215 P. 257 | Wyo. | 1923
This is a suit to enjoin the collection of taxes. The plaintiffs in error, plaintiffs below, brought this action on behalf of themselves and other tax payers similarly situated. The petition described the lands of the three plaintiffs, without, however, mentioning into what classification such lands had then been placed for the purpose of assessment for taxation. It is alleged that said property was placed upon the assessment rolls of Platte County by the assessor in the year 1921; that the county board of equalization held its meetings in the months of June and July of that year without making any changes in the valuation of the said lands; that said board finally adjourned on July 27th, 1921, whereupon the assessments of said property for the year 1921 became fixed and determined at the valuation placed thereon by the assessor, and the assessment roll of said county became complete at that time; that thereafter on September 15th, 1921, pursuant to a telegram from the secretary of the State Board of Equalization, dated September 3rd, 1921, the
An answer was filed, alleging among other things the fact that the increases mentioned were made pursuant to an order of the State Board of Equalization, notification thereof to the county board of equalization of Platte county, and direction by the latter board to the county assessor to make the proper increases. The case was tried, and it appeared in the evidence among other things that by the order made by the State Board of Equalization, number 1 and number 3 lands were increased as stated in the petition; that an increase of 75 per cent was also made of number four lands in said county, said number four lands embracing all grazing lands, as classified by said board, but that the county board was notified that number 5 lands, being second class grazing land as classified by the assessor of Platte county, were raised the per centage mentioned. Other facts will be mentioned later in the opinion. Upon the conclusion of the trial, the lower court found for the defendants, and entered a judgment dismissing the action of plaintiffs. A motion for a new trial was filed, which was overruled, and plaintiffs are here on proceedings in error, in substance alleging as
Í. The State Board of Equalization in this case ordered the increase in valuation mentioned in the statement of facts on September 3rd, 1921, and pursuant to this order the county board of equalization or of commissioners, on September 15, 1921, directed the county assessor to carry out the order and make the necessary changes in his books. It is the contention of plaintiffs in error that this was done too late; that at that time no power existed to make such in- ' crease. It is claimed .that the assessment period ends for all purposes with the adjournment of the county board of equalization in July and that no power exists to make any changes thereafter except only as to omitted property, and further, that the State Board of Equalization may thereafter equalize the aggregate valuation of all the property in the county as to the state tax only, but that its power extends no further. It seems also to be contended that even for that purpose the dates above mentioned were too late. Under the laws of this state the county assessor is required to begin his work on the first Monday of February of each year and complete the assessment roll before the fourth Monday in June. (Sec. 1515, Wyo. C. S. 1920.) Valuations of live stock and mineral products are fixed by the State Board of Equalization and certified at least ten days before the day fixed for beginning assessments. (Const., Art. 15¡ Sec. 10, and Sec. 2908 of the statutes.) The county board of equalization is required to hold two regular meetings each year, the first commencing on the first Monday of June, not exceeding 22 days, the second commencing on the fourth Monday in July, not exceeding six days. (C. S. 2792.) At the former meeting, the board reviews and hears complaints as to the work of the assessor, adds omitted property and may increase, diminish or otherwise alter or correct any assessment or valuation. (C. S. 2793.) In the case of an increase, the tax payer must be notified and he may appear and enter his protest at the July meeting of the board, at
“so that all the taxable property in the state shall be assessed at its true and full value, and to that end may add to or deduct from the aggregate valuation of the property, or of any class or classes of property, in any county or counties or in any district or subdivision thereof, such per cent as will bring the same to its true value and place its assessed valuation upon q par with property of the same class throughout the state. When such assessed valuation has been raised or lowered, the board shall give notice of the action taken, to the board of equalization of the county in which such property is situated, and upon receipt of such notice by such county board of equalization, the said county board of equalization shall take the necessary action to make effective the- action taken by the State Board of Equalization.” (C. S. 2810.)
