes under any general or special law, but the time within which such serial bonds or notes shall become due and payable shall not, by reason of such temporary notes, be extended beyond the time fixed by such general or special law. Temporary notes issued under this section for a shorter period than two years may be refunded by the issue of other temporary notes, provided that the period from the date of issue of the original temporary notes to the date of maturity of the refunding notes shall not be more than two years. Any notes issued in anticipation of serial bonds or notes shall be paid from the proceeds thereof. If a balance remains in the proceeds of a loan issued in anticipation of a serial loan at the time when the serial loan is issued, said balance shall be applied to the payment of such temporary loan.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 38 Sale of notes or securities; bids required; exceptions

c. 35, § 38. Sale of notes or securities; bids required; exceptions Section 38. Before issuing notes or securities increasing county indebtedness, the county commissioners shall invite proposals for the purchase thereof by advertisements in two or more newspapers published in said county, if any, and by advertisements in at least three daily newspapers published in Boston. They shall reserve the right to reject any and all bids. The bids shall be publicly opened and noted in their records. If no proposal is made or accepted they may award the whole or any part of the loan to any person. Notes authorized by section thirty-seven, notes or bonds issued to renew or refund indebtedness existing at the time of issue thereof, notes issued for a term of not more than two years in anticipation of a serial loan, notes or bonds in anticipation of reimbursement from cities, towns and others in connection with work temporarily financed by the county, including tuberculosis hospital maintenance notes under section eighty-five A of chapter one hundred and eleven shall be excepted from the requirement of this section as to advertising for bids and may be sold at public or private sale.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 38A Bonds issued subject to call and redemption

c. 35, § 38A. Bonds issued subject to call and redemption Section 38A. Unless otherwise specifically provided, a provision in any act authorizing the county treasurer of any county to issue and sell bonds of the county shall authorize him, with the approval of the county commissioners, to issue and sell bonds subject to call for redemption at any time or from time to time, with or without premium, as such treasurer determines to be in the best interest of the county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 38B Refunding bonds and notes; issuance; limitations

c. 35, § 38B. Refunding bonds and notes; issuance; limitations Section 38B. Unless otherwise specifically provided, a provision in any act authorizing a county treasurer to issue and sell bonds or notes of the county shall authorize such treasurer, with the approval of the county commissioners, to issue and sell refunding bonds or notes for the purpose of paying or refunding all or any designated part of any issue of outstanding bonds or notes, including the amount of any redemption premium thereon, all or a portion of the interest due at or prior to the date on which such outstanding bonds are redeemed and costs of prepaying, issuing and marketing the refunding bonds; provided, however, that no such refunding bonds or notes shall be payable over a period longer than the period during which the original bonds or notes so refunded must be paid pursuant to law. The first annual payment of principal on account of an issue of refunding bonds or notes shall not be later than the last day of the fiscal year in which the earliest stated principal maturity date of any of the bonds or notes being refunded falls and the annual payments thereafter shall be arranged in accordance with the provisions of the law authorizing the bonds or notes; provided, however, that any annual payment earlier than the date on which the first annual payment is required to be made, may be in any amount. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the issuance of such refunding bonds or notes shall be governed by the applicable provisions of this chapter. Refunding bonds or notes issued under this section, exclusive of amounts thereof issued to pay redemption premium, interest and costs of prepaying, issuing and marketing the refunding bonds, shall be subject to the same limit of indebtedness, if any, as the bonds or notes refunded by them; provided, however, that upon the issuance of such refunding bonds or notes, the bonds or notes refunded shall no longer be counted in determining the limit of indebtedness under the law authorizing them. If such refunding bonds or notes are issued prior to the maturity or redemption date of the original bonds or notes refunded, an amount of the proceeds of the refunding bonds or notes and other money then available or to become available to the county, which may include income to be derived from the investment of such proceeds, sufficient to pay or provide for the payment of the principal, redemption premium, if any, and interest on the bonds or notes so refunded to the date fixed for their payment or redemption shall be held in a separate fund and in trust solely for the payment of such principal, redemption premium and interest. All of the funds so held may be invested notwithstanding the limitation in section thirty-seven A and the income derived from such investment may be expended by the treasurer to pay the principal redemption premium, if any, and interest on the bonds or notes refunded until they are paid or redeemed; provided, however, that any such investment may have a maturity not later than the date fixed for the payment or redemption of the bonds or notes refunded. Nothing in this section shall permit a county to fund or refund an annual or accumulated operating deficit.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39 Interest rates

c. 35, § 39. Interest rates Section 39. All bonds, notes and other securities issued by any county after April twenty-second, nineteen hundred and twenty, shall bear such rate or rates of interest as the county treasurer, with the approval of the county commissioners, may fix, notwithstanding any general or special provision of law enacted prior to said date.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39A Forms for note issues; contents, etc.

