Module 9: Liability, Ethics, Records and Risk

Strict Accountability and Your Bond

Most officers answer for what they do. You answer for what you hold. Article XVIII, section 6 tells the Legislature to provide "for the strict accountability of county, township, precinct and municipal officers for all fees ... and for all public and municipal moneys which may be paid to them, or officially come into their possession."¹

The old cases took it literally. In Bonneville County v. Standard Accident Insurance Co. (1937), an assessor and his surety were held liable for tax money stolen from the assessor's vault. He was not at fault. It did not matter.² Strict accountability meant what it said.

Then the Legislature softened it. Section 31-2018, added in 1988, repeats the duty to "strictly account" and then limits it.

"... shall not be personally liable for loss of any such public moneys or property when the cause of such loss is fire, flood, earthquake, or other natural or man-made disaster or when caused by theft, robbery, or the criminal conduct of another person who is not a county official or employee."

Idaho Code § 31-2018³

Read the last clause twice. A burglar who empties your vault is the county's loss. A deputy who skims the till is not covered by that sentence, because a deputy is a county employee. The second sentence of the statute has the county indemnify officials and employees for lost money "except those which are the result of negligence, gross negligence, or intentional conduct." So the line between your pocket and the county's runs through one question: did a missing control make the loss your negligence?

The bond

The board fixes the amount of your bond at double the probable amount that may come into your hands. If it accepts a corporate surety bond, the amount may be reduced to as little as a quarter of that figure, but not below $10,000. You are bonded separately as treasurer and as tax collector, and the tax collector bond has its own range, $2,000 to $50,000.⁴

The bond runs to the county, is executed by a corporate surety, approved by the board and filed with the clerk. And the board has a duty you should welcome: at least twice a year it must review whether the bond is sufficient. It can summon you on three to ten days' notice. If you do not cure a deficiency within ten days, the matter goes to the district court and the prosecutor for a vacancy hearing, and you get five more days after the court's finding.⁵ A lapsed bond can cost you the office, which is a different loss than the money.

A claim on the bond is a claim against you and your surety, jointly and severally. The surety that pays can come after you.

Civil Liability, Immunity and Defense

The Idaho Tort Claims Act, Title 6, chapter 9, is the state-law frame for most civil claims against you. The Act defines "employee" to include elected officers.⁶ That one definition brings you inside both its protections and its procedures.

Defense and indemnity

Under section 6-903, your county must defend and indemnify you against claims arising from acts within the course and scope of your duties, including claims filed against you individually and suits in federal court. The county may refuse, or seek reimbursement, only where the act was outside course and scope or involved malice or criminal intent. The law presumes course and scope until the entity rebuts it.⁶ In Anderson v. Spalding (2002) the Idaho Supreme Court applied that inquiry.⁷

The tax immunity

Your biggest immunity is narrow and conditional. Section 6-904A(1) says a governmental entity and its employees, "acting within the course and scope of their employment and without malice or criminal intent and without reckless, willful and wanton conduct," are not liable for any claim that "arises out of the assessment or collection of any tax or fee."⁸ Three conditions, and all three have to hold. I found no Idaho appellate decision applying this subsection to a county treasurer, so I cannot tell you where a court would draw the line between a collection error and reckless conduct. The only case I found nearby, Greenwade (1991), treated a claim to recover property seized for taxes as one for the statutory tax remedy, not for tort damages.⁹

Notice, clocks and caps

Anyone with a claim against you must file a written notice with the clerk of your county within 180 days. The board then has 90 days to act, and silence is a denial. Suit must follow within two years. Courts treat the notice as a mandatory condition.⁹¹⁰ So, the practical rule: when a letter arrives that says the writer was wronged and wants money, it goes to the clerk and to ICRMP the same day, whatever you think of it. You do not decide whether it counts as a claim.

The Act caps the entity's liability at $500,000 per occurrence unless the county carries more insurance.¹¹ It also bars punitive damages on claims allowed under the Act.¹² That bar does not reach a federal civil rights claim. Under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed punitive damages against an individual official for reckless or callous indifference to federally protected rights.¹³ Whether the county's indemnity would cover such an award is not answered by section 6-903.

ICRMP: what it does and does not do

Your county probably buys its coverage through the Idaho Counties Risk Management Program, a member-owned pool; confirm that with your clerk.¹⁴ Its coverage categories include employee dishonesty, embezzlement, bonding, privacy and cyber security, and public officials errors and omissions. What you actually have turns on the policy and its exclusions, not on the category list.

County of Boise v. Idaho Counties Risk Management Program (2011) shows the point. ICRMP owed no duty to defend a suit that fell inside the policy's land-use exclusion. The duty to defend turned on the complaint's allegations. That policy also excluded dishonest, fraudulent, criminal, malicious or deliberate acts.¹⁵ Expect a similar structure: coverage for a negligent error is not coverage for a criminal act.