No time is fixed as to when the State Board of Equalization must act as aforesaid. It must fix the valuations of the property of public utilities and certify its action to the various counties on or before the fourth Monday of August, or as soon thereafter as the said board shall have determined said valuation. (Sec. 2813.) The taxes are directed to be levied by the board of county commissioners on the first Monday of September of each year “and the same may be levied any time prior to the first Monday of September if the statement and notice required by Section 2776 has been
There is no doubt, of course, that the legislature in providing for these various steps to be taken, intended to provide for an orderly,methodical procedure for the purpose of assessment and taxation, and that, generally speaking, it deemed the time up to the first Monday of September of each year as sufficient for the purpose of completion of the assessment, including equalization. Whether or not, however, the dates specified are each mandatory is another question. The correction of the assessment by the county board of equalization is not and cannot finally be made until after its
The law fixes no time when the State Board of Equalization shall begin or complete its work in examining the returns made, and hence there is no “statutory period for completing assessments, ’ ’ to which counsel for plaintiffs in error refer, unless from other provisions of the statutes an absolute time limit is mandatorily set. Sec. 2813 directs the state board to certify valuations of property of public utilities on or before the fourth Monday of August, or “as soon thereafter” as the board finishes its work in connection therewith, indicating clearly that the fourth Monday in August is not the limit of the “statutory” assessment period. The tax levy, it is true, is to be made on the first Monday in September, if not sooner made, and the assessment roll is to be turned over to the county treasurer by the third Monday in September. If these dates were mandatory, then, no doubt, the assessment period would have an absolute limit. The authorities are in conflict as to whether the date set for the levy of taxes is mandatory or directory. 37 Cyc. 975, Cooley on Taxation, 487, lays down this rule:
“So in general the fixing of an exact time for the doing of an act is only directory where it is not fixed for the purpose of giving the party a hearing, or for any other purpose important to him. ’ ’
Many illustrations, including cases dealing with the time of making a levy, are cited. In the case of Prairie Oil & Gas Co. v. Cruce, 45 Okl. 774, 147 Pac. 152, the court said:
“The foregoing presents the general scheme of taxation in this state, whereby revenues of the state and of its various municipal subdivisions are levied and collected. The various provisions of the statute fix the time at which each of the several duties shall be performed by the different officers in the assessment of property and levy of taxes, but*515 we do not think that these provisions constitute a limitation upon the powers of the officials so as to render invalid any acts performed by them after the time so fixed. There is no doubt that these provisions were intended to put into force an orderly and systematic procedure governing the conduct of the various officers whose duties it is to see to the assessment of the property and collection of the revenues of the state; and it seems clear that these provisions are not mandatory, but are merely directory. ’ ’
In the case of Tallon v. Mining Company, 59 Colo. 316, 149 Pac. 108, the court said:
“Whether statutes involving the constructive steps incident to taxation are mandatory or directory depend upon whether or not the directions given the officers are for the benefit of the taxpayer to give him notice and opportunity for a hearing, or for any other purposes important to him. The time for fixing the levy and delivering the tax warrant to the treasury are not for the purpose of giving the tax payer notice or a hearing, and are of no concern or importance to him, so far as the time for doing the acts are concerned. Unquestionably it is the duty of the board to make the levy so that the assessor can certify the tax list and warrant to the treasurer on or before the first of January, but the failure of the commissioners or the assessor to do either within the time specified in no manner affects the tax payer and is directory.1 ’
In Willard v. Pike, 59 Vt. 202, 210, quoting from Torrey v. Mulberry, 21 Pick 64, it is said:
“Some of the regulations relating to the assessment of taxes are conditions precedent to the legality of the tax, and others are directory merely; that these measures, which are intended for the security of the citizen,- or insuring an equality of taxation and to enable anyone to know with reasonable certainty for what polls and for what real and personal estate he is taxed and for what those who are liable with him are taxed are conditions.preeedent. * * * But many regulations are made by statute designed for the in*516 formation of assessors and officers, and intended to promote method, system and uniformity in the modes of proceeding, the compliance or non-compliance with which does in no way effect the rights of tax paying citizens. They may be considered directory.”
