Riley v. Thompson

SHENK, J.

The petitioner seeks a writ of mandate to compel the respondents as members of and constituting the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the ports of San Francisco, Mare Island, and Benicia to account to him as controller of the state of California for and to pay into the state treasury all moneys received by the respondents pursuant to section 2460 of the Political Code during the months of September, October, and November, 1923.

The respondent board was created by an act of the legislature approved March 22, 1870 (Stats. 1869-70, p. 344). In 1872 this act in all its essential respects was codified and is found in sections 2429--2470 of the Political Code. Section 12 of the act was substantially re-enacted in section 2460 of the Political Code, the pertinent part of which is as follows: “Every pilot of the harbor of San Francisco, Mare Island, Vallejo, and Benicia must, once in each month, upon blanks to be furnished to them by the board of pilot commissioners, render a verified account to the board of all moneys received by him, or by any other person for him, or on his account, and pay five per cent thereof to the board, in full compensation for its official services, for the services of its secretary and treasurer, and all incidental expenses. . . . ” This section was amended in 1899 (Stats. 1899, p. 6), but in no way affecting this controversy. For nearly fifty-three years the respondent board has received these moneys from pilots in accordance with the provisions of said statute and has disbursed the funds so received for expenses and for compensation to the members of the board for official services rendered.

After the adoption of the budget amendment (art. IV. sec. 34, Const.) and the enactment of the budget bill (Stats. 1923, p. 242), the petitioner made demand on the respondents to render an account to petitioner of the moneys received from pilots as provided in said section 2460 of the

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Political Code. The petitioner bases his right to such - accounting on section 1 of an act approved March 17, 1899 (Stats. 1899, p. 110), as amended on March 20, 1905 (Stats. 1905, p. 382), and on June 14, 1906 (Stats. 1906, p. 43), on the budget amendment to the constitution and on certain provisions of the budget bill.

Section 1 of the act of March 17, 1899, required an accounting to the state controller and payment into the state treasury of “all moneys belonging to the state” received by the board of trustees, board of managers, board of directors or executive officer in charge of any “state hospital, asylum, prison, school or harbor.” The amendment of March 20, 1905, assumed to make the requirement general in its application as follows: “All moneys belonging to the state received from any source whatever by any officer, commission or commissioners, board of trustees, board of managers or board of directors, shall be accounted for at the close of each month to the state controller, in such form as the controller may prescribe, and at the same time, on the order of the controller, be paid into the state treasury.” The amendment of June 14, 1906, did not change the wording of the section in the quoted portion nor in any other respect involving the question here under consideration.