Mississippi Advisory Opinions July 16, 1982: 19820716 (July 16, 1982)

Advisory Opinion Text

Honorable Willie L. Crawford, Jr.

Tunica County Circuit Clerk

Post Office Box 184

Tunica, Mississippi 38676

Re: Elections - Registrars

Dear Mr. Crawford:

Attorney General Allain has received your letter of request and has assigned it to me for research and reply.

Your letter states:

“As Circuit Clerk and Registrar for Tunica County, Mississippi I request your opinion on the following matter:

“I submitted a bill to the board of supervisors for ten days at $40.00 per day as compensation for assisting the executive committees in preparing for the recent primary elections (almost the entire preparation for the elections was performed by my deputy and myself).

“On the bill I cited section 23-5-183 of the Mississippi Code at the applicable section, but the board is of the opinion that this section does not give them the authority to compensate me for assisting the executive committees. Subsequently, I have researched the matter further and now believe that section 23-5-183 in conjunction with section 23-5-53(3) are the governing sections.”

Mississippi Code annotated § 23-5-53(3) provides as follows:

“As compensation for their services in assisting the county election commissioners in performance of their duties in the revision of the registration books and the pollbooks of the several election districts of the several counties and in “assisting the election commissioners, executive committees or boards of supervisors in connection with any new election, the registrar shall receive the same daily per diem and limitation on meeting days as provided for the board of election commissioners as set out in sections 23-5-81 and 23-5-183 to be paid from the general fund of the county.”

Section 23-5-183, Mississippi Code of 1972, Annotated, and amended, as shown at the bottom of page 233 of the 1981 pocket part, was amended by § 3 of Chapter 487 of the Laws of 1979, which amendment was approved by the United States Attorney General on July 6, 1979. This statute, except for the annual meeting the third Monday in March of each year as provided in § 23-5-81, supra , found on page 221 of the 1981 pocket part (copies of said statutes enclosed), governs the compensation of election commissioners for their work in conducting an election.

In response to your inquiry, it is the opinion of this office that the circuit clerk as registrar is entitled to compensation at the rate of $40.00 per day for each day worked, provided said clerk was actually empllyed in the performance of his official duties; namely, preparing for the Democratic and Republican Primary Elections of June 1, 1982, by revising the registration books and the pollbooks of the several election districts of the county and in assisting the county executive committees, all as contemplated by § 23-5-53(3), supra.

The maximum number of days for which a registrar may be paid is set out in § 23-5-183, supra , and is dependent upon the number of qualified electors of a particular county

Very truly yours,

Bill Allain Attorney General.