Give notice early, because late notice is the cheapest way to lose coverage you paid for. And read your county's current policy once a year, with the coverage contact, so the exclusions are not a surprise.

Criminal Exposure, Removal and Recall

Two criminal statutes cover most of what a treasurer can do wrong with money. The first is section 18-5701, which lists ten forms of misuse of public moneys by officers and employees. Among them: appropriating public money to your own use or another's; lending it; making a profit from it or using it for any purpose "not authorized by law"; failing to keep it in your possession until disbursed; depositing it other than as the law allows; knowingly keeping a false account or making a false entry; wilfully refusing to pay over on a warrant; and knowingly using public money or a government card for a personal purpose.¹⁶

Look at the penalty. For an officer charged with the receipt, safekeeping or disbursement of public money, misuse of less than $300 is a felony, with up to five years and a $5,000 fine. Above $300 it is one to fourteen years and up to $10,000. A conviction also requires termination, restitution, and disqualification from any public job that handles public money.¹⁶ Small amounts are not small for you.

The second set is the general theft and records statutes. Embezzlement is theft. Grand theft is a felony with one to fourteen years.¹⁷ An officer who wilfully destroys, alters, falsifies or steals an official record commits a felony punishable by up to fourteen years. An officer who delivers as true a certificate known to be false commits a misdemeanor. A wilful omission of a duty the law enjoins on a public officer is a misdemeanor. And your monthly settlement with the auditor is sworn, so a false one is also exposed to the perjury statutes.¹⁸

Idaho's bribery chapter adds the conduct rules: no gifts beyond a trivial benefit tied to your official acts, no use of public funds or property for private gain, no official fees for what the office already does, no use of confidential information, no interested contracts, and nepotism limits for relatives within the second degree. A violation of the section 18-1359 conduct rules is a misdemeanor with forfeiture and restitution.¹⁹

Approval is not a defense

In State v. Olsen (2016) the Idaho Supreme Court upheld misuse-of-funds charges against a county sheriff over a county-paid cell phone used by his wife. His commissioners had known about the phone. The Court held that commissioners cannot pardon a crime, so their approval did not matter. It also rejected a vagueness attack on subsection (10), and it held that when the State aggregates small purchases it must put them in one count.²⁰ Whatever the board says, the statute still applies to you. I found no Attorney General opinion on treasurer liability to add to that.²¹

Removal and recall in brief

A felony conviction, or a conviction of a public offense involving a violation of your oath, vacates the office.²² Short of conviction, a grand jury may present a written accusation for "wilful or corrupt misconduct in office." A judgment of removal follows if it is sustained, and removal is suspended pending appeal.²³ The commissioners may suspend you after an official misconduct action begins. Since the 2025 amendment to section 31-2002, the Attorney General can investigate a county officer's official conduct under state criminal law and may close the matter, recommend training or other nonjudicial remedies, or take it as special prosecutor, while the county prosecutor keeps concurrent authority.²⁴

The voters have their own route. A recall petition for a county officer needs signatures of 20 percent of the electors registered at the last county general election at which you were elected. You get five business days to resign after a sufficient petition, and no petition may circulate in your first 90 days.²⁵ Module 1 covers the steps.

Ethics, Gifts, Contracts and Campaign Rules

The Ethics in Government Act, Title 74, chapter 4, begins with a statement that public office is a public trust. Its working rule is about conflict. A conflict is a private pecuniary benefit to you, your household or an associated business, with exceptions. When it arises, you disclose. Disclosure does not remove your authority to act unless you ask to be excused. You can seek advice from the county attorney, the Attorney General or independent counsel. An elected county official discloses before acting, following the body's rules. An appointed or employed county official gives a written statement to the appointing authority. Intentional nondisclosure carries a civil penalty up to $500.²⁶

The Act is written for boards that vote. A treasurer mostly acts alone, so the weight falls on the contract statutes in chapter 5. No officer may be interested in a contract made in his or her official capacity. Remote interests are allowed with disclosure in the minutes. No officer may buy at, or sell to, a sale made in the official capacity. Dealing in warrants is prohibited. Before accounts are allowed, an affidavit of nonviolation is required, and a disbursing officer must not pay a tainted warrant. A prohibited contract is voidable, and a violation is a misdemeanor.²⁷

Two rules treasurers miss

First, your tax notices. Since 2023 section 74-407 has barred the name of an elected official and any "electioneering message" on county tax-related correspondence with a taxpayer. The exceptions are narrow: endorsing a check or where needed to execute a check, warrant or rebate. County letterhead is exempt. A cheerful line about a county program on a tax statement is the sort of thing it reaches.²⁸

Second, public money and ballot questions. The Public Integrity in Elections Act bars using public funds or property to advocate for or against a ballot measure, meaning a constitutional amendment, a bond measure or a levy measure. You may campaign personally with no public resources, encourage voting neutrally, and give objective statements. Civil penalties run to $250, $1,500 for a knowing violation and $2,500 for a repeat violation.²⁹ A treasurer who answers questions about a levy election on county time, with the county email system, is in that territory.