In State v. Zillman, 121 Wis. 472, 277, the court said:
"To hold that assessing officers and members of boards of review shall be held strictly to the time specified for the performance of their duties under the statute would result, practically, in a failure to administer the law for the assessment of taxes, under the varying difficulties and obstacles inhering to such a course. These provisions of the statute pertaining to the assessment of taxes must have been intended by the legislature as directory in their execution, and a departure from the letter should not invalidate the action of such officers, unless it be shown that the rights of persons interested were thereby materially affected to their prejudice. ’ ’
To the same effect see Buswell v. Board, 116 Cal. 351, 48 Pac. 226; Colorado & S. Ry. Co. v. Board, (Colo.) 196 Pac. 331; Bush v. District, 103 Kans. 876, 176 Pac. 653; Rural High School District v. Raub, 103 Kan. 757, 176 Pac. 110; Birmingham B. & L. Ass. v. The State, 120 Ala. 403, 409.
We think that under these authorities we should construe the provisions above mentioned as directory merely. And the question, therefore, arises, as to when, if ever, an assessment period is completed. We need not definitely decide the question. The State Board of Equalization should act promptly, with dispatch consistent with care, and complete its work within- a reasonable time. If the levy is made and the assessment roll delivered to the county treasurer within a period so as to give the tax payer a reasonable opportunity to pay his taxes before they become delinquent, we do not believe that we could say that his interests are materially affected to his prejudice. This is in line with the holding in State v. Doster-Worthington Drug Co., 196 Ala. 447, 71 So.
2. The State Board of Equalization by its order sent to the county hoard raised numbers 1, 2 and 5 lands. It is explained in the testimony that No. 5 lands as kept by the county assessor of Platte County are in fact part of the No. 4 lands of the state board. The lands are grazing lands, and no uncertainty existed as a matter' of fact as to what particular lands were intended to be increased in valuation. It is the contention of plaintiffs in error that no authority exists in law for the State Board of Equalization to make any classification of property, and that the only classes of property which the board may increase or decrease in valuation are those specified by Sections 2757, 2775 and 2776 of the Wyo. C. S. 1920, and we are cited to Bell v. Meeker, 39 Ind. App. 224, 78 N. E. 641; Gray v. Foster, 46 Ind. App. 149, 92 N. E. 711; Smith v. Kelly, 24 Or. 464, 33 Pac. 642; Oregon etc. R. Co. v. Croison, 22 Or. 393, 30 Pac. 219; Campbell v. Minnehaha Nat. Bank, 11 S. D. 133, 70 N. W. 10 and a few other cases directly or impliedly holding that the State Board of Equalization cannot classify property without statutory authority. We may grant the premises to be, ordinarily, correct. Boards of equalization are, in the absence of constitutional provisions, creatures of the statute and cannot exceed the authority granted them. Before proceeding further, however, we might discuss the advisibility of classification in general in order to understand the legislation on the subject. Anyone at all familiar with the varied classes of lands within the state should, it would seem, realize how impossible it would be to attempt any effective equalization of valuation of lands within the state, without recognizing the distinctive features which
“If the contentions of counsel were to be sustained, it would be necessary, in order to impose a just proportion of the burden of taxation upon the owners of town lots by increasing them to their fair cash value, to, at the same time, increase the valuation of farm lands 50 per cent above their fair cash value. It can be seen at a glance that a system which would require this would be an iniquity, which should not be permitted to continue.« So it is with the equalization between classes of personal property. * m * As we view it, the legislature of this state sought to correct just the evils which existed in the old system, and under the scheme here worked out there has been brought about a better and a more uniform assessment and more equitable distribution of the burdens of taxation among the people who must bear them. * * * The system which enables a State Board of Equalization to distinguish between classes of property, some of which have been assessed too high, and others of which' have been assessed too low, and bring them all to a common standard, is an advanced step over the system which previously existed in this jurisdiction, and which exists in a number of states. That it has not and will not make mistakes is not assumed nor claimed; no one expects this; but that its errors will be less in degree and number than they would be if it lacked this power every one must concede. ’ ’
And the Supreme Court of New Mexico said in Ranch & Cattle Co. v. Board of Equalization, 18 N. M. 531, 543:
“If the valuations in counties can only be increased or decreased as a whole, then the state board has no power to adhere to the fundamental principle of taxation prescribed*519 in the act, namely that the basis of valuation shall he actual value. If a given class of property in a county is correctly valued, and another given class in the same county is undervalued, and the state hoard decreases the total valuation in that county, it necessarily departs from the correct standard of valuation as to the first-named class of property. If it increases the valuation of the county as a whole, it necessarily imposes an unjust burden upon the owners of the class of property which had theretofore been properly valued.”
