Hartman, 010913 INAGO, AGO 2013-2

• Case Date: January 09, 2013
• Court: Indiana

Mr. Bruce A. Hartman, CPA AGO 2013-2 Official Opinion No. 2013-2 State of Indiana Office of the Attorney General January 9, 2013          Mr. Bruce A. Hartman, CPA          State Examiner          State Board of Accounts          302 W. Washington St., Room E418          Indianapolis, IN 46204          RE: Disbursement of county funds with county council appropriation          Dear Mr. Hartman:          You requested an opinion from our office regarding the disbursement of county funds without an appropriation by the county council. Specifically, you asked whether a board of county commissioners, by use of home rule powers in Ind. Code Chpt. 36-1-3, may adopt an ordinance that would be sufficient to be an exception under Ind. Code § 36-2-5-2(b) that would allow a county to disburse monies without appropriation by the county council. Your opinion request included an example of a local ordinance that purports to authorize ongoing disbursement of funds from an Information Technology Fun without county council approval or appropriation. We have reviewed the relevant authorities in this regard and concluded that, despite the fact that local governments have broad home rule powers, such an ordinance is not permissible under Indiana law.          BRIEF ANSWER          Ind. Code § 36-2-5-2(b) provides that “money may be paid out of the [County] treasury only under an appropriation made by the [County] fiscal body, except as otherwise provided by law.” A board of county commissioners may not create an exception to the appropriation requirement in Ind. Code § 36-2-5-2(b) by passing an ordinance under home rule powers granted by Ind. Code Chpt. 36-1-3. Such an ordinance is not within the scope of exceptions “otherwise provided by law.”          ANALYSIS          Indiana’s Home Rule Act, codified at Ind. Code Chpt. 36-1-3, grants to units of local government “all the powers they need for the effective operation of government as to local affairs.” Ind. Code § 36-1-3-2. The Home Rule Act abrogates Indiana’s long-standing rule of strict...