AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL JUDGE OF Chap. 97 PROBATE FOR DUKES COUNTY, AND PROVIDING FOR THE Be it enacted, etc., as follows: etc., amended. SECTION 1. Section three of chapter two hundred and G. L. 217, § 3, seventeen of the General Laws, as amended by chapter three hundred and seventy-five of the acts of nineteen hundred and twenty-four, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "Berkshire" in the second line the word: Dukes, so as to read as follows: - Section 3. There shall Special judges of probate, be a special judge of probate and insolvency in each of the appointment, counties of Berkshire, Dukes, Franklin, Hampshire, Hamp- powers, duties, den and Middlesex, who may perform the duties of the judge of probate in the county for which he is appointed, in cases of vacancy in office, sickness, disability on account of interest of such judge, or whenever the judge in a writing filed with the register requests the special judge to perform his duties; or, in case of the absence of the judge from the county, whenever the register, in a writing certifying such absence, shall so request. The register shall certify upon the records of the court the number of days, the dates upon which, and the occasions for which, the duties of the judge. are performed by the special judge; and when the occasion is that of sickness, absence from the county, interest or other legal disqualification, or vacancy in office, he shall certify the same to the comptroller. SECTION 2. Section forty-one of said chapter two hun- G. L. 217, § 41, dred and seventeen is hereby amended by inserting at the amended. beginning thereof the following: - Except as hereinafter provided, and by adding at the end thereof the following: The special judge of probate and insolvency for Dukes county shall be paid his actual traveling expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of his duties, irrespective of the place of holding and attending court, and also ten dollars for each day's service. Compensation for sitting in the place of the judge of probate for said county in excess of thirty days in any one year shall be deducted by the comptroller from the salary of the judge, so as to read as follows: Section 41. Except as hereinafter pro- Compensation vided, whenever a special judge holds a session of the pro- judges of bate court or court of insolvency, he shall receive from the probate. commonwealth the same compensation that a judge of probate for another county would be entitled to receive for the same service. The special judge of probate and insol- For Dukes vency for Dukes county shall be paid his actual traveling expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of his duties, irrespective of the place of holding and attending court, and also ten dollars for each day's service. Compensation for sitting in the place of the judge of probate for of special county. said county in excess of thirty days in any one year shall be deducted by the comptroller from the salary of the judge. SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon its passage. Approved March 10, 1926. Chap. 98 AN ACT AUTHORIZING G. L. 36, § 6, amended. Second assist ant registers of deeds in certain counties. Powers, compensation, etc. Submission to Hampden county commissioners. Proviso. THE APPOINTMENT OF A SECOND ASSISTANT REGISTER OF DEEDS IN THE COUNTY OF HAMP DEN. Be it enacted, etc., as follows: SECTION 1. Chapter thirty-six of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section six and inserting in place thereof the following: - Section 6. The registers for the southern district of Essex, the county of Hampden, the southern district of Middlesex and the Worcester district may, with the approval of their respective county commissioners, appoint and at pleasure remove, a second assistant register. Such an assistant shall have all the powers and authority vested in an assistant register, and shall receive such compensation as may be allowed by the county commissioners. SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its acceptance by the county commissioners of the county of Hampden; provided, that such acceptance occurs during the current year. Approved March 10, 1926. Chap. 99 AN ACT RELATIVE TO The time for filing returns to thE G. L. 164, 63, amended. etc.. Municipal records, appa ratus, etc. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES RELATIVE TO MUNICIPAL Be it enacted, etc., as follows: Section sixty-three of chapter one hundred and sixty-four of the General Laws, as amended by chapter eighty-five of the acts of nineteen hundred and twenty-three, is hereby further amended by striking out, in the twenty-third line, the words "the second Wednesday of February" and inserting in place thereof the words: such date as the department fixes, so as to read as follows:- Section 63. lighting plants, A town manufacturing or selling gas or electricity for lighting shall keep records of its work and doings at its manufacturing station, and in respect to its distributing plant, as may be required by the department. shall install and maintain apparatus, satisfactory to the department, for the measurement and recording of the output of gas and electricity, and shall sell the same by meter to private consumers when required by the department, and, if required by it, shall measure all gas or elecBooks, accounts tricity consumed by the town. The books, accounts and returns shall be made and kept in a form prescribed by the department, and the accounts shall be closed annually on the last day of the fiscal year of such town, and a balance and returns. It operation, etc. utilities, etc. sheet of that date shall be taken therefrom and included in the return to the department. The mayor, selectmen or municipal light board and manager shall, at any time, on request, submit said books and accounts to the inspection of the department and furnish any statement or information required by it relative to the condition, management and operation of said business. The department shall, in its Annual report annual report, describe the operation of the several municipal of public utiliof department plants with such detail as may be necessary to disclose the ties to describe financial condition and results of each plant; and shall state what towns, if any, operating a plant have failed to comply with this chapter, and what towns, if any, are selling gas or electricity with the approval of the department at less than cost. The mayor, or selectmen, or municipal light board, Annual return to department if any, shall annually, on or before such date as the depart- of public ment fixes, make a return to the department, for the preceding fiscal year, signed and sworn to by the mayor, or by a majority of the selectmen or municipal light board, if any, and by the manager, stating the financial condition of said business, the amount of authorized and existing indebtedness, a statement of income and expenses in such detail as the department may require, and a list of its salaried officers and the salary paid to each. The mayor, the selectmen or Additional the