These principles so announced may be illustrated in the case at bar. Class two, uncultivated irrigated lands, were not affected by the order of increase in valuation, because that land had, in the judgment of the board, already been assessed at its full value. If the board had been compelled to raise all of the property in the county, it is clear that the owners of second class lands would have suffered an injustice. The fact that lands comprised within certain classes are, because of distance from market and other factors affecting value, not assessed at a uniform valuation, does not militate against what we have said. Absolute justice cannot be attained; we can strive only for an approximation thereto, and we think that injustice may be reduced under the system of equalizing classes to a greater extent than under a system not permitting that to be done.
If it is true, and we believe it is, that the system enabling the equalization by classes is designed for and adapted to the purpose of furthering a just and equal distribution of the burdens of taxation, then legislation tending in that direction should be liberally, rather than strictly, construed. (State v. Haugen, 168 Wis. 253, 169 N. W. 555.) Counsel for plaintiffs in error argue, as before stated, that the board cannot equalize the valuations of classes of property other than those specified in the statutes. Section 2757 prescribes what property is assessable. It enumerates a number of classes of personal property, but mentions real estate simply as lands in general and town lots. That is true
“Another consideration is the fact that the precise manner of the exercise of the power of equalization by the state board is not pointed out in the statute. It is therefore fair to assume the legislative intent to have been to confer upon the board an efficient power of equalization so that the burdens of taxation may be equally distributed throughout the state, and upon all of her citizens.. An efficient power of equalization cannot be exercised by the state board unless it has power to deal with classes of property, because the valuations are based upon classification. Justice cannot be done by the state board, by way of equalization, as between citizens of the state, unless it has the power to equalize valuations of classes of property, both of different kinds in the same county.and of different classes as between counties*522 throughout the state. It would seem clear, therefore, that unless the power of the state board is lacking or restrained by reason of the terms of the legislation, considered as a whole, the state board ought to have, and has, the power to deal with classes of property, both within any given county and between counties throughout the state. To hold otherwise is to defeat the express intent of the taxing laws. ’ ’
We may go a step further. We held in the case of Bunten et al. v. Rock Springs Association, decided this day, that the court will take judicial notice of the published reports of the tax commissioner and of the State Board of Equalization in so far at least as they illustrate the general history of this state. The first report of the tax commissioner of this state relating to the years 1909 and 1910, and laid before the legislature of 1911, contains the following:
“Believing that there should be a uniform classification of lands among the counties of the state, at a meeting of the county assessors, held in the Capitol Building on November 15, 16 and 17, 1909, this was discussed and the assessors arranged and adopted unanimously the following classification : Class 1 — Irrigated lands, cultivated. Class 2 — Irrigated lands, uncultivated. Class 3 — Dry farming lands. Class 4 — Grazing lands. Class 5 — Coal lands. Class 6— Timber lands. Class 7 — Mineral lands. ’ ’
A tabulated statement as to the acreage and valuation of the various classes of lands in each county is appended. A like tabulation is contained in every biennial report of the tax commissioner to the year 1919 and of the State Board of Equalization since 1919. Up to and including 1919 five sessions of the legislature of this state had before it the biennial report relating to the two years immediately preceding each session, and it is not reasonable to hold that under these facts the legislature of 1919, which created the State Board of Equalization and authorized said board to equalize property by classes, meant to exclude the classes uniformly used in the state for ten years. We think that the legislature knew the history of this state, adopted the Act of
“The mode or manner in which the board shall equalize personal property is prescribed by the act, which is that it shall add to or deduct from the aggregate valuation of the several kinds or classes thereof so as to make them conform to their true cash value. * * * This is a legislative recognition that there exist different kinds and classes of that species of property, but no where is there any attempt, that we know of, to specify the classifications, nor to indicate what kind of property shall be comprised in each. This matter was probably intended to be regulated by the form of assessment rolls prepared and sent out to the several county clerks and by them distributed to the assessors. * * * The blank rolls are certainly intended as a direction to the county officials, and should be followed, as it tends to produce uniformity in classifications, which is essential to equality in assessment and taxation. ’ ’
Under the power to make rules and regulations for the performance of its duties, we think the State Board of Equalization in this state has ample power to require that the returns which it is required to examine shall contain a showing of the various classes of lands by it adopted, so as to enable it to carry out the authority granted to it by law to equalize property in the state by classes. The classification should not, on the one hand, be so minute as to evade the statutory requirement that notice must be given the tax payer when a change is made in his, her or its individual assessment, and on the other hand, two or more classes of property, having no relation to each other, should not be confused, so as to work an injustice on the tax payers. "We cannot, at' this time in any event, lay down any general rule, except to say that whatever classification is made must be
