who shall not receive a salary for such services if he be a member, and who shall be sworn to the faithful discharge of his duties. boards and officers, how open to inspec SECT. 9. It shall be the duty of every board or officer in Records of charge of a department to preserve complete records of the transactions of such department in books kept specially for kept. the purpose, and files of its papers. Such records of boards shall be made up on the day of the meeting by the clerk of such meeting, and be read and approved at the next meeting, and shall give the names of the members present at meetings, and their votes and proceedings thereat. All such Certain records records and files, and the records and files of the public and files to be institutions at South Boston and at Deer Island, of the city tion. hospital (except the medical records), the public library, the R. O. p. 12. water department, the fire department, the overseers of the poor, the Mount Hope cemetery, and the East Boston ferries, shall, under the supervision of the several boards having charge of said institutions and departments, be open to public inspection and examination, and any person may take copies therefrom; but this shall not apply to matters which the corporation counsel affirms should not be made public. how fixed. SECT. 10. All officers and subordinates, whose election or Compensation of appointment is provided for by ordinance, shall, except where city officers, it is otherwise expressly provided, receive such compensation R. O. p. 12. for their services as the city council may from time to time determine. When by reason of death, resignation, or other cause, there is a vacancy in an office which is required to be filled by appointment by the mayor, subject to confirmation by the board of aldermen, the person designated by the mayor to perform temporarily the duties thereof shall receive Compensation of the compensation attaching thereto; provided, however, that officers pro if he is already an officer of the city he shall receive, in addition to his regular salary as such, only such compensation as the city council shall determine. tempore. officers to make quarterly received, etc. R. O. pp. 12, 13. SECT. 11. All boards and officers of the city, other than Boards and the city collector, who are entitled to receive money for or on behalf of the city, shall in the months of February, May, reports of August, and November in each year lay before the city money council statements of the whole amount of money received at their respective offices during the three preceding months, specifying in detail the sums received from each source of income. They shall also report any amounts which remain. due to the city and unpaid, and shall report, generally, such other information as they may possess concerning the matters to which said statements relate. sold, accounts to SECT. 12. When any board or officer in charge of a de- Articles, etc., partment sells articles or materials belonging to the city, or be kept of and does, or causes to be done, for any person or corporation bills to be made, work for which money becomes or will become due to the etc. R. O. p. 75. Bills for city col lector to be sent to him in alpha city, he shall enter in books to be kept for the purpose all such sales and all such work done, with the prices therefor, and shall forthwith make out bills for the same and deliver them to the city collector for collection. SECT. 13. Every department whose bills are to be collected by the city collector shall, except where otherwise probetical lists, by vided, send to him alphabetical lists, by wards, of such bills entered in proper detail in suitable books, and all columns of figures shall be added up and carried forward continuously to the end of such list. wards, etc. Certificates of abatements, etc., to city collector, etc. Refunding of abatements. Bills and demands against city to be sent to city auditor monthly, etc. City property not to be sold, except., etc. SECT. 14. Any board or officer in charge of a department making an abatement of any assessment, betterment, rate, or due which has been committed to the city collector, shall give to the person interested a certificate thereof, directed to the said collector. If the latter officer holds the bill unpaid he shall amend the amount due accordingly; if it has been paid he shall give a certificate of that fact; and the city treasurer, on presentation of both certificates, shall refund the amount of such abatement to the person who paid the bill. SECT. 15. Every board or officer in charge of a department shall, on or before the twentieth day of each month, send to the city auditor all the bills or demands against the city incurred by such department, which have been received and approved within the preceding month. Such bills shall be marked as approved by a vote of the board or by the officer in charge of the department, and shall be accompanied by such customary vouchers, schedules, or requisitions, as the auditor may require, and also by evidence of the votes, contracts, or other authority under which the expenditure was incurred. SECT. 16. No board or officer in charge of a department exchanged, etc., shall sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of any property of the city, exceeding in amount the sum of twenty-five dollars, without the written consent of the mayor; nor, in case the value exceeds five hundred dollars, without also the authority of an order of the city