Your own campaign

County offices are "local government offices" under the campaign finance law, Title 67, chapter 66. You need a political treasurer. Local candidates are exempt from reporting until they take in or spend $500, then report within seven days. In an election year, reports are due monthly by the 10th; in a non-election year, annually by January 10. Contributions of $1,000 or more are reported within 48 hours. The per-election limit for a local office is $1,000, and campaign money may not be converted to personal use. Late filings cost $50 a day, and a knowing, wilful violation is a misdemeanor. Reports go online through the Secretary of State.³⁰

I found no annual personal financial disclosure requirement for county officers in these chapters.

Public Records, Retention and Open Meetings

Your records are public unless a statute says otherwise

The Public Records Act, Title 74, chapter 1, starts from a presumption: a writing relating to the conduct or administration of the public's business, kept by your office, is a public record. Paper, drive or email, it does not matter. Henry v. Taylor shows the reach: records of money flowing through a prosecutor's contract, including a private bank account, were public, and the county treasurer in that case produced only auditor certificates.³¹ Your journals, receipts, reconciliations and correspondence are in this category.

The exemptions are specific. Social security numbers are exempt, and other personal identifiers such as a financial account number may be disclosed only in redacted form, for example the last four digits. Records on the nature, location or function of cybersecurity systems are exempt, though not the expenditure records. Records of risk-retention claims are exempt, but only statistics and amounts paid are public once a claim is concluded.³² Your job is to separate the exempt from the rest under section 74-112, and release the rest. Withholding a whole file because one page is exempt is an error.

Bank records need care. The Act exempts "personal bank records compiled by a public depositor for the purpose of public funds transactions." That reaches individuals' records a depository compiles; whether it shields your own county's account statements is not settled by the text. Treat the county's own deposit and disbursement records as public with redactions, and ask your prosecutor before you refuse any bank record.

The clock

A request must be in writing, must clearly say it is a public records request, and must go to the designated custodian. For a resident you must grant or deny within three working days, extendable by written notice to no more than ten working days. For a nonresident the periods are 21 and 35 days. Silence is a denial. A written denial must state that the attorney reviewed the request or that you had the opportunity to consult one, cite the statutory authority, and explain the requester's appeal rights and time limits.³³ Fees are limited to actual costs. The first two labor hours and 100 pages are free to a resident, and you may not ask why the person wants the records.³⁴

A requester's remedy is a district court petition within 180 days of the denial. If the court sets the matter for hearing, it does so within 28 days. You must keep the records at issue until the appeal ends. Fees go to the winning side if the other side acted frivolously, and deliberate bad faith carries a civil penalty up to $1,000. Good-faith compliance is protected.³⁵

Retention and destruction

Section 31-871 sorts county records into three classes. Permanent records, which include the general ledger, cash books, bond and warrant registers, and records affecting title to real property or liens, are kept at least ten years. Semipermanent records, which include claims, canceled checks, warrants, vouchers, duplicate receipts and financial records, are kept at least five years after issuance or completion. Temporary records, including "cash receipts subject to audit," are kept at least two years. The board classifies anything not listed, on the advice of the prosecutor.³⁶

Destruction is not yours to decide. Records may be destroyed only by resolution of the board after regular audit and upon the prosecutor's advice, and the resolution must list the records in detail. You supervise the actual disposal. A treasurer who clears out a storeroom on a slow afternoon, without that resolution, has made a records problem, and if the records are altered or destroyed wilfully, a problem under section 18-3201.

Open meetings

When you attend a board meeting you are a guest in someone else's meeting; the board runs notice, agenda and minutes, and your monthly report is part of the public record. Open meeting duties land on you only if you sit on, or create, a governing body. The law defines that as two or more members with authority to decide or recommend. The Idaho Supreme Court has held that employees of an agency headed by one director were not a governing body.³⁷ The Attorney General reads the law the same way for single-headed agencies and recommends erring toward openness.³⁸ So your staff meeting is not a public meeting. A countywide committee your board creates by resolution, with you as a member, is the gray area: ask your prosecutor and, if unsure, post notice.

Cyber Incidents and Cash Handling

If your systems are hit

Your office holds names, parcel numbers, addresses and, for some taxpayers, bank and card data. Under Title 28, chapter 51, an agency that finds a breach of the security of its system must investigate promptly and notify affected Idaho residents in the most expedient time possible. And it must notify the Attorney General within 24 hours of discovery.³⁹

"When an agency becomes aware of a breach of the security of the system, it shall, within twenty-four (24) hours of such discovery, notify the office of the Idaho attorney general."