3. The order of the State Board of Equalization, made as above mentioned, raising the valuation of lands, was addressed to the county board of equalization of Platte County. The board of commissioners of that county met on September 15th, 1921, to make the tax levy, and while in session, the notice from the state board was laid before it. Without apparently resolving itself into a board of equalization, which, technically should have been done, the board directed the county assessor to carry out the order received. We held in the case of Bunten, et al. v. Rock Springs Grazing Association, supra, that where the increase in valuation is legally ordered by the state board, the execution of that order is ministerial; that when the increased valuation is extended on the assessment roll by the county assessor, the resulting tax will not be enjoined, even though no order whatever had been given by the county board of equalization to the assessor to make the increase directed by the state board, and that the lack of such order constitutes an irregularity merely. The membership of the board of county commissioners and that of the county board of equalization is the same.. The members were, in this case, duly assembled, and thus gave the order to the assessor above mentioned. We think that -whatever error was committed was an irregularity merely and is no ground for an action in injunction against the tax herein.
4. Much evidence was introduced in the case at bar as to the diversity of classifications of real property in the state. The assessment schedules, used by the assessors in the various counties in the state, seem not to have been uniform. In a number of counties, as Campbell, Johnson, Natrona, Park and perhaps other counties, the classification set out in the reports of the tax commissioner and State Board of Equalization seem to have been employed. ■ In Laramie county the second class land, instead of being described as uncultivated and irrigated, seems to have been described as irrigated
In the ease at bar the assessor of Platte County reported two classes of grazing lands, indicating them as Numbers 4 and 5. The State Board of Equalization has no such classification. It treats all grazing lands as one class, which is designated as No. 4. By its order it increased No. 4 lands
“So, too, in this ease, the question of common or general interest in many persons, which will entitle one or more persons to sue on behalf of all when the parties are numerous, must be in the subject matter of the action, and not in the question as an abstract legal proposition, as is the case when applied to property in which the person bringing the action has no personal interest, but is concerned from a' philanthropic impulse, or as the ease may be a precedent for his individual litigation. A man who has property sought to be subjected to the payment of an illegal tax is, from a legal standpoint, no more interested in the question as to whether or not property wholly belonging to other persons shall be subjected to the burden of the same illegal tax, than if he had no property affected by such a tax at all. ’ ’
In the case of Hudson v. Commissioners, 12 Kan. 140, 147, the court said:
“Where a tax is illegal in the abstract — illegal in and of itself — illegal as applied to every owner of taxable property in the county or district, then every person who has property affected by such illegal tax, or so many of them as may choose, may unite in an action to restrain the collection of such tax. Thus where a tax is levied to pay interest on illegal bonds # * *, or to pay illegal street assessments * * *, all persons whose property may be affected by such tax, or so many of them as choose, may unite in an action to enjoin the same; for the tax as a tax is illegal. But when the tax as a tax is valid, as for instance, an ordinary county tax, or state tax, or school tax, but becomes illegal only as applied to particular persons or property, or to particular eases, then each person severally interested must sue alone. ’ ’
In the case of DuPage County v. Jenks, 65 Ill. 275, the tax was claimed to be illegal because of an illegal assessment, and the case was therefore closely in point. The court in part says:
*528 “In such case what right have other persons not appointed to act for them, who have not been requested or even desired to interpose, to elect themselves their agents to prevent them from discharging not only a moral but a public duty— the duty of paying a fair share of the taxes necessary to support their government. Each individual has, no doubt, the legal right, where a tax has been imposed upon him that he conceives to be illegal, to contest its validity, but we are at a loss to comprehend how he thereby acquires the right to determine that his neighbor shall not pay a tax similarly imposed upon him. Each individual tax is a separate and distinct burthen, and stands wholly disconnected from that of other persons. Complete justice may be done in each several case, and the matter there adjudicated cannot be called in question by others; nor can any claim be interposed in regard to the tax then litigated by other persons not parties to the suits. Hence there can be no necessity to make others parties. — It cannot be held that a litigiously disposed person may, on his own motion, file a bill in his own name and on behalf of all other tax payers of the county, and stop the collection of all the revenue for the support of the state, the county, townships, cities, towns, schools and other municipalities. Our government is not and never can be at the mercy of one or a few individuals, thus to bring it to an end by the forms of law. ’ ’
See also Powell v. Durr, 9 Ohio Appeal 237. In the case at bar the plaintiffs do not seem to have any grazing lands ; at least there is no evidence in the record that they have. They are not in the slightest degree interested in the question whether grazing lands were increased in valuation legally or illegally; they are not affected thereby, and they are not, accordingly, in position to raise any question relative thereto.