council first obtained. Annual reports of departments. City officers to subscribe to acceptance of office. SECT. 17. Every officer or board in charge of a department shall, in the month of January, unless otherwise specified, submit to the mayor a detailed report of the acts and expenditures of such department for, and abatements of bills rendered by it in, the preceding year; and the mayor shall transmit the same to the city council. SECT. 18. Every officer of the city hereafter appointed in accordance with section three, shall be notified by the city clerk of his appointment, and shall subscribe, in a book to be Ord. 1883, ch. 10. kept by the city clerk for the purpose, a statement of his acceptance of his office on the conditions expressed in the ordinances of the city. Assistants, SECT. 19. clerks, laborers, All assistants, clerks, laborers, and other em ployed when, etc. ployees, not specially named in these ordinances, for whose etc., may be emcompensation and employment an appropriation has been made, may be employed so far as a necessity exists, and shall be deemed subordinates of the respective boards and officers in whose departments they serve. annually of SECT. 20. Nothing in these ordinances shall be construed Appointments to make it obligatory on the mayor to appoint heads of heads of departdepartments annually, if he prefers to avail himself of the ments not obli provisions of section four of chapter two hundred and gatory. sixty-six of the acts of the year eighteen hundred and eighty-five. NOTES. The general power to provide for the appointment of officers is given to the city council by section 38 of the city charter, which enacts that "the city council may provide for the appointment or election of all necessary officers for the good government of said city, not otherwise provided for, and may prescribe their duties and fix their compensation." So far as this authorized the city council to provide for the election of officers, it is repealed by St. 1885, c. 266, §§ 1, 2, except as to "the city messenger, clerk of committees of the city council, and such other clerks and attendants as may be employed by the city council, or either branch thereof." All other officers established by ordinance are to be appointed by the mayor, subject to confirmation by the board of aldermen," for such terms of service, respectively, as are or may be fixed by law or ordinance," and may be removed by the mayor for such cause as he shall deem sufficient, and shall assign in his order for removal." St. 1885, c. 266, § 1. All subordinates established by ordinance in the several departments shall be appointed absolutely by their respective superiors (St. 1885, c. 266, § 5), except the assistant assessors, who shall be subject to confirmation by the mayor (St. 1885. c. 266, § 2); and they may be removed by their respective superiors "for such cause as they may deem sufficient, and shall assign in their order for removal." St. 1885, c. 266, §§ 2, 5. For the general provisions of law governing the selection of officers and laborers in the service of cities under rules prepared by the civil service commissioners, see St. 1884, c. 320. As to the constitutionality of that act, and the validity of the rules established by the commissioners under it, see opinion of the justices, 138 Mass. 601, 603-4. "Unless otherwise provided by constitution or statute, the power of removal is incident to the power of appointment." Gray, C.J., in Murphy v. Webster, 131 Mass. 482, 488. 66 It is further provided by St. 1881, c. 229, § 1, that the city council may pass ordinances prescribing the duties and fixing the compensation of officers for whose appointment or election they are now or may hereafter be authorized to provide." This statute also provided that an officer might be empowered by ordinance to hold office for one year from the day in the year of his election or appointment fixed by ordinance, and until his successor shall be elected or appointed and qualified." 66 Section 43 of the city charter provides that "no person shall be eligible to any office, the salary of which is payable out of the city treasury, who, at the time of his appointment, shall be a member of either the board of aldermen or the common council, and neither the mayor nor any alderman or member of the common council shall, at the same time, hold any office of emolument under the city government." St. 1884, c. 115, makes members of the city council ineligible, during the term for which they are chosen, to any office the salary of which is payable from the city treasury. As to the eligibility of members of city governments generally to offices not of emolument, see P. S. c. 28, § 23; but it is now provided by St. 1885, c. 266, § 3, that no member of the city council of Boston shall, during the term for which he is elected, be appointed to or hold any office filled by appointment by the mayor subject to confirmation by the board of aldermen, or by election by the city council, whether one of emolument or otherwise. For statute provisions forbidding members of city governments and the officers and agents of cities to be interested, directly or indirectly, in contracts with the city, see P. S. c. 205, § 12. For other statutes relative to the taking of bribes, commissions, promises, etc., by city officers, see P. S. c. 205, §§ 9, 10, 11, 13. Where a city council had unreasonably neglected to proceed to the election of an officer whom the city ordinances required to be elected