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29 1930

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION ACT, 1930

PART IV.

Finance of Vocational Education Committees.

Rating authorities and areas of charge.

42. —(1) For the purposes of this Part of this Act—

(a) the council of a county borough shall be the rating authority for the borough vocational education area which is co-terminous with such county borough; and

(b) the council of a scheduled urban district shall be the rating authority for the urban district vocational education area which is co-terminous with such scheduled urban district; and

(c) the council of a county shall be the rating authority for the county vocational education area which is co-terminous with or is included in such county.

(2) In this Part of this Act the expression “area of charge” when used in relation to a rating authority means the vocational education area for which such rating authority is the rating authority.

Annual local contributions to vocational education committees.

43. —(1) There shall be paid, in every local financial year commencing after the passing of this Act by the rating authority for a vocational education area to the vocational education committee for such area, such sum (in this Act referred to as the annual local contribution) as may be demanded by such committee under this Part of this Act in respect of such year.

(2) The amount of the annual local contribution payable to a vocational education committee in respect of any particular local financial year—

(a) shall not be less than a sum (in this Part of this Act referred to as the minimum annual liability) equal, where the rating authority is the council of a county borough or of a scheduled urban district, to the amount of a rate of three pence in the pound on the rateable value of the area of charge at the commencement of such year or, where the rating authority is the council of a county, other than the county of Cork, to the amount of a rate of one penny three farthings in the pound on the rateable value of the area of charge at the commencement of such year or, where the rating authority is the council of the county of Cork, to the amount of a rate of two pence in the pound on the rateable value of the area of charge at the commencement of such year; and

(b) shall not exceed a sum (in this Part of this Act referred to as the maximum annual liability) equal, where the rating authority is the council of a county borough or of a scheduled urban district, to the amount of a rate of the number of pence in the pound specified for such year in Part I. of the Third Schedule to this Act on the rateable value of the area of charge at the commencement of such year or, where the rating authority is the council of a county, to the amount of a rate of the number of pence in the pound specified for such year in Part II. of the Third Schedule to this Act on the rateable value of the area of charge at the commencement of such year.

(3) Every annual local contribution shall, where the rating authority is the council of a county borough or of a scheduled urban district, be raised by means of or out of any rate or fund applicable for the purposes of the Public Health (Ireland) Act, 1878, and in the case of a rate, assessed in the manner provided by that Act, and, where the rating authority is the council of a county, be raised equally over the whole of the area of charge by means of the poor rate.

Preparation of annual schemes by committees.

44. —(1) Every vocational education committee shall, on or before the 1st day of December in every local financial year, prepare and submit to the Minister an estimate (in this Act referred to as an annual scheme) in the prescribed form and containing the prescribed particulars of—

(a) the moneys required to meet the expenses of such committee in the exercise of its powers and performance of its duties during or in respect of the then next ensuing local financial year;

(b) the receipts of such committee during or in respect of the then next ensuing local financial year, having regard (amongst other matters) to the minimum annual liability and the maximum annual liability of the rating authority in respect of such year; and

(c) the amount (in no case less than the minimum annual liability nor more than the maximum annual liability of the rating authority in respect of the then next ensuing local financial year) of the annual local contribution in respect of such next ensuing local financial year which will be required for the purposes of such scheme.

(2) The Minister may, in respect of every annual scheme submitted to him under this section, either approve of such scheme without modification or approve of such scheme with such modifications as he shall think fit to make therein or refuse to approve of such scheme.

(3) Whenever the Minister refuses to approve of an annual scheme, the committee by which such scheme was prepared shall forthwith prepare and submit to the Minister a new annual scheme, and this section shall apply to such new scheme in like manner as it applies to the original scheme.

(4) When an annual scheme has been approved by the Minister, whether with or without modification, it shall be the duty of the committee by which such scheme was prepared to carry into effect such scheme as so approved.

Consideration of annual scheme by estimates sub-committee.

45. —(1) For the purpose of this section the members of a vocational education committee who—

(a) in the case of a vocational education committee for a borough vocational education area or an urban district vocational education area, are members of the council of the county borough or the urban district which is such borough vocational education area or urban district vocational education area (as the case may be), and

(b) in the case of a vocational education committee for a county vocational education area, are members of the council of the county which is or includes such county vocational education area and are elected by such council,

shall together constitute a special sub-committee (in this section referred to as the estimates sub-committee) of such vocational education committee.

(2) Where the annual scheme prepared by a vocational education committee in respect of any local financial year (other than the local financial year commencing on the 1st day of April, 1931) provides for an annual local contribution in respect of such local financial year of an amount greater than the annual local contribution demanded by such committee in respect of the preceding local financial, year, such scheme shall, before being submitted to the Minister under the foregoing section, be first submitted to the estimates sub-committee of such committee and in such case it shall be the duty of the chief executive officer of such committee to summon a meeting of such estimates sub-committee for a convenient day and hour (not being more than seven days after the date of the meeting at which such scheme was prepared) for the consideration of such scheme.