Idaho Code § 28-51-105

A governmental employee who intentionally discloses personal information commits a misdemeanor, and the Attorney General can sue and seek up to $25,000 per breach for intentional failure to notify. The law is quiet on a ransomware lockout where no data is shown to have been copied. Treat it as reportable until counsel says otherwise.³⁹ Your first call is to your county IT lead and ICRMP, which lists cyber response and data breach costs among its coverage categories.¹⁴ Records on the design of your cybersecurity systems are exempt from disclosure, so you can plan in writing.³²

One small rule applies at your counter: a payment card receipt may print no more than the last five digits of the card number and never the expiration date.⁴⁰

Cash handling

Most embezzlements in small offices are not clever. One person takes the money, posts it and reconciles the account, and nobody else looks. The statutes tell you what to protect: money may be received only against the auditor's certificate, you must issue receipts, you must keep county money in your own possession, and the commissioners, the grand jury and the auditor may inspect your books and count your cash.⁴¹

The controls that make those duties real are practice, not law. Split the jobs: one person opens the mail, a second posts, a third reconciles. Count and seal the drawer at close with two signatures. Deposit daily and tie the deposit slip to the receipts. Require two consecutive weeks of leave from anyone who touches cash. Reconcile the bank statement monthly and have someone outside the cash path review it. Check any warrant you are asked to pay against the dealing-in-warrants rule in section 74-505.⁴¹

Whistleblowers and Audit Findings

Your employees are protected

The Idaho Protection of Public Employees Act bars retaliation against a public employee who in good faith reports waste or a violation of law, takes part in an investigation, or refuses a directive the employee reasonably believes is unlawful. Employer policies may not unreasonably restrict an employee from documenting. Suit must be brought within 180 days. The Act bars punitive damages against governmental entities and their employees, adds a civil fine up to $500, and requires you to notify employees of the protections.⁴²

In Wright v. Ada County (2016) the Court held that the Act protects an employee who takes part in an official investigation, even one not begun to uncover waste or a violation.⁴³ A deputy who answers an auditor's questions candidly about a mistake in your office is protected. If you discipline that deputy afterward, document the independent reason in writing and get your prosecutor's view first.

Audit findings

Your county must have an independent audit every year if its expenditures exceed $300,000, with a biennial option between $200,000 and $300,000, and file the report with the Legislative Services Office within nine months after the audit period. The commissioners supervise officers and audit their accounts.⁴⁴ Your annual settlement before the board comes in October.⁴⁵

When a finding concerns your office, answer it in writing and on time. State the fact, state what you will change, name who does it and give a date. Where you disagree on the facts, say so with evidence. A repeat finding is the one people remember.

Related Organizations and Where to Get Help

Each URL below returned a live page when I checked it on October 13, 2026.⁴⁶

• Idaho Counties Risk Management Program (ICRMP). Your county's risk pool and the first call on a claim, a lawsuit, a cyber incident or a loss. Its risk management and claims pages describe loss control and reporting. Its main number is (208) 336-3100, listed on its homepage.
• Idaho Attorney General. Publishes the Public Records, Open Meeting and Ethics in Government manuals; receives the 24-hour breach notice; and investigates criminal conduct by county elected officials through its public corruption unit.
• Idaho Secretary of State, and its Sunshine portal for campaign finance filings.
• Idaho Association of Counties (IAC), which houses affiliates, tracks legislation and supports its affiliates.
• Idaho Association of County Treasurers (IACT), an IAC affiliate that exists to educate and connect treasurers. Call a peer who has handled the situation you face.
• Legislative Services Office, audits, where county audit reports are filed.

Your county prosecutor is your lawyer for official matters, with the limits noted above. Related: Custody and Investments, Case Law, Resources.

Practice Points for the Officeholder

Annual risk checklist

• Bond: confirm the amount, the surety and the filing with the clerk; ask the board to run its twice-yearly sufficiency review and keep the minutes. (§§ 31-2015, 59-806)
• Coverage: read the current ICRMP policy with the county's coverage contact. Note the exclusions for dishonest or criminal acts and the notice requirements. Confirm the cyber and crime lines. (ICRMP; County of Boise)
• Claims: forward any demand letter to the clerk and ICRMP the same day. Calendar 180 days, 90 days and two years from the event. (§§ 6-906 to 6-911)
• Records requests: name a custodian, keep a log, answer within three working days, and use the denial language in § 74-103(5). Keep disputed records until the appeal period ends. (§§ 74-102, 74-103, 74-115, 74-119)
• Retention: before any purge, get a board resolution listing the records, after audit and on the prosecutor's advice. (§ 31-871(2)(g))
• Tax mailings: check that no name or electioneering message appears. (§ 74-407)
• Ballot measures: no county time, email or materials used to advocate on levy or bond questions. (§ 74-604)
• Campaign: if you are a candidate, file through the Secretary of State portal and keep campaign money separate. (§§ 67-6607, 67-6610C)
• Cyber: have a written first-hour plan with the 24-hour Attorney General notice on page one. (§ 28-51-105)
• Cash: confirm segregation of duties, two-person counts, daily deposits and monthly independent review. Ask the auditor for a surprise count once a year. (§ 31-2123)
• Whistleblower: post the notice employees are entitled to. Document any discipline after an employee cooperates in an investigation. (§§ 6-2104, 6-2109)
• Audit: calendar the LSO filing within nine months. Answer every finding in writing. (§ 67-450B)
• Settlements: sworn monthly settlement on the first Monday; annual settlement on October 5, 2027. (§ 31-2112)