c. 35, § 39A. Forms for note issues; contents, etc. Section 39A. The director shall furnish to the treasurer of every county forms for the issue of notes for money borrowed by the county. Every such note shall state the amount thereof, the date of issue, which shall be construed as the date from which interest is payable, the interest which it bears, the date when it will become due, and such other matter as the director may deem necessary; and a record of every such note shall be kept by said treasurer in such form as the director may designate. The director may place upon notes submitted to him for certification such denominations as will show the purpose for which they are issued and as may be required by law to appear thereon.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39B Notes; procedure for issuance

c. 35, § 39B. Notes; procedure for issuance Section 39B. Whenever a county determines to borrow money otherwise than by the issue of bonds, the treasurer thereof shall make notes for the amount of the proposed loan, and shall use one or more, in serial order, of the forms provided for in section thirty-nine A, with the blank spaces properly filled in. County notes shall be signed by the treasurer thereof, and a majority of the county commissioners shall countersign and approve each note in the presence of the clerk of the courts, who shall certify to the fact on the face thereof and affix thereon the county seal, unless the facsimile of such seal is engraved or printed thereon. The treasurer of the county, after making a record of the transaction in accordance with section thirty-nine A, shall forward, with the fee required by section thirty-nine E, every such note to the director, with a copy of said record and a copy of the vote authorizing the loan, certified by the clerk of the courts, and a certification by said clerk that the person whose signature appears upon the note as treasurer was the duly authorized treasurer of the county when such signature was made, and that the persons whose signatures appear upon the note as those of a majority of the county commissioners were duly qualified as such when such signatures were made; and the treasurer of such county shall furnish such other information with reference to the financial condition of the county as the director may require to enable him properly to certify the note. If upon examination the note appears to the director to have been duly issued in accordance with the vote of the county commissioners authorizing it, or in accordance with an act of the general court, and to have been signed by the duly qualified officials of the county, he shall so certify and shall thereupon return the note by registered mail to the treasurer of such county or shall deliver it in hand to such treasurer or to his duly authorized agent; but, under such regulations as he may prescribe, if so authorized by the county treasurer, with the approval of the county commissioners, the director may deliver a certified note to the payee thereof or deliver it to a bank or trust company to be credited to the account of such treasurer. He may certify to the issue of the note on any date not earlier than five days prior to the date of issue appearing on the note, if the other conditions of this chapter have been complied with. He shall not certify a note payable on demand nor shall he certify any note unless the laws relating to county indebtedness have been complied with, or if it appears that the proceeds of the note are not to be used for the purpose specified in the vote authorizing the loan for which the note is issued.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39C Bearer notes; procedure for issuance

c. 35, § 39C. Bearer notes; procedure for issuance Section 39C. County notes, when issued for a serial loan, may be made payable to ''bearer'', and when so issued section thirty-nine B may be construed by the director as being properly complied with in so far as it relates to the proper filling in of the space provided for the name of the purchaser of the loan, and he may certify such notes; provided, that before certification there shall be filed with him by the county treasurer the name of the purchaser of such loan.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39D Payment of notes; notice

c. 35, § 39D. Payment of notes; notice Section 39D. Whenever a note issued by a county is paid, the treasurer thereof shall immediately notify the director of such payment, stating the source from which such payment was made.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39E Certification fee; refunds

c. 35, § 39E. Certification fee; refunds Section 39E. The director shall establish a reasonable fee for every note certified, to be turned over monthly to the commonwealth; and the state treasurer may refund the amount of any fee deposited with him by said director for the certification of any note which may be cancelled before money is obtained thereon.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39F Effect of certification

c. 35, § 39F. Effect of certification Section 39F. The certification of county notes by the director shall be prima facie evidence of the liability of such county therefor.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39G Facsimile of county seal on bonds, etc.; validity

c. 35, § 39G. Facsimile of county seal on bonds, etc.; validity Section 39G. The engraved or printed facsimile of a county seal on a bond, note or certificate of indebtedness of such county shall have the same validity and effect as though such seal were impressed thereon.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39H Facsimile of county seal on bonds, etc.; authorization of making and use

c. 35, § 39H. Facsimile of county seal on bonds, etc.; authorization of making and use Section 39H. In any county a majority of the commissioners by a writing bearing their written signatures and filed in the office of the treasurer of the county, which writing shall be open to public inspection, may authorize said treasurer to cause to be engraved or printed on any bond which said county is authorized to issue, facsimiles of their signatures, and such facsimiles so engraved or printed shall have the same validity and effect as their written signatures.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 39I Facsimile of county seal on bonds or notes; validity of signatures of officers leaving office before delivery of bonds or notes

c. 35, § 39I. Facsimile of county seal on bonds or notes; validity of signatures of officers leaving office before delivery of bonds or notes Section 39I. If any officer whose signature or a facsimile of whose signature appears on any bonds or notes of a county shall cease to be such officer before the delivery of such bonds or notes, such signature or such facsimile shall nevertheless be valid and sufficient for all purposes as if such officer had remained in office until such delivery.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 40 Fines; accounting; returns