municipal light board may direct any additional returns to be made at such time and in such detail as he or they may order. Any officer of a town manufacturing or selling Penalties for gas or electricity for lighting who, being required by this officers failing section to make an annual return to the department, neglects return, etc. to make such annual return shall, for the first fifteen days or portion thereof during which such neglect continues, forfeit five dollars a day; for the second fifteen days or any portion thereof, ten dollars a day; and for each day thereafter not more than fifteen dollars a day. Any such officer who unreasonably refuses or neglects to make such return shall, in addition thereto, forfeit not more than five hundred dollars. If a return is defective or appears to be Defective, erroneous, the department shall notify the officer to amend etc., returns. it within fifteen days. Any such officer who neglects to amend said return within the time specified, when notified to do so, shall forfeit fifteen dollars for each day during which such neglect continues. All forfeitures incurred under Forfeitures, this section may be recovered by an information in equity brought in the supreme judicial court by the attorney general, at the relation of the department, and when so recovered shall be paid to the commonwealth. Approved March 10, 1926. returns. to file annual how recovered. AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE MAXIMUM NUMERICAL MEMBER- Chap. 100 SHIP OF WARD AND TOWN COMMITTEES IN CERTAIN CASES. Be it enacted, etc., as follows: Section nine of chapter fifty-two of the General Laws is G. L. 52, § 9, hereby amended by adding at the end thereof the follow- amended." Number of delegates to ing: - In case a city or town committee fails to fix the number of the members of a ward or town committee and to give notice thereof as aforesaid to the state secretary, the number of members of such a ward or town committee to be elected shall not exceed ten, so as to read as follows: Section 9. The state committee shall fix the number of delegates to the state convention, not less than one for each ber of members Ward or town. City and town committees shall fix the number of members of ward and town committees, not less than three for each ward or town. Notice of the number of delegates and members of committees to be elected shall be Notice to state given by the state, city or town committee, as the case state convention and num of ward and town committees. secretary. Maximum numerical membership of committees in certain cases. may be, to the state secretary on or before August first. In Chap. 101 AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE MAKING OF FALSE STATEMENTS G. L. 55, False state ments in relation to candidates for public office forbidden. IN AID OF CANDIDATES FOR NOMINATION OR ELECTION TO Be it enacted, etc., as follows: Section thirty-four A of chapter fifty-five of the General Laws, inserted therein by section one of chapter two hundred and sixty-nine of the acts of nineteen hundred and twentytwo, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "tends in the fourth line the words: - to aid or, so as to read as follows: Section 344. No person shall make or publish, or cause to be made or published, any false statement in relation to any candidate for nomination or election to public office, which is designed or tends to aid or to injure or defeat such candidate. Approved March 10, 1926. Chap.102 AN ACT PERMITTING THE SOLEMNIZATION OF MARRIAGE IN G. L. 207, 39, amended. Solemnization of marriage by non-resident clergymen. SPECIFIC CASES BY NON-RESIDENT CLERGYMEN SPECIALLY Be it enacted, etc., as follows: Section thirty-nine of chapter two hundred and seven of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding at the end thereof the following: - The governor may also in his discretion designate a minister of the gospel or rabbi who resides out of the commonwealth to solemnize a specified marriage, and the state secretary shall issue to him a certificate of such designation. A minister or rabbi so designated, after qualifying under said certificate, may solemnize said marriage in any place within the commonwealth. Approved March 10, 1926. AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE LORD'S DAY LEAGUE OF NEW Chap.103 ENGLAND TO MAKE CONTRACTS TO PAY ANNUITIES. Be it enacted, etc., as follows: pay annuities. The Lord's Day League of New England, a corporation Lord's Day established by law in this commonwealth, may, in con- England may League of New sideration of the receipt of funds to be devoted to the pur- contract to poses for which it is incorporated, bind itself to pay fixed yearly sums in one or more payments each year to such person or persons as may be agreed upon, for a term of years or for the life of such person or persons. Approved March 10, 1926. AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE PAYMENT OF EXPENSES OF EX- Be it enacted, etc., as follows: - Chap. 104 amended. apprehension, insane per commitment. Chapter one hundred and twenty-three of the General G. L. 123, § 74, Laws is hereby amended by striking out section seventyfour and inserting in place thereof the following: Section Expenses of 74. All necessary expenses attending the apprehension, examination, examination, trial, commitment or delivery of an alleged etc., of alleged insane, epileptic or feeble minded person, dipsomaniac, in- sons, etc. ebriate or one addicted to the intemperate use of narcotics or stimulants, committed to a state hospital, shall be allowed and certified by the judge and presented as often as once a year to the county commissioners of the county in which such person was committed, who shall examine and audit the same. Necessary expenses attending the apprehension, Expenses examination or trial of any person sought to be committed where no to a state hospital but not so committed, shall be so presented, examined and audited if they have been allowed in the discretion of the judge and certified by him. All neces- Expenses where sary expenses of examination and delivery of persons men- no applications tioned in section eighty-seven, and of examination of an mitment. alleged insane, epileptic or feeble minded person, dipsomaniac, inebriate or one addicted to the intemperate use of narcotics or stimulants in any other case where there is no application for commitment, when allowed in the discretion of a judge authorized to make commitments of such persons if their condition is found to be as alleged and certified by him, shall be presented as often as once a year to the county commissioners of the county, where the judge certifying the expenses was authorized by law to make commitments, who shall examine and audit the same. All expenses certified, examined and audited as provided in this section shall ment by be paid by the proper county. Such expenses shall be Repayment repaid to the county paying them by the county, if any, of to county. which the person committed, the person for whose commitment application was made and refused, the person men for com Expenses, pay county. |