What auditors and the board will ask

Who can receive money, post it and reconcile the account, and are they the same person? Where is the evidence of the deposit, the count and the review? Does the bond cover today's balances? Where is the request log?

Common mistakes

Treating a board motion as authority to move money the statute says to keep. Withholding a whole file because part is exempt. Letting a records request sit in silence. Holding a demand letter for weeks. Discarding old records without a resolution.

When to call

• Your county prosecutor: records denials, conflicts, retention, anything touching a statute.
• ICRMP: claims, lawsuits, cyber incidents, losses.
• The Attorney General: breach notice within 24 hours; guidance manuals.
• IACT and IAC: peer advice and training.
• Independent counsel: if your own conduct may be at issue.

Sources & Further Reading

Primary Sources

• Idaho Const. art. XVIII, § 6
• Idaho Code §§ 31-2010, 31-2015, 31-2018, 31-871, 31-2101 to 31-2127; Title 59, chapters 8 and 9; Title 6, chapters 9 and 21; Title 18, chapters 13, 32 and 57; Title 19, chapter 41
• Idaho Code Title 28, chapter 51; Title 34, chapter 17; Title 67, chapter 66; §§ 67-450B; Title 74, chapters 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6
• Bonneville County v. Standard Accident Insurance Co., 57 Idaho 657, 67 P.2d 904 (1937)
• State v. Olsen, 161 Idaho 385, 386 P.3d 908 (2016)
• County of Boise v. Idaho Counties Risk Management Program, 151 Idaho 901, 265 P.3d 514 (2011)
• Henry v. Taylor, 152 Idaho 155, 267 P.3d 1270 (2012); Cowles Publishing Co. v. Kootenai County, 144 Idaho 259, 159 P.3d 896 (2007)
• Wright v. Ada County, 160 Idaho 491, 376 P.3d 58 (2016); Smith v. Wade, 461 U.S. 30 (1983)

Agency Guidance

• Idaho Attorney General manuals: Public Records Law, Open Meeting Law and Ethics in Government
• ICRMP
• Idaho Association of County Treasurers
• Legislative Services Office audits

Related Training Modules

• Module 1: The Office of County Treasurer and Taking It On
• Module 4: Custody and Investments
• Module 8: Case Law
• Module 10: Resources
• Ethics, Conduct & Conflicts of Interest
• Open Meeting Law
• Issues course: Idaho Open Meetings
• Issues course: Local Government
• Issues course: Idaho Property Taxes