c. 35, § 40. Fines; accounting; returns Section 40. The treasurer of each county shall annually, in May, notify all officers required to account for and pay to him any fines, expenses, forfeitures, fees and money, to make the returns thereof, specifying the laws requiring the same. He shall annually, in July, return to the director of accounts a sworn statement of all such items received by him in criminal matters during the preceding fiscal year, from whom received, and the name of each magistrate or officer failing to comply, and what proceedings have been taken by reason thereof. He shall also, annually, on or before July fifteenth, make a return to the commissioner of correction, upon blanks to be provided by said commissioner, of all amounts paid or received by him on account of any jail or house of correction for the fiscal year ending with the preceding June thirtieth.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 41 Payments to treasurers; sworn statements

c. 35, § 41. Payments to treasurers; sworn statements Section 41. Public officers or agents shall accompany payments of public funds to county treasurers with a sworn statement, showing the date, amount and purpose thereof, and such other details as the director of accounts may prescribe, transmitting forthwith a duplicate to him.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 42 Auditor of Boston; additional duty

c. 35, § 42. Auditor of Boston; additional duty Section 42. The auditor of Boston shall be the auditor of Suffolk county. No bill against said county shall be paid until audited and allowed by him.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 43 Exchange of order instruments for bearer instruments; penalty for noncompliance

c. 35, § 43. Exchange of order instruments for bearer instruments; penalty for noncompliance Section 43. A county, city, town or district, or any domestic corporation, which shall have issued any bond, note or certificate of indebtedness payable to bearer, held by the sinking fund commissioners of a county, shall, at the request of such commissioners, issue in exchange therefor a bond, note or certificate to the same effect, payable to such commissioners by name; provided, that the county desiring such exchange shall, if requested, furnish the blank form for the bond, note or certificate therefor in the same general form as that furnished by the commonwealth under section thirty-nine of chapter twenty-nine. Any county, city, town, district or corporation neglecting or refusing to comply with this section shall be subject to a penalty of not more than fifty dollars.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 43A Surety bonds of officers and employees; payment of premiums

c. 35, § 43A. Surety bonds of officers and employees; payment of premiums Section 43A. Every officer or employee of a county required to furnish a fidelity bond with a surety or sureties shall furnish a bond with a surety company authorized to transact business in the commonwealth, as surety. Unless otherwise provided by law, every such bond shall be approved as to form by the superior court, which may require to be included in such bond such terms, provisions and conditions as, in its opinion, will carry into effect the intent of the law requiring the giving of such bond. The premium on such bond shall in every case, except in the case of the treasurer of Suffolk or Nantucket county, be paid by the county.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 43B Recovery on surety bonds of officers and employees; effect of acceptance by county of additional annual bond

c. 35, § 43B. Recovery on surety bonds of officers and employees; effect of acceptance by county of additional annual bond Section 43B. Whenever an officer or employee of a county has been elected or appointed to an office the term whereof exceeds one year, and has filed a fidelity bond covering his entire term of office, and subsequent to such filing he is required by law to file such a bond annually, the acceptance of such an annual bond shall preclude recovery, under any such bond previously filed and accepted, whether for the term of one year or for a longer term, for any default occurring during the term of any such bond subsequently filed and accepted.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 47 Penalty for noncompliance with orders

c. 35, § 47. Penalty for noncompliance with orders Section 47. An officer or person named in section forty-four or forty-five who refuses or neglects to comply with any provision thereof, or who, for more than ten consecutive days, refuses or neglects to enter in the cash book prescribed by the director of accounts all money received or expended by him in his official capacity or on account of the same, or refuses or neglects to give any information within his knowledge required by said director or his representative shall be reported by the director to the attorney general, and shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 48 Establishment of board; membership; election; tenure, etc.

c. 35, § 48. Establishment of board; membership; election; tenure, etc. Section 48. There is hereby established a county personnel board, in this and the eight following sections called the board, consisting of three county commissioners, one to be elected by and from the county commissioners of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties; one to be elected by and from the county commissioners of Essex, Middlesex and Worcester counties; and one to be elected by and from the county commissioners of Barnstable, Bristol, Norfolk and Plymouth counties, provided that in the election of such member from the last named counties, the chairman of the county commissioners of each of the counties of Nantucket and Dukes County shall be entitled to one vote. The commissioner first elected from the county commissioners of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties shall serve for a term of one year, the commissioner first elected from the county commissioners of Essex, Middlesex and Worcester counties shall serve for a term of two years, and the commissioner first elected from the county commissioners of Barnstable, Bristol, Norfolk and Plymouth counties shall serve for a term of three years. The members first elected as aforesaid shall be elected not later than the first day of September, nineteen hundred and thirty, and their several terms shall run from said date. On or before August first of the year in which the term of a member of the board will expire, his successor shall be elected in the same manner at a time and place, to be designated by the director of accounts, to serve for a term of three years from the first day of the September following. The retirement of any member of the board as a county commissioner shall thereupon create a vacancy in the board. All vacancies in the board shall be filled in the same manner as the original election for the unexpired term, and all commissioners elected to said board shall serve until the qualification of their respective successors. Each member of the board shall receive as compensation the sum of twenty-five dollars for each day's attendance at board meetings, in addition to his salary as county commissioner, and shall be reimbursed for expenses actually incurred in the transaction of the business of the board; provided, that the total amount paid for compensation as aforesaid shall not exceed twelve hundred and fifty dollars annually. In case of the absence or disability of a member of the board, the other members may designate an acting member from among the county commissioners of the counties represented by such member, to serve during his absence or disability, and such acting member shall receive compensation at the same rate as a member of the board.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 49 Classification of positions; ''salary'' defined