(3) If at a meeting of an estimates sub-committee of a vocational education committee held in pursuance of the foregoing sub-section such sub-committee by resolution, passed by a majority of the members thereof present and voting, request such vocational educational committee to reduce the amount of the annual local contribution mentioned in the scheme submitted to it to a specified amount not lower than the annual local contribution demanded in respect of the then current local financial year, such committee shall amend such scheme in accordance with such request and make such other amendments therein as may appear to them to be necessary.

Demand by committee for annual local contribution.

46. —(1) When the Minister has considered an annual scheme he shall issue to the vocational education committee by which such scheme was prepared a certificate in the prescribed form authorising such committee to demand from the rating authority for the vocational education area of such committee an annual local contribution in respect of the local financial year to which such annual scheme relates of such amount as the Minister shall think proper to specify in such certificate having regard to the estimates of expenses and receipts contained in such scheme, but not less than the minimum annual liability of such rating authority in respect of such year nor more than whichever of the two following amounts is the greater, that is to say, the amount of the annual local contribution mentioned in such scheme and the amount of the annual local contribution (if any) in respect of the preceding local financial year.

(2) Every vocational education committee shall, upon receiving from the Minister a certificate under this section, forthwith send to the rating authority for the vocational education area of such committee a demand in the prescribed form for an annual local contribution of the amount specified in such certificate for or in respect of the local financial year to which such certificate relates.

(3) Every rating authority to which a demand is made under this section by the vocational education committee for the vocational education area for which such authority is the rating authority shall pay to such committee at the prescribed time or times and in the prescribed manner the amount of such demand without any deduction whatsoever.

Treasurer of vocational education committees.

47. —(1) Every vocational education committee shall at its first meeting appoint a banking company to act as treasurer of such committee.

(2) A vocational education committee may from time to time accept the resignation or revoke the appointment of a banking company as treasurer and appoint another such company as treasurer.

(3) A vocational education committee may take from its treasurer such security as may be approved by the Minister.

(4) When appointing a treasurer, a vocational education committee shall fix with such treasurer the amount of interest to be allowed for money from time to time lying to the credit of such committee with such treasurer.

Vocational education fund.

48. —(1) Every vocational education committee shall establish and maintain in the hands of the treasurer of such committee a fund to be known and in this Act referred to as the vocational education fund of such committee.

(2) All sums received by a vocational education committee under this Act from any source shall be paid to the treasurer of such committee and, save as is hereinafter otherwise provided, the receipt alone of such treasurer shall be a good discharge to the person paying the same, and all such sums shall be paid by such treasurer into the vocational education fund of such committee.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing sub-section of this section, the receipt of an officer of a vocational education committee duly authorised by such committee to receive payments of a particular class shall be a good discharge to a person making a payment of such class to such officer, but it shall be the duty of such officer forthwith to pay the amount of such payment to the treasurer of such committee.

(4) No payments shall be made out of the vocational education fund of a vocational education committee except by the treasurer of such committee on the direction in writing of such committee, and every payment so directed shall be made out of such fund by such treasurer and every such direction by such committee to such treasurer shall be a sufficient authority to such treasurer to make the payments thereby directed to be made to the person or persons mentioned therein.

(5) A vocational education committee may authorise payments out of the vocational education fund maintained by it to be made for all or any of the following purposes, and for no other purpose whatsoever, that is to say:—

(a) to defray expenditure incurred by such committee under and in accordance with an annual scheme prepared by it and approved by the Minister; or

(b) to defray administrative and incidental expenses incurred for the purposes of this Act by such committee with the previous consent, either general or special, of the Minister; or

(c) to defray any other expenditure required or authorised by this Act to be incurred by such committee.

(6) The Minister may from time to time authorise a vocational education committee to incur, in any local financial year, administrative and incidental expenses up to but not exceeding an amount specified by the Minister in such authority, and every such authority shall for the purposes of this section operate as a general previous consent to all administrative and incidental expenses incurred by such committee in such year up to the amount so specified.

Powers of borrowing.

49. —A vocational education committee may, with the consent of the Minister, borrow by means of bank overdraft or otherwise money for the purposes of the vocational education fund maintained by it.

Borrowing by vocational education committee for permanent works.

50. —(1) Where a vocational education committee proposes to incur expenditure under this Act on works the cost of which ought, in the opinion of the Minister, by reason of their permanent character to be spread over a term of years, such committee may, with the consent of the Minister, spread the defrayal of such expenditure over such term of years as the Minister may approve, and may for that purpose borrow money on the security of the vocational education fund maintained by it and charge that fund with payment of the principal moneys so borrowed and the interest thereon.

(2) The powers of a vocational education committee under this section shall be exercised in accordance with regulations made by the Minister.

(3) A vocational education committee borrowing money under this section may, where it so thinks proper, borrow such money from the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, and those Commissioners may, if they think fit, lend such money to such committee under the Public Works (Ireland) Acts, 1831 to 1886 and notwithstanding anything in those Acts such loan may be made for such term as the Commissioners think fit.

Grants by rating authorities.