Footnotes

1. Idaho Const. art. XVIII, § 6 (text). Module 1 covers the rest of the section and the office itself.
2. Bonneville County v. Standard Accident Insurance Co., 57 Idaho 657, 67 P.2d 904 (1937), read in the Harvard Caselaw Access Project text. The court held an assessor and his surety liable for tax money stolen from his vault without fault on his part, applying art. XVIII, § 6. It predates § 31-2018 (1988).
3. Idaho Code § 31-2018 (text), added 1988, ch. 4. The statute says the county indemnifies "pursuant to the authority in the Idaho tort claims act." I found no Idaho appellate decision construing § 31-2018, and the statute does not define negligence for this purpose.
4. Idaho Code § 31-2010 (text) (penalties or liability for nonperformance attach to the official bond, its principal and its sureties, except in criminal prosecutions); § 31-2015(2) and (7) (text). Section 31-2015(2) refers to a surety bond "as provided in section 41-2707." As published today, § 41-2707 is a title insurance rate filing section, so that cross-reference looks stale. I did not find a published fix. Ask your prosecutor which standard your board applied.
5. Idaho Code §§ 59-802 to 59-812 (chapter 8). Section 59-802 defines surety bond and crime insurance; § 59-804 requires a bond payable to the political subdivision, executed by a corporate surety, approved by the governing body and filed with the clerk; § 59-806 is the twice-yearly sufficiency review; § 59-809 requires a record of official bonds; § 59-812 makes the obligation joint and several.
6. Idaho Code § 6-902(4) (text) ("employee" includes elected or appointed officers); § 6-903 (text). Subsections (2) to (4) cover defense and indemnity, including claims against you individually and suits in federal court; subsection (5) creates the rebuttable presumption of course and scope.
7. Anderson v. Spalding, 137 Idaho 509, 50 P.3d 1004 (2002) (course and scope inquiry under § 6-903 and the statutory presumption).
8. Idaho Code § 6-904A(1) (text); § 6-904C (definitions) defines gross negligence and "reckless, willful and wanton conduct"; § 6-904 lists the discretionary function and other immunities. I found no Idaho appellate decision applying § 6-904A(1) to a county treasurer.
9. Greenwade v. Idaho State Tax Commission, 119 Idaho 501, 808 P.2d 420 (Ct. App. 1991) (notice under the Act is a mandatory condition precedent; § 6-918 bars punitive damages; a claim to recover property seized for taxes followed the statutory tax remedy rather than being barred as a tort claim). The defendant was the State Tax Commission, not a county treasurer, so treat it as persuasive on method rather than as a ruling about your office.
10. Idaho Code § 6-906 (text) (a written claim against a political subdivision or its employee goes to the clerk or secretary of the political subdivision within 180 days of when the claim arose or should reasonably have been discovered; § 6-905 is the parallel rule for claims against the state); § 6-907 (contents); § 6-908 (no action without timely notice); § 6-909 (the governing board has 90 days to act, silence is a denial); § 6-911 (two-year limitation); § 6-917 (a recovery against the entity bars an action against the employee).
11. Idaho Code § 6-924 (minimum policy limit $500,000); § 6-926 ($500,000 aggregate cap on liability for claims arising from a single occurrence unless the entity is insured above it); §§ 6-927 and 6-928 (levies for the liability plan and for judgments) (§ 6-926).
12. Idaho Code § 6-918 (text) (no punitive damages on a claim allowed under the Act); § 6-918A (attorney fees for bad faith, shown by clear and convincing evidence, within the § 6-926 cap); § 6-1604 (text) (punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence; the cap is the greater of $250,000 or three times compensatory damages). Section 6-903 does not say whether the county's indemnity reaches punitive damages awarded on a claim outside the Act.
13. Smith v. Wade, 461 U.S. 30 (1983) (text) (punitive damages may be assessed against an individual official under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on a showing of reckless or callous indifference to federally protected rights). I did not research qualified immunity, which Module 8 and your prosecutor address.
14. ICRMP, icrmp.org, describes itself as created by Idaho public entities for Idaho public entities. Its coverages page lists categories that include Employee Dishonesty, Embezzlement, Bonding, Privacy and Cyber Security, and Public Officials Errors and Omissions. Those are category names. I did not see policy terms, limits or deductibles, and they decide what is covered.
15. County of Boise v. Idaho Counties Risk Management Program, 151 Idaho 901, 265 P.3d 514 (2011) (ICRMP owed no duty to defend a Fair Housing Act suit because of the policy's land-use exclusion; the duty to defend turns on the allegations of the complaint; the 2008-09 policy excluded dishonest, fraudulent, criminal, malicious or deliberate acts and certain contract, penalty and fund-handling claims). The policy quoted there is old. Read your county's current one.
16. Idaho Code § 18-5701 (text), subsections (1) to (10); § 18-5702 (text), subsections (2) to (5).
17. Idaho Code §§ 18-2403, 18-2407, 18-2408 (theft includes embezzlement; grand theft is theft of more than $1,000 and is punishable by one to fourteen years and a fine up to $5,000); § 18-1307 (forfeiture on conviction of a crime in that chapter).
18. Idaho Code § 18-3201 (text) (felony, up to 14 years, for an officer who wilfully destroys, alters, falsifies or steals an official record); § 18-3204 (misdemeanor for an officer who delivers a certificate known to be false); § 18-315 (misdemeanor to wilfully omit a duty enjoined by law); §§ 18-5401, 18-5402, 18-5409 (perjury, one to fourteen years). Section 31-2112 requires the monthly settlement statement to be sworn.