c. 35, § 49. Classification of positions; ''salary'' defined Section 49. Every office and position the salary of which is wholly payable from the treasury of one or more counties, or from funds administered by and through county officials, excluding the offices of county commissioners, the register of deeds and the assistant registers of deeds for the county of Suffolk, the sheriff of the county of Suffolk, and excluding offices and positions filled by appointment of the governor with the advice and consent of the council, and offices and positions payable under chapter twenty-nine A, shall be classified by the board in the manner provided by sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive, and every such office and position, now existing or hereafter established, shall be allocated by the board to its proper place in such classification. Offices and positions in the service of any department, board, school or hospital principally supported by the funds of the county or counties, or in the service of a hospital district established under sections seventy-eight to ninety-one, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and eleven, shall likewise be subject to classification as aforesaid. The word ''salary'', as used in this section, shall include compensation, however payable; but nothing in sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive, and nothing done under authority thereof, shall prevent any person from continuing to receive from a county such compensation as is fixed under authority of other provisions of law or as is expressly established by law.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 51 Personnel board; powers and duties; discharge of employees, etc.

c. 35, § 51. Personnel board; powers and duties; discharge of employees, etc. Section 51. The board shall (a) pass upon and finally adopt and put into effect, with such modifications, changes and additions as it shall deem proper, the classification and compensation plans and rules for their administration proposed by the director of accounts under section fifty; (b) pass upon, finally adopt and put into effect, with such modifications as it may deem proper, amendments to the classification and compensation plans and the rules for their administration as may be proposed from time to time under the provisions of section fifty or fifty-three; provided, that no such amendment not proposed by the director of accounts under section fifty shall be adopted except after a report which shall be made by said director within thirty days after submission to him; and provided, further, that an amendment proposed under section fifty-three and adopted by the board shall be effective only in the county whose county commissioners have proposed the amendment unless the county commissioners of four or more counties have joined in the proposal in which case it shall be effective in all counties, other than Suffolk and such other counties, if any, as shall under section fifty-six have ceased to be represented in the board; (c) pass upon and finally determine appeals relative to classification, as provided in section fifty-two; and (d) perform such other functions and duties as may be imposed upon it by sections forty-eight to fifty-five, inclusive. The board is hereby authorized and directed to establish and administer uniform rules and regulations governing leaves of absence, shift differentials and overtime for officers and employees subject to section forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive. Any employee subject to sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive, except superintendent and assistant superintendent of hospital, the chief of medical staff and the administrator at the Barnstable county hospital, superintendent and assistant superintendent of training school, superintendent and assistant superintendent of buildings, superintendent of industrial farm, superintendent of state reservation, director of agricultural school, director of extension service, master and keeper and assistant master and keeper of jail and house of correction, assistant registers of deeds, county health officer, county engineer and county dog officer, who has completed at least five years of service may not be discharged from such employment except for just cause and for reasons specifically given him in writing by the appointing authority. Before any such discharge is effected, the employee shall be given a full hearing before the appointing authority, of which hearing he shall have at least three days' written notice, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, from the appointing authority. Within two days, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, after completion of said hearing, the appointing authority shall give the employee affected a written notice of his decision, stating fully and specifically the reasons therefor. If within five days after receiving written notice of the decision of the appointing authority, the person so discharged shall so request in writing, he shall be given a hearing before the board. Said hearing shall be commenced in not less than three nor more than ten days, and shall be completed within thirty days after the filing of such request. The decision of the board shall be in writing and notice thereof shall be sent to all parties concerned within ten days after completion of the hearing. If the board finds that the action of the appointing authority was justified, such action shall be affirmed; otherwise, it shall be reversed and the person concerned shall be returned to his office or position without loss of compensation. Within thirty days after action by the board on such a hearing, the person who was discharged may, if said action was affirmed by the board, bring a petition in the district court within the judicial district of which such person resides, addressed to the justice of the court, praying that the action of the appointing authority and of the board in discharging him may be reviewed by the court, and, after such notice to the appointing authority and the board as the court deems necessary, it shall hear witnesses, review such action, and determine whether or not upon all the evidence such action was justified. If the court finds that such action was justified the action of the appointing authority and of the board shall be affirmed; otherwise they shall be reversed and the petitioner shall be reinstated in his office or position without loss of compensation. The decision of the court shall be final and conclusive upon the parties.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 51A Definitions