The land of the plaintiff Fish was second class land — land irrigated but uncultivated, but was assessed as first class land. There is some evidence in the record indicating that the discrimination was intentional, arising from an order
5. It is urged that under the constitution the State Board of Equalization has no power to equalize the valuation of property except for state taxes. The argument that local matters should be left to local officers has force, and should, ordinarily, have considerable weight in determining the question before us. There is perhaps too great a tendency toward centralization of power over the nation generally, and the ancient Anglo Saxon institution of local self-government, the bulwark of the liberty of the people, seems, if this tendency continues, to be on the way of vanishing. But we must, necessarily, be guided by the provisions of our constitution, and these provisions are significant. The State Board of Equalization fixes the value of railroad property, and also that of live stock, which at the time of the adoption of the constitution constituted a considerable per centage of the property in this state. Since that time additional authority to fix values has been conferred on the state board by the legislature. It is empowered to fix the valuation of the property of all coal companies, oil companies and public
Section 10 of Article XV of the Constitution provides that the duties of the State Board of Equalization shall be to fix the valuation each year (1) of live stock and (2) of the- property of common carriers, with certain exceptions. The section then continues:
‘1 Said board shall also have power to equalize the valúa- , tion on all property in the several counties for the state revenue and such other duties as may be prescribed by law. ’ ’
• The doctrine of ejusdem generis may be applied under the clause that the board shall have “such other duties as may be prescribed by law,” to fixing valuations in other cases than those mentioned. The duty to value the property of coal and oil companies and public utilities has no doubt been imposed — whether properly or not we need not decide —under this clause. But it is difficult to see how the doctrine can, under the clause mentioned, be applied in any manner whatever to equalisation of property if the power to equalize is limited, as contended, to one thing, namely, to equalize valuations for state revenue. It is not at all clear that, because equalization for the state-tax was specifically mentioned, that the power of equalization for other purposes was intended to be excluded. Prior to the adoption of the constitution, power was vested in the then State Board of Equalization to equalize property valuations for territorial
“All property, except as in this constitution otherwise provided, shall be uniformly assessed for taxation, and the legislature shall prescribe such regulations as shall secure a just valuation for taxation-of all property, real and personal. ’ ’
This section specifically confers plenary power upon the legislature to enact such measures as it deems proper to bring about the just valuation contemplated. There is no limitation here. Whatever method is reasonably adapted to the purpose mentioned may be chosen. It cannot be said that the state as a whole is interested only in assessments for purposes of the state-tax. Its subdivisions are all to more or less extent state agencies to carry out the fundamental purposes of government. Hence the state is interested in the taxes to be raised by its agencies to carry out their functions. Taxation is a governmental power. Without legislative authority no taxes can be raised. And it should, accordingly, not alone be the right of the state, but its duty as well, to protect its citizens as nearly as possible in the constitutional right to have all property uniformly assessed for the purpose of raising revenue necessary not only for the state government itself, but also those necessary for its various agencies. With this end in view assessors and eoun
“The state'is concerned in the proper assessment of property, not only as to its own interests as they are affected by the collection or failure to collect the funds necessary, to carry -on government, but, as the supreme authority in the state, the legislature is required by Section 12, Art. 14, of ■the Constitution, to see to it that assessments be made on property at its real value. We -think that the authority of the legislature is not so restricted as to preclude the use of a state board in carrying into effect this important constitutional provision. ’ ’