19. Idaho Code §§ 18-1351 to 18-1362, Title 18, chapter 13 (bribery and corrupt influence) (§ 18-1356; § 18-1359). Section 18-1359 was amended in 2025 (ch. 114) and 2026 (ch. 68). Section 18-1360 sets the penalty (misdemeanor, fine up to $1,000, up to one year, plus forfeiture and restitution); § 18-1362 lets the prosecutor or the Attorney General seek an injunction and restitution.
20. State v. Olsen, 161 Idaho 385, 386 P.3d 908 (2016). A county sheriff was charged with three counts of misuse of public money for a county-paid backup cell phone used by his wife. The Court held that commissioners cannot pardon, so their knowledge or approval did not defeat the charge; that § 18-5701(10) is not unconstitutionally vague; and that when the State aggregates small incidents under § 18-5702(4)(a) it must do so in one count, which led to two counts being vacated.
21. I searched for an Attorney General opinion on county treasurer personal liability and did not locate one I could verify. The opinions index is at ag.idaho.gov/office-resources/opinions. Module 8 collects the case law and opinions that were verified.
22. Idaho Code § 59-901 (text) (an office becomes vacant on, among other events, conviction of a felony or of a public offense involving violation of the oath of office, and on forfeiture); § 59-806 (cure period and certification to the district court); § 59-915 (senior deputy assumes the office on vacancy).
23. Idaho Code §§ 19-4101, 19-4112, 19-4113 (§ 19-4101) (grand jury accusation of "wilful or corrupt misconduct in office," judgment of removal, and suspension pending appeal); § 31-2120 (commissioners may suspend a treasurer after an official misconduct action begins).
24. Idaho Code § 31-2002 (text), as amended 2025, ch. 296. The Attorney General's Public Corruption page says the office investigates criminal conduct by elected county officials, including treasurers, and does not investigate civil violations such as open meeting or public records violations.
25. Idaho Code §§ 34-1701(2)(a), 34-1702(3), 34-1704, 34-1707, 34-1712(3), 34-1713(1) (§ 34-1702). The petition threshold is 20 percent of the electors registered at the last county general election at which the officer was elected; the petition must be perfected in 75 days; you have five business days to resign after a sufficient petition; and no petition may circulate in your first 90 days. Module 1 covers recall in more detail.
26. Idaho Code §§ 74-401 to 74-407 (§ 74-403, § 74-404, § 74-406). Section 74-406 provides a civil penalty up to $500 for intentional nondisclosure. Idaho Attorney General, Ethics in Government manual (July 2026), which reads § 74-404 against the rules of the body. Whether § 74-404 reaches a treasurer acting alone is unclear on its text; the Act is written around votes and the rules of public bodies.
27. Idaho Code §§ 74-501 to 74-511 (§ 74-501). Section 74-502 allows remote interests with disclosure in the minutes; § 74-504 makes a prohibited contract voidable; § 74-505 bars dealing in warrants; § 74-506 requires an affidavit of nonviolation before accounts are allowed; § 74-507 bars disbursing officers from paying tainted warrants; § 74-509 sets a misdemeanor, fine up to $1,000, up to one year.
28. Idaho Code § 74-407 (text), added 2023, ch. 284; amended 2024, ch. 46.
29. Idaho Code §§ 74-601 to 74-606, the Public Integrity in Elections Act (§ 74-604). Section 74-603 defines "ballot measure" as constitutional amendments, bond measures and levy measures; § 74-605 excludes personal campaigning with no public resources, neutral voter encouragement and objective statements; § 74-606 sets civil penalties up to $250, $1,500 for knowing violations and $2,500 for repeat violations, enforced by the prosecutor for local agencies. The Attorney General's Ethics manual cites its guidelines on public funds and campaigns (2018 Idaho Att'y Gen. Ann. Rpt. 43-44; 1997 Ann. Rpt. 35). I saw those only through the manual.
30. Idaho Code §§ 67-6602(10), 67-6603, 67-6607, 67-6608, 67-6610A, 67-6610C, 67-6615, 67-6625, 67-6625A (§ 67-6607; § 67-6608). The county clerk inspects local filings under § 67-6615. Filing runs through the Secretary of State's Sunshine portal (see also voteidaho.gov). I found no annual personal financial disclosure for county officers in Title 74, chapter 4 or Title 67, chapter 66. Check with the Secretary of State if your county has adopted its own requirement.
31. Henry v. Taylor, 152 Idaho 155, 267 P.3d 1270 (2012) (records of money flowing from a prosecutor's contract with a city, including a private bank account, were public records; the county treasurer there produced only auditor certificates and no other records; relief was denied against respondents who were not the official who refused). Cowles Publishing Co. v. Kootenai County Board of County Commissioners, 144 Idaho 259, 159 P.3d 896 (2007) (emails between a county manager and the prosecutor were public records; ICRMP handled the request for the county). Fox v. Estep, 118 Idaho 454, 797 P.2d 854 (1990) (a clerk's handwritten notes of commissioners' meetings could be public records).
32. Idaho Code § 74-106(4)(b), (g), (h) (text); § 74-105(21) (cybersecurity records, other than public expenditure records; § 74-105 was amended in 2026); § 74-107(11) (risk-retention and self-insurance claim records, with only statistics and amounts paid public once a claim is concluded); § 74-112 (segregate exempt from nonexempt material). Whether § 74-106(4)(b) reaches your county's own bank statements, as opposed to records a depository compiles about an individual, is not settled by the text, so ask your prosecutor.
