331.506 Issuance of warrants.

1. a. Except as provided in subsections 2 and 3, the auditor shall prepare and sign a county warrant only after issuance of the warrant has been approved by the board by recorded vote. Each warrant shall be numbered and the date, amount, number, name of the person to whom issued, and the purpose for which the warrant is issued shall be entered in the county system. Each warrant shall be made payable to the person performing the service or furnishing the supplies for which the warrant makes payment.

b. The auditor shall not issue a warrant to a drawee until the auditor has transmitted to the treasurer a list of the warrants to be issued. The list shall include the date, amount, and number of the warrant, name of the person to whom the warrant is issued, and the purpose for which the warrant is issued. The treasurer shall acknowledge receipt of the list by affixing the treasurer’s signature at the bottom of the list and immediately returning the list to the auditor. The requirement that the treasurer sign to acknowledge receipt of the list is satisfied by use of a secure electronic signature if the county auditor and treasurer have complied with the applicable provisions of chapter 554D.

c. The warrant list signed by the treasurer shall be preserved by the auditor for at least two years. The requirement that the list be preserved is satisfied by preservation of the list in electronic form if the requirements of section 554D.113 are met.

d. The requirement that the county auditor sign a warrant is satisfied by use of a secure electronic signature if the county auditor has complied with the applicable provisions of chapter 554D.

e. In lieu of the auditor issuing a warrant to a drawee, the auditor may issue a warrant payment order to the county treasurer. Upon receipt of the warrant payment order, the treasurer may submit payment to the drawee through an electronic funds transfer system.

2. The auditor may issue warrants to pay the following claims against the county without prior approval of the board:

a. Witness fees and mileage for attendance before a grand jury, as certified by the county attorney and the foreman of the jury.

b. Witness fees and mileage in trials of criminal actions prosecuted under county ordinance, as certified by the county attorney.

c. Fees and costs payable to the clerk of the district court or other state officers or employees in connection with criminal and civil actions when due, as shown in the statement submitted by the clerk of court under section 602.8109.

d. Expenses of the grand jury, upon order of a district judge.

3. The board, by resolution, may authorize the auditor to issue warrants to make the following payments without prior approval of the board:

a. For fixed charges including, but not limited to, freight, express, postage, water, light, telephone service or contractual services, after a bill is filed with the auditor.

b. For salaries and payrolls if the compensation has been fixed or approved by the board. The salary or payroll shall be certified by the officer or supervisor under whose direction or supervision the compensation is earned.

4. The bills paid under subsections 2 and 3 shall be submitted to the board for review and approval at its next meeting following the payment. The action of the board shall be recorded in the minutes of the board.

5. An officer certifying an erroneous bill or claim against the county is liable on the officer’s official bond for a loss to the county resulting from the error.

[R60, C73, §321; C97, §471; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §5142 – 5147; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §333.2 – 333.7; S81, §331.506; 81 Acts, ch 117, §505]

83 Acts, ch 29, §2; 83 Acts, ch 186, §10084, 10201; 85 Acts, ch 197, §6; 95 Acts, ch 57, §3; 2000 Acts, ch 1084, §1; 2000 Acts, ch 1232, §67; 2005 Acts, ch 19, §44

Referred to in §331.402, 331.552