THEODORE R. MCKELDIN, GOVERNOR                      259

material or supplies of any kind to, or be financially interested in any
contract with the institution.

(c)  The Maryland Children's Center shall accept, subject to the
rules and regulations of the State Department of Public Welfare,
from courts of proper jurisdiction, children adjudged delinquent and
shall provide a residential program of care and study. In no instance
shall a child be given custody for a period of longer than thirty (30)
days. Within the thirty (30) days the Maryland Children's Center
shall return the child to the court with proper recommendations

(d)  During the period that any child may be placed in the custody
of the Maryland Children's Center pursuant to the provisions of
this sub-title, the county (or Baltimore City) where the child resided
at the time of his admission to the Maryland Children's Center, shall
be chargeable a sum for each child under care and study equal to
one-half of the current per capita cost per day, said cost to be de-
termined by the Department of Budget and Procurement and certi-
fied to said counties and Baltimore City. It shall be the duty of the
State Department of Public Welfare, or its agent or agents, to
furnish the Board of County Commissioners or to the Comptroller of
Baltimore City, a quarterly statement giving the number and names
of all such children from the particular political sub-division and the
total amount due therefor. The State Department of Public Welfare
shall also certify to the State Comptroller the amount due from each
of the several counties and from Baltimore City, and it shall be the
duty of the State Comptroller to collect these respective sums from
the counties and Baltimore City.

(e)  The County Commissioners and the County Council of each
county and the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore are authorized
and directed to levy annually upon the assessable property in each
such respective political jurisdiction, a sum sufficient to pay the
aggregate of such charges. Should any county or Baltimore City fail
to levy a tax sufficient to pay said charges, the Comptroller shall
enforce the obligation by an action of mandamus, the withholding
of any State moneys due to the County or City, or by other appro-
priate means. If any county or Baltimore City shall claim that any
child is not a proper charge against it, or otherwise question tive
correctness of the amount due, it shall be entitled to a hearing before
the State Comptroller and the decision of the Comptroller as to any
questions of fact or as to the residence of the child shall be final and
conclusive.

SEC.2. And be it further enacted, That the institution herein re-
ferred to as the Maryland Children's Center is the same institution
referred to as the "Children's Study Center" in Article 98 of the
Acts of 1956, the particular reference being on Page 250 of the Acts
of 1956.

SEC.3. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall take effect
June 1, 1958.

Approved April 4, 1958.