c. 35, § 51A. Definitions Section 51A. The following words as used in this and the following sections and in the classification and compensation plans shall have the following meanings:— ''Board'', the county personnel board; ''Class'' or ''title'', a group of positions forming part of the classified service established by sections forty-eight to fifty-five, inclusive, and sufficiently similar in respect to duties and responsibilities that the same descriptive title may be used to designate all positions allocated to the class, the same general entrance qualifications may be required of incumbents of positions in the class, the same general tests of fitness may be used to choose qualified employees and the same schedule of pay may be made to apply under the same or substantially the same employment conditions; ''Class allocation'', the official initial placing of a class in a job group in the salary schedule; ''Class reallocation'', the official subsequent placing of a class in a job group in the salary schedule; ''Employee'', employee or officer, unless the latter is otherwise specifically exempted; ''Increment'', the amount of dollars between any two consecutive steps-in-range in the same job group in the salary schedule; ''Job group'', a unit of the salary schedule which includes all classes in the position classification plan which are sufficiently comparable in value as regards duties and responsibilities, irrespective of the field of work of which they form a part, so that the same salary range may be made to apply to all classes in the same unit of the salary schedule; ''Position'', a job which may be held by an individual employee. There may be more than one position in the same class; ''Position allocation'', the initial official placing of a position in a class forming part of the position classification plan; ''Position classification plan'', the plan resulting from position allocations pertaining to the personal services of the counties; ''Position reallocation'', any subsequent official placing of a position in a class forming part of the position classification plan; ''Salary range'', a range of salaries from a specified minimum to a specified maximum amount as applied to a job group; ''Specification'', a description of the characteristic duties and requirements of a single class; ''Step-in-range'' or ''increment step'', one of the divisions of a salary range in a job group at which an employee is compensated.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 51B Salary schedules

c. 35, § 51B. Salary schedules Section 51B. (1) Said classification and compensation plans shall be amended so that each office and position shall be allocated by said board to the proper job group in the following salary schedule; except that, in the case of elected officials, patient help, part time officers or employees, or in unusual circumstances, the board may fix salaries or wages for individual positions upon notice to the county commissioners and employing authority, and in such cases the positions shall not be allocated in said salary schedule: (1A) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1), in any county, which by vote of the county commissioners, accepts the provisions of this paragraph said classification and compensation plans shall be amended so that each office and position shall be allocated by the board to the proper job group in the following salary schedules; except that, in the case of elected officials, court stenographers, patient help, part-time officers or employees, or in unusual circumstances, the board may fix salaries or wages for individual positions upon notice to the county commissioners and employing authority, and in such cases the positions shall not be allocated in said salary schedules: (2) Except as otherwise provided by law, after a person has been allocated to the above salary schedule, he must render a minimum of one year of service in the step-in-range of the job group to which his office or position has been allocated before he can be moved into the next higher step-in-range of the same job group; provided, however, when computing the date when salary increments shall become due after the initial allocation to a step-in-range, subsequent steps shall be due annually on the anniversary of the effective date of assignment to a rate within a salary grade in the salary schedule in effect immediately prior to July first, nineteen hundred and fifty-seven; and, provided further, in the event a person has already served a period in excess of twelve months in said step-in-range in the salary schedule in effect prior to said date, the increment step to the next step-in-range shall be due immediately upon assignment to a step-in-range on said date, and any subsequent steps shall be due annually on the effective date of the salary schedule. (3) Daily rates of per diem employees shall be computed on the basis of their assigned job groups. (4) Said board may permit the recruitment of employees in a job group at a rate above the minimum; provided, that said board has first determined, on request of the appointing authority and the county commissioners, that an emergency exists because of lack of sufficient employees, lack of housing facilities, isolation from regular transportation facilities, or other unusual conditions. Any such permit shall remain in effect until rescinded by said board, but shall not be in effect longer than one year unless renewed in like manner and with like approval. Whenever said board permits the recruitment of employees in a job group at a rate above the minimum rate in said job group, all employees in the same classification in the same county who are below such rate of recruitment shall be advanced to said higher rate in the salary schedule; provided, that the board may, by special vote declare that such increase for other employees shall take effect only in a particular institution or specific area. (4A) Said board may permit the recruitment of agents or instructors appointed for purposes specified in section forty-three of chapter one hundred and twenty-eight at a rate above the minimum and within the grade to which the requested position is allocated, upon certification of the appointing authority that the person to be employed has served satisfactorily in a comparable position within or without the commonwealth for a period of time equivalent to the period required by the salary schedule had such service been entirely in the service of the county, provided, that said board shall not approve the recruitment of any person at a rate above the minimum of the grade if such proposed employee has been in the service of any county within a twelve month period prior to the date of the proposed employment. (4B) Said board may permit the recruitment of all professional vocational and technical personnel, including teachers, administrators and supervisory staff of the Bristol county agricultural school, the Essex agricultural and technical institute and the Norfolk county agricultural school, at a rate above the minimum but within the grade at which the position is allocated, upon certification of the appointing authority that the person to be employed has served satisfactorily in a comparable position within or without the commonwealth for a period of time equivalent to the period required by the salary schedule had such service been entirely in the service of the county. (5) When an employee is initially placed in the salary schedule, or is advanced in his job group, or is transferred, reallocated or promoted to a new job group, such employee, for subsequent step-rate increases, shall be credited with the number of years of service that corresponds to his job group and rate in the salary schedule. (6) Whenever an employee receives a promotion to a position in a higher job group, his rate shall be the next higher rate in said higher job group, or the second next higher rate therein if such new salary rate would result in an increase of salary smaller in amount than the salary increment for such higher job group. (7) An employee who is demoted to a position in a lower job group shall receive the salary to which his period of service would entitle him if his service had been rendered in the lower group, but not less than the employee would have been entitled to had his service been continuously in the lower group. (8) Rates of compensation in the salary schedule are for work hours as provided by the rules or regulations of said board; provided, however, that such rules or regulations shall establish the circumstances under which the county commissioners may relieve an employee or employees of such hours of work without reduction in salary. (9) An employee serving on a part-time basis as certified by the appointing authority shall be entitled to the provisions of this chapter in the proportion that his service bears to full-time service.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 52 Classification and allocation of offices and positions; review