And the same court in Atty. General ex rel. v. Board of Supervisors, said: • ,
1 ‘ Can it be said that the equalizing of assessments between the assessing districts of a county is a matter of purely local concern, and that the. state had no interest in the matter? * * * Equalization is an important factor in taxation, and, under our present system, the levy and collection of taxes is incomplete without it. The State Board of Equalization, under the Constitution, equalizes the state tax as between the various counties, and it would seem that the constitutional provision requiring the legislature to provide a uniform rule of taxation is for the purpose of equally distributing, as between taxation districts and individuals, the burden of taxation. In order to do this, it follows as a natural consequence that the legislature is empowered to create the necessary agencies to carry into effect the duty thus imposed.” '
In the case of Van De Griff v. Haynie, 28 Ark. 270, the Court, holding the act creating the State Board of Equaliza.tion constitutional, said:
‘ ‘ In reference to. taxation, the' constitution :is •not- so much ; to be regarded a grant of-power as a restriction, or limitation of • power. That restriction which: requires; that, all .property ■- shall be taxed by. a ‘ Uniform rule ’ :is So jmapi-fegtly just-, that •it-commends itself to uniyersap-assCnt.- >-t\\•*.- ■■•■The;4u.ty*534 of ascertaining taxable values, and of assessing and collecting taxes thereon, necessarily rests in the discretion of the legislature, and it may perform that duty by its own legislative acts, or through the agency of such officers or tribunals, as it may appoint for that purpose.”
And again in Board of Equalization cases, 49 Ark. 518, the court,' after referring to the constitutional provision similar to Section 11, supra, and speaking of the valuation made by local officers, said:
“But this valuation need not be final. On the contrary, it becomes the duty of the legislature to afford the means of making the approximate estimate of values conform as nearly as practicable to the constitutional design of equality and uniformity. * * * When the power to create the board is once established, it would seem to be the duty of the legislature to empower it to equalize the burden of taxation by adjusting the assessments of all property subject to taxation to the common standard of actual values. ’ ’
In Sav. & Loan Society v. Austin, 46 Cal. 415, 475, the court, holding the act creating the State Board of Equalization constitutional, said:
“As already stated, the governing rule ordained by the constitution — the central idea which pervades that instrument in respect to taxation — is that it shall be equal and uniform, and that property shall be taxed in proportion to its value. As one of the necessary steps towards ascertaining its value, local assessors must be elected, who shall make the primary valuation. But there is nothing in the instrument to indicate that this valuation was intended to be final. On the contrary, it is expressly provided that the valuation to be ascertained “as directed by law” — which is an explicit recognition of the power of the legislature to provide appropriate methods for ascertaining the value. ’ ’
6. No notice was given to the tax payers by the State Board of Equalization of the increased valuation made in the case at bar, and the statute provides for no such notice where the valuation of all or a class or classes of property in
£ ‘ Exactly what due process of law requires in the assessment and collection of general taxes has never yet been decided by this court, although we have had frequent occasion to hold that in proceedings for the condemnation of land under the laws of eminent domain, or for the imposition of*536 special 'taxes for local 'improvements, notice to the owner at some stage of the' proceedings, as well as opportunity to defend, is essential * * * But laws for the assessment and collection of general taxes stand upon a somewhat different footing and are construed with the utmost liberality, sometimes even to the extent of-holding that no notice whatever is necessary.