annually, the supreme court issued a mandamus to compel such council to proceed to an election. Attorney General v. City Council of Lawrence, 111 Mass. 90. It would seem that the same process would, upon seasonable application, issue against the mayor in the event of his unreasonable neglect to send a nomination, under St. 1885, c. 266, § 1, to the board of aldermen to fill an existing vacancy. See Attorney General v. Mayor of New Bedford, 128 Mass. 312; Farnsworth v. Boston, 121 Mass. 173, 177, and Braconnier v. Packard, 136 Mass. 50. By section 49 of the city charter it is provided that when " appointments to office are directed to be made by the mayor and aldermen, they shall be made by the mayor, by and with the advice and consent of the aldermen, and such officers may be removed by the mayor." By P. S. c. 28, § 5, it is provided that "when appointments are to be made by a mayor and aldermen, the mayor shall have the exclusive power of nomination, subject to confirmation or rejection by the board of aldermen ; and if a person so nominated is rejected, the mayor shall make another nomination within a month from the time of such rejection.” The special provision that the city treasurer and city collector" may be removed by the mayor with the approval of the city council" (St. 1875, c. 176, § 1, 2), is repealed by St. 1885, c. 266, § 1, 12, which takes away from the city council all participation in the removal of officers, and vests it absolutely in the mayor. The members of the board of police are appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the council, and are removable by the governor, with the advice and consent of the council, for such cause as he shall deem sufficient, and shall express in the order of removal (St. 1885, c. 323, § 1). The inspector of buildings may be removed by the mayor for malfeasance, incapacity, or neglect of duty" by virtue of St. 1885, c. 374, § 2, which is subsequent in date to St. 1885, c. 266. The provision of St. 1857, c. 38, § 4, that members of the board of directors of public institutions may be removed by the city council “for cause shown," is superseded by St. 1885, c. 266, §§ 1, 12, which makes them removable by the mayor alone, for such cause as he shall deem sufficient and shall assign in his order for removal. Provision for the performance of the duties of the mayor in case of his death, resignation, absence, or inability to perform the duties of his office, is made by St. 1882, c. 182. As to the effect of the repeal of an ordinance upon the right of an officer appointed for a fixed term to compensation, see Kimball v. Salem, 111 Mass. 87. Sections 2 and 10. Pending confirmation of an officer by the board of aldermen, it would seem to be a necessary incident to the vesting of the executive power of the city in the mayor (St. 1885, e. 266, § 6), that the latter has the power to designate who shall temporarily perform the duties of the office. As to remedy by writ of mandamus, in case of mayor's neglect or refusal to make nominations for vacancy, see cases cited supra. SECT. 9. For similar provision, see P. S. c. 37, § 13. Section. 4. New bonds required in case of 5. Custody of bonds. 6. City clerk to furnish blanks for SECTION 1. The several officers hereinafter named shall Bonds to be given by certain give bonds to the city with sufficient sureties and with penal officers. sums as follows, namely, the city treasurer, one hundred R. O. p. 14. and fifty thousand dollars; the city collector, seventy-five thousand dollars; the city auditor, five thousand dollars; the city clerk, five thousand dollars; the city registrar, five thousand dollars; the water-registrar, five thousand dollars; the harbor-master, two thousand dollars; the superintendent of Faneuil Hall market, five thousand dollars; the superintendent of health, ten thousand dollars; the superintendent of public buildings, five thousand dollars; the superintendent of sewers, five thousand dollars; the superintendent of streets, five thousand dollars; the superintendent of lamps, five thousand dollars; the superintendent of printing, five thousand dollars; each sealer of weights and measures, three thousand dollars; the chief weigher and inspector of vessels and ballast, one thousand dollars; and every person appointed to receive and collect tolls at the ferries, five thousand dollars, with sureties satisfactory to the board of directors of the ferries. SECT. 2. Each of said bonds shall be in such form as the corporation counsel shall approve, and shall be conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties of the office which is to be filled by the party giving it. The bonds of the city treasurer and the city collector shall be conditioned further for the safe custody of the money and other property intrusted to them and to the officers appointed by them; the bond of the city auditor shall be conditioned further for the delivery to his successor or to the city clerk of all the books, accounts, papers, and other documents and property which belong to his office; and in the bond of any officer whose duty requires him to make contracts, purchases, or sales in behalf of the city, there shall be a condition, in substance, that he will not directly nor indirectly, for himself or for others, or by others in trust for him or on his account, have any interest or concern in a contract, agreement, purchase, or sale made by him. in behalf of the city. The sureties on all said bonds, except Form of bonds. R. O. p. 14. |