51. —(1) Where a vocational education committee, with the consent of the Minister, proposes to incur or has incurred expense under this Act on works of a permanent character, the rating authority for the vocational education area of such committee may, with the consent of the Minister for Local Government and Public Health, make a grant to such committee of the whole or part of such expense (whether the same has or has not then been actually incurred) or of any undischarged balance owing by such committee in respect of such works or of moneys borrowed to meet the expense thereof.

(2) Where a vocational education committee is, by virtue of this Act, under a liability in respect of a loan contracted before the passing of this Act and expended on works of a permanent character, the rating authority for the vocational education area of such committee may, with the consent of the Minister for Local Government and Public Health, at any time make a grant to such committee for or towards the discharge of the amount of such liability then outstanding.

(3) A grant made by a rating authority to a vocational education committee under this section shall be applied by such committee for the purpose for which such grant was made and for no other purpose.

(4) A rating authority may borrow for the purposes of making a grant under this section—

(a) in the case of the council of a county, as if those purposes were purposes for which it is authorised to borrow under Article 22 of the Schedule to the Local Government (Application of Enactments) Order, 1898, and money borrowed under this section by the council of a county for the purposes of any such grant shall not be reckoned as part of the total debt of such council for the purposes of the said Article; and

(b) in the case of the council of a county borough or a scheduled urban district, as if those purposes were purposes for which it is authorised to borrow under the Public Health (Ireland) Act, 1878, and money borrowed under this section by such council for the purposes of any such grant shall not be reckoned as part of the total debt of such council for the purposes of any limitation on its borrowing powers.

(5) A rating authority borrowing money for the purposes of making a grant under this section may where it so thinks proper borrow such money from the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland and those Commissioners may, if they think fit, lend such money to such rating authority under the Public Works (Ireland) Acts, 1831 to 1886, and notwithstanding anything in those Acts such loan may be made for such term as the Commissioners think fit.

(6) Whenever a rating authority which has borrowed money for the purpose of making a grant under this section pays any sum in repayment of the money so borrowed or in payment of the interest thereon, the Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance and out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, make to such rating authority in aid of the rate or fund out of which such sum was so paid by such rating authority a payment of such amount as the Minister with the consent aforesaid shall think proper but not exceeding one-half of the said sum so paid by such rating authority.

Application of certain moneys.

52. —Any moneys (including any moneys representing the produce of a rate) standing to the credit of or due and payable to a vocational education committee on the 31st day of March, 1931, may, notwithstanding that such moneys are required by any enactment repealed by this Act to be applied for a particular purpose, be applied by such committee for any purpose for which it is authorised to expend moneys under this Act.

Application of parliamentary grants.

53. —(1) The Minister may, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, make grants to vocational education committees in aid of expenditure under annual schemes in accordance with regulations made by the Minister with the approval of the Minister for Finance.

(2) In making such regulations regard may be had to (amongst other things) the following matters:—

(a) the annual local contribution payable to each vocational education committee,

(b) the amount of the rate required to raise such annual local contribution, and

(c) the population of the vocational education area of such committee.

Expenses of delegates to certain conferences.

54. —A vocational education committee may, in accordance with regulations made by the Minister, defray the expenses of members of such committee appointed by it to attend meetings or conferences held for the purpose of discussing matters relating to continuation education and technical education or either of them.

Subscription to certain agencies and associations.

55. —(1) A vocational education committee may, with the consent of the Minister, subscribe to any institution, agency, or organisation which includes amongst its functions the collection and communication of information with respect to employments open to persons under the age of eighteen years.

(2) A vocational education committee may, with the consent of the Minister, subscribe to any association or institution concerned in questions of continuation education and technical education or either of them.

Travelling expenses and maintenance of teachers attending certain classes.

56. —Where a teacher in the employment of a vocational education committee is attending classes for the training and certification of teachers, or is attending special courses provided in a central technical school or in a university college or at any other centre approved by the Minister, and such attendance involves the absence of such teacher from his home, such committee may, with the consent of the Minister, make grants to such teacher in aid of the expenses incurred by him in attending such courses or classes.

Non-application of section 51 (7) of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898.

57. —Sub-section (7) of section 51 of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898 shall not apply in respect of any debt, claim, or demand payable by a vocational education committee.

Audit of accounts of vocational education committees.

58. —(1) The accounts of every vocational education committee shall be audited by an auditor appointed by the Minister for Local Government and Public Health and the following enactments, that is to say, sections 11 to 15 of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1871, sub-section (2) of section 63 of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898, and sections 20 and 21 of the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1902, as amended or adapted by or under any subsequent enactment shall apply to the audit and auditor of the accounts of such committees in the same manner as such enactments as so amended or adapted apply to the audit and auditor of the accounts of the public bodies specified therein.

(2) The Minister for Local Government and Public Health shall from time to time as occasion requires ascertain and determine what proportion of the salary paid to the auditor appointed to audit the accounts of a vocational education committee should be charged in respect of such audit, and the amount of such proportion of such salary shall be paid by such vocational education committee to the said Minister.