c. 35, § 52. Classification and allocation of offices and positions; review Section 52. The classification and allocation of offices and positions required to be classified and allocated by section forty-nine shall be according to their respective duties and responsibilities. The classification shall be established by specifications defining for each office or position or class of offices or positions the title, duties and responsibilities thereof. The titles used in such classification shall be used for pay rolls, in the records of county commissioners, county treasurers, the director of accounts and of the board, and in all budget and appropriation records, but for working and administrative purposes within a department and for public convenience other titles may be used. Incumbents of offices and positions so classified shall perform, as far as practicable, the duties prescribed for the class to which they are assigned, but nothing in sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive, shall be construed to limit or to restrict the county commissioners or other administrative authorities having charge of a department in assigning other work to such incumbents. Any person aggrieved by the allocation or classification of his office or position or by any other action or by any failure to act, under any provision of sections forty-eight to fifty-five, inclusive, may appeal in writing to the board. Such appeal shall be filed with the county commissioners of the county in which the office or position is established, who shall forward the appeal to the board, accompanied by a report and their recommendations thereon. The board shall refer the appeal to the director of accounts, who shall investigate the merits thereof and report to the board. The board, after giving all parties interested an opportunity to be heard, shall pass upon the appeal and its decision shall be final and binding upon all such parties, including the county commissioners and the person appealing.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 53 County commissioners; powers and duties

c. 35, § 53. County commissioners; powers and duties Section 53. The county commissioners of the several counties shall (1) keep on file in their respective offices the duplicate roster of officers and employees of their county, furnished by the director under section fifty; (2) receive and forward to the board, with their report and recommendations thereon, appeals, as provided in section fifty-two; (3) receive and act upon recommendations for salary increases, as provided in section fifty-four, and (4) perform such other functions and duties as may be imposed upon them by said sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive. They may also recommend to the board amendments to the classification and compensation plans and to the rules relating thereto. They shall be entitled to be heard in the determination of questions of classification and allocation on appeal to the board, or otherwise.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 53A Director of affirmative action; affirmative action plan; reports

c. 35, § 53A. Director of affirmative action; affirmative action plan; reports Section 53A. The county commissioners of each county shall designate or appoint a director of affirmative action who shall be the chief affirmative action officer for their respective county. Said person so designated shall not be a county commissioner. The person so designated shall presently be employed by said county. The person to be designated or appointed to said position shall possess: three years full-time or equivalent part-time experience in personnel administration or in a related field, or in a program or position in which their duties significantly involve affirmative action programs, or significant involvement in a community organization dealing with minority employment, or has earned a baccalaureate degree from a recognized college or university in the field of public administration, business administration, personnel administration, urban planning, social work, counseling, or in any related field of study or has successfully completed courses toward a graduate degree in the above fields. The person so designated shall receive no additional compensation for such appointment, and the county shall not consider the position held prior to such appointment vacant and shall not hire any additional employee in consideration of this appointment. In addition, said person shall also have a knowledge of the problems of minorities, females, and other affected groups when seeking employment, a knowledge of the elements of affirmative action programs, laws, regulations and guidelines, a knowledge of the various personnel selection processes, a knowledge of social psychology and its application, a knowledge of interviewing and counseling techniques, the ability to analyze written and statistical data in conjunction with planning abilities, good writing skills and oral expression, the ability to coordinate effectively with other public and private agencies, and the administrative skills to operate and supervise the office of affirmative action. The director of affirmative action shall report to and be under the direct supervision of the county commissioners. Said director, with the assistance of the county personnel director, shall develop a county affirmative action plan. The purpose of this plan shall be to highlight equal employment opportunity discrepancies and to establish affirmative measures to ensure equal opportunity in the areas of hiring, promotion, demotion, transfer, recruitment, layoff, termination, rate of compensation, inservice or apprenticeship training programs, grievance procedures, and all terms and conditions of employment. Such affirmative actions shall include efforts required to remedy the effects of present and past discriminatory patterns and practices, as well as actions necessary to guarantee equal employment opportunity for all people. Said director shall also monitor all county contracts with outside vendors to ensure that every effort is made to utilize minority and women vendors and that contractors engaged for county work have instituted their own affirmative action plans. Said director shall, from time to time, but at least every three months, report to the commissioners of the progress being made by all appointing and hiring authorities in meeting their affirmative action plans. Said director, with the approval of the county commissioners, may designate certain employees as department or office affirmative action representatives. Said affirmative action representatives shall monitor the implementation of and compliance with the affirmative action plan in their departments or offices and report on same for said director.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 54 Newly elected officers, etc., to receive minimum rate; exceptions; recommendations for promotions, etc.