33. Idaho Code § 74-103 (text), amended 2025, ch. 298. A request that does not clearly say it is a public records request does not trigger the duty to respond. Silence is a denial under subsection (3). The written denial must carry the attorney statement and the appeal notice in subsection (5).
34. Idaho Code §§ 74-101 to 74-127 (§ 74-101, § 74-102). Section 74-101 defines "public record" and "resident"; § 74-102 covers the written request, the custodian, fees (first two labor hours and 100 pages free for residents, actual cost afterward, itemized) and designation of custodians; § 74-119 requires a designated custodian. Idaho Attorney General, Public Records Law Manual (July 2026).
35. Idaho Code § 74-115 (text) (sole remedy is a petition to the district court within 180 days of the mailing of the denial; hearing within 28 days; keep the records until the appeal ends); § 74-116 (fees to the prevailing party if the other side acted frivolously); § 74-117 (civil penalty up to $1,000 for deliberate bad faith); § 74-118 (immunity for good faith); § 74-121 (public records may not be improperly removed).
36. Idaho Code § 31-871 (text), last amended 2018, ch. 184. Subsection (2)(g) requires a board resolution after regular audit and upon the advice of the prosecuting attorney, listing the records in detail, under the supervision of the responsible elected official. Section 31-871A permits digital and photographic retention with duplicates, one in a vault or off site. I did not find a separate treasurer-specific retention schedule.
37. Safe Air For Everyone v. Idaho State Department of Agriculture, 145 Idaho 164, 177 P.3d 378 (2008) (a governing body requires two or more members with statutorily based authority; employees of an agency headed by a single director were not one; decided under the earlier numbering at § 67-2341). The Open Meeting Law is now Title 74, chapter 2.
38. Idaho Code §§ 74-201 to 74-208 (§ 74-202, § 74-208). Section 74-202 defines governing body as two or more members with authority to decide or recommend, and includes subagencies created by statute, ordinance or other legislative act. Section 74-208 makes violating action null and void and sets civil penalties of $250, $1,500 and $2,500; a challenge must be brought within 30 days. See also the Attorney General's Open Meeting Law manual (July 2026), which says the law does not apply to an agency headed by a single individual and recommends erring toward openness. Whether an informal body created only by a commissioners' resolution is covered is not settled.
39. Idaho Code §§ 28-51-104, 28-51-105 (text), 28-51-106, 28-51-107. Section 28-51-105 requires a prompt investigation, notice to affected residents in the most expedient time, and notice to the Attorney General within 24 hours of discovery; a governmental employee who intentionally discloses personal information commits a misdemeanor. Section 28-51-107 allows an Attorney General civil action and a fine up to $25,000 per breach for intentional failure to notify. The Attorney General's security breach page confirms the 24-hour rule. Whether a ransomware lockout without evidence of copying is a "breach" under § 28-51-104 is not settled by the text.
40. Idaho Code § 28-51-103 (text) (a payment card receipt may print no more than the last five digits of the card number and not the expiration date; civil penalties of $250 and $1,000).
41. The controls described here are accounting practice, not statute. The statutes that frame them are § 31-2103 (receive no money unless documented by the auditor's certificate), § 31-2104 (receipts), § 31-2119 (keep county money in your own possession), § 31-2122 and § 31-2123 (books open to the commissioners, the grand jury and the auditor, who may count the money), and § 74-505 and § 74-507 (warrants).
42. Idaho Code §§ 6-2101 to 6-2109, the Idaho Protection of Public Employees Act (§ 6-2104, § 6-2105). Section 6-2104 bars adverse action for a good-faith report, for participating in an investigation, and for refusing a directive the employee reasonably believes unlawful; § 6-2105 sets a 180-day suit period and bars punitive damages against governmental entities and their employees; § 6-2106 adds a civil fine up to $500; § 6-2109 requires employers to notify employees of the protections.
43. Wright v. Ada County, 160 Idaho 491, 376 P.3d 58 (2016) (the Act protects an employee who participates in an official investigation even if the investigation was not begun to uncover waste or a violation; a negligent infliction of emotional distress claim remained available alongside the Act).
44. Idaho Code § 67-450B (text), amended 2025, ch. 71 (annual audit by an independent auditor under written contract where annual expenditures exceed $300,000, with a biennial option between $200,000 and $300,000; copy filed with the Legislative Services Office within nine months after the audit period). Legislative Services Office, Audits. Sections 31-802 and 31-809 give the commissioners supervision of officers and audit of their accounts.
45. Idaho Code §§ 31-2112, 31-2113, 31-2114 (§ 31-2112) (monthly settlement on the first Monday by sworn statement; annual settlement on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of October in the commissioners' presence; a report at every regular meeting; $500 forfeit per neglect). In 2027 the annual settlement date is October 5. Compute the monthly dates from the calendar rather than from memory.
46. Each URL in the organizations list returned a live page on October 13, 2026. The Idaho Association of Counties page for IACT is idcounties.org/idaho-association-of-county-treasurers; its affiliate list is at idcounties.org/resources/affiliates.