c. 35, § 54. Newly elected officers, etc., to receive minimum rate; exceptions; recommendations for promotions, etc. Section 54. Except as otherwise specifically provided, newly elected or appointed officers or employees shall receive the minimum rate in the salary grade to which the office or position has been allocated. Recommendations for increases in the salaries of officers and employees under the salary schedule, shall be submitted in the first instance to the county commissioners of the various counties by the proper authority, and if approved by them and by said board shall take effect upon notice by said commissioners to said board. If said proper authority fails or refuses to recommend step-rate increases as provided in the salary schedule he shall notify said commissioners giving his reasons for such failure or refusal and shall present a copy of such notice to each employee affected. If said commissioners do not approve a proposed increase in salary under the salary schedule, they shall report the recommendation of the head of the department or institution with their own recommendation to said board whose decision shall be final, except that said board shall not grant an increase in salary greater than that recommended by the head of the department or institution.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 55 Salaries to be full compensation; overtime pay, etc.

c. 35, § 55. Salaries to be full compensation; overtime pay, etc. Section 55. Except as otherwise expressly provided, all salaries established under the authority of sections forty-eight to fifty-six, inclusive, and the salaries established by section ninety-four of chapter two hundred and twenty-one, shall be in full compensation for all services rendered, and every officer or employee shall pay all fees and other moneys received directly or indirectly in the course of his public employment, into the county treasury; provided, that nothing contained in said sections shall prevent the reimbursement of actual and other expenses necessary for the transaction of public business or the payment of overtime approved by the county commissioners, upon evidence of necessity therefor.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 56 Suffolk county; applicability of act; classification agencies in other counties

c. 35, § 56. Suffolk county; applicability of act; classification agencies in other counties Section 56. For Suffolk county, the duties prescribed for the board by section fifty-one, except clause (c) thereof, shall be performed by the city council of the city of Boston, subject to the provisions of the charter of said city; the duties prescribed by sections forty-nine to fifty-five, inclusive, for the director of accounts shall be performed by the budget commissioner of said city, and all other duties prescribed and powers conferred by said sections forty-nine to fifty-five shall be performed by the mayor of said city. Any other county is hereby authorized, subject in all respects to the approval of the governor and council, to establish agencies for the purpose of establishing and administering classification and compensation plans in accordance with the provisions of sections forty-nine to fifty-five, inclusive, and agencies so established shall have the powers granted by said sections to the board and the director of accounts. Upon the establishment of such agency, such county shall cease to be represented in the board or to participate in the election of its members, and its obligation to contribute toward the expenses incurred by the board and by the director under section fifty shall terminate.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 57 Deferred compensation program for employees; authorized investments; requisites; limitations

c. 35, § 57. Deferred compensation program for employees; authorized investments; requisites; limitations Section 57. The treasurer of any county, on behalf of that county, may contract with an employee to defer a portion of that employee's compensation and may, for the purposes of funding a deferred compensation program for said employee, established in accordance with the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, (the ''Code''), invest the deferred portion of the employee's income in a life insurance or annuity contract, mutual fund, or a bank investment trust. The treasurer shall, before making any such investment, solicit bids from insurance companies authorized to conduct business within the commonwealth pursuant to chapter one hundred and seventy-five, mutual fund managers, and banks, which bids shall be sealed, and opened at a time and place designated by the treasurer. Any bid submitted by an insurance company, mutual fund, or bank investment trust to fund the deferred compensation program shall, where applicable, clearly indicate the interest rate which shall be paid on the deferred funds, any commissions which will be paid to the salesmen, any load imposed for the purpose of administering the funds, mortality projections, expected payouts, tax implications for participating employees and such other information as the treasurer may require. Any contract entered into between an employee and the county pursuant to this section shall include all such information in terms the employee can reasonably be expected to understand. As used in this section the word ''employee'' shall have the same meaning as ''employee'' in section one of chapter thirty-two and shall include consultants and independent contractors who are natural persons paid by the county. Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, the treasurer shall not be required to solicit bids to invest the deferred portion of an employee's income provided: (a) the treasurer elects to invest such funds in the same investment products as provided through the deferred compensation plan for employees of the commonwealth administered by the state treasurer, provided such plan resulted from the solicitation of bids in accordance with bidding requirements comparable to those required under this section; or (b) the treasurer elects to invest such funds in the investment products offered pursuant to a plan developed through a competitive selection process, provided that such plan resulted from the solicitation of bids by a group of any combination of three or more city, town, county or public authority treasurers acting as a ''Common Group'' for purposes of soliciting such proposals in accordance with bidding requirements comparable to those required under this section. An employee may defer compensation so long as such deferral is the lesser of seven thousand five hundred dollars or thirty-three and one-third per cent of his includible compensation for a taxable year, except that for one or more of the last three taxable years ending before he attains normal retirement age under the plan, the employee may defer the lesser of fifteen thousand dollars or the sum of (1) seven thousand five hundred dollars or thirty-three and one-third per cent of his includible compensation for a such year, plus (2) a sum not more than the total deferrable compensation for prior taxable years that had not in fact been deferred in such years. Such deferred compensation program shall be in addition to and not a part of the retirement program or pension system as provided under said chapter thirty-two and any other benefit program provided by law for such employee. Any compensation deferred under such a plan shall continue to be included as regular compensation, as defined in section one of said chapter thirty-two, for the purpose of computing the retirement and pension benefits earned by any such employee, but any compensation so deferred shall not be included in the computation of any taxes on behalf of any such employee.

M.G.L. c. 35, § 57A Employee individual retirement accounts

c. 35, § 57A. Employee individual retirement accounts Section 57A. The treasurer of any county, on behalf of that county, may contract with an employee to make contributions for and in the name of such employee, from amounts otherwise payable to the employee as current compensation, to an Individual Retirement Account (''IRA'') by such employee established in accordance with the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, (the ''Code''). The participating employee may invest that portion of his income so contributed to an IRA in an annuity contract, mutual fund, bank investment trust or other investment authorized by the Code. Before making such deduction, the treasurer shall be required to solicit bids from insurance companies authorized to conduct business within the commonwealth pursuant to chapter one hundred and seventy-five, mutual fund managers, and banks which bids shall be sealed, and opened at a time and place designated by the treasurer. Any bid submitted by an insurance company, mutual fund, or bank investment trust seeking investment of the IRA contribution shall, where applicable, clearly indicate the interest rate which shall be paid on the invested funds, any commissions which will be paid to the salesmen, any load imposed for the purpose of administering the funds, expected payouts, tax implications for participating employees and such other information as the treasurer may require. Upon the treasurer's determining which provider offers the product or products most beneficial to the employee in each category for which bids were solicited, the treasurer may offer such employee the opportunity to establish an IRA with one or more such providers. The employee who wishes to invest his IRA funds with any such provider, or combination of providers, may authorize the treasurer to deduct from amounts otherwise payable to the employee, at one time or on a periodic basis, amounts to be paid into the employee's IRA. If the employee so elects, the treasurer shall pay to the providers the amount designated by the employee, in the name of the employee, to the employee's IRA. Amounts so paid to the providers for the employee's IRA account shall belong exclusively to the employee. Except as otherwise provided herein, the treasurer may restrict an employee's right to contract to have contributions made to an IRA through deductions and payments by the treasurer, to those providers selected as the result of the competitive bidding process outlined herein, but the authority conferred upon the treasurer shall not be construed to restrict or limit the right of any employee to establish one or more IRAs with such banks, insurance companies, or similar authorized institutions as the employee may choose in any manner other than through an authorized deduction by the treasurer of a portion of the employees compensation as outlined herein. Any contract entered into between an employee and the commonwealth pursuant to this section shall include all information in terms the employee can reasonably be expected to understand. As used in this section the word ''employee'' shall have the same meaning as ''employee'' in section one of chapter thirty-two and shall also include consultants and independent contractors who are natural persons paid by the county. An employee may contribute a portion of his compensation to an IRA under the program outlined herein so long as such contribution, for an employee who is single, is the lesser of two thousand dollars or one hundred per cent of his compensation for a taxable year, and, for an employee who is married, the contribution is the lesser of two thousand two hundred and fifty dollars or one hundred per cent of his compensation for a taxable year. If an employee has any compensation deferred under a deferred compensation plan for employees of the county, if one is established by the treasurer under section fifty-seven, then the aggregate amount of such deferred compensation deduction and amounts contributed to such employee's IRA shall not exceed the limits imposed upon such combined deduction and contribution by the Code. Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, the treasurer shall not be required to solicit bids to invest the contributed portion of an employee's income into the employee's IRA provided: (a) the treasurer is authorized by the employee to pay that portion of the employee's compensation into the employee's IRA in the same investment products as provided through a deferred compensation or IRA plan for employees of the commonwealth administered by the state treasurer, or a deferred compensation plan for employees of the county administered by the treasurer, provided such plan resulted from the solicitation of bids in accordance with bidding requirements comparable to those required under this section; or (b) the treasurer is authorized by the employee to pay that portion of the employee's compensation into the employee's IRA in the investment products offered pursuant to a deferred compensation or IRA plan developed through a competitive selection process, provided that such plan resulted from the solicitation of bids by a group of any combination of three or more city, town, county or public authority treasurers acting as a ''Common Group'' for purposes of soliciting such proposals in accordance with bidding requirements comparable to those required under this section. Such IRA plan shall be in addition to and not a part of the retirement program or pension system as provided under said chapter thirty-two and any other benefit program provided by law for such employee. Any compensation contributed by the employee to his IRA under such a plan shall continue to be included as regular compensation, as defined in section one of said chapter thirty-two, for the purpose of computing the retirement and pension benefits earned by any such employee, but any compensation so contributed shall not be included in the computation of federal taxes but shall be included in the computation of state taxes withheld on behalf of any such employee.

Source: Massachusetts General Court (malegislature.gov)URL: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleVI/Chapter35Fetched: 10/20/2026