To the same effect see Glidden v. Harrington, 189 U. S. 225. See also The C. & E. R. Co. v. Keith, 67 C. S. 279, 292. It is well settled that' due process of law in assessments for general taxes does not require that personal notice be given, in order to authorize a board of equalization to increase or decrease an assessment. If the statute specifies the time and place when and where the board shall meet, that is considered sufficient, and treated as the equivalent of a personal notice. All persons interested must take notice that the power of the board to equalize property may be exercised at that time and place, and that his, her or its property may be affected thereby. (37 Cyc. 1099 and cases cited; Cooley, supra, 630.) The rule has frequently been applied to eases where the statute fixed the date and place of meeting of a State Board of Equalization. (Colorado Tax Commission v. Pitcher, 56 Colo. 343, 369, 138 Pac. 509; People v. Pitcher, 61 Colo. 149, 156 Pac. 812; Territory v. First National Bank, 10 N. M. 283, 303, 65 Pac. 172; Pittsburg etc. Ry. Co. v. Backus, 154 U. S. 421, 14 Sup. Ct. 1114; State Railroad Tax Cases, 92 U. S. 575; Kentucky R. R. Tax Cases, 115 U. S. 321, 6 Sup. Ct. 57; Ray v. Armstrong, 140 Ky. 800, 816, 131 S. W. 1039; Lander v. Mercantile Co., 186 U. S. 458, 22 Sup. Ct. 908; Bimetallic Investment Co. v. State Board of Equalization, 239 U. S. 441, 36 Sup. Ct. 141; People v. Orvis, 301 Ill. 350, 133 N. E. 787; cases in note to L. R. A. N. S. 1916 E, p. 8.) ¥e have found no ease holding notice necessary in a case likcthatát bar,-where the statute makes no requirement that 'notice be given. The case of State ex rel. v. Leech, 33 N. D. 513, 157 N. W. 492, to which we-have been cited,--mv-olives individual'and original
(a). The county board of equalization, as we have seen, has two meetings in each year. The tax payers in the respective counties have a right to appear before that board and cause to be made whatever adjustments are necessary. We must presume that thereafter the various owners of classes of property in the county stand on an equal footing, and that as between themselves the valuations of their respective properties have been fully equalized. (Carrico v. Crocker, 38 Okl. 440, 133 Pac. 181; Colorado Tax Commission v. Pitcher, 56 Colo. 343, 370, 138 Pac. 509; Bi-Metallic Inv. Co. v. State Board of Equalization, 239 U. S. 441, 36 Sup. Ct. 141.) But the process of assessment is not yet complete; the valuations are still subject to review by the State Board of Equalization. For that board to give notice to every tax payer in the state whose property might be affected by a horizontal increase in valuation is impracticable. The individual tax payers are interested in uniformity of taxation, and yet, it is plain that they would not
“But the increase of the assessment of a precinct is not made upon any one’s complaint, but arises in the official mind and judgment of the commissioners, upon an inspection and comparison of the assessment rolls of the several precincts. The law has designated no officer or person upon whom notice could be served or to represent the precinct at such equalization. The county commissioners themselves are the only and proper representatives of the precinct, and as they constitute the board of equalization no notice need be served on them.”
“The objection that the property owners had no notice of this addition of forty per cent, is answered by the fact that the charter requires but one notice to be given of the meeting to hear objections and revise and correct the assessments, and to act as a board of equalization. Such a notice was given by the city clerk. But of what avail would be a more' special notice ? The property owners could not defeat ■ this exercise of power by the board, and notice would have availed nothing. ’ ’
(See also Foster v. Rowe, 128 Wis. 326, 107 N. W. 635, 8 Ann. Cas. 595; Ray v. Armstrong, supra.) In the ease of Bi-Metallic Inv. Co. v. State Board of Equalization, 239 U. S. 441, 36 Sup. Ct. 141, the court said:
“For the purpose of decision we assume that the constitutional question is presented in the baldest way — that neither the plaintiff nor the assessor of Denver, who presents a brief on the plaintiff’s side, nor any representative of the city and county, was given an opportunity to be ■heard, other than such as they may have had by reason of the fact that the time of meeting of the board is fixed by law. * * * The question then is, whether all individuals have a constitutional right to be heard before a matter can be decided in which-all are equally concerned — here for instance, before a superior board decides that the local tax officers have adopted a system of undervaluation throughout a county, as notoriously often has been the case. The ans.wer of this court in the State R. Tax cases, 92 U. S. 575, 23 L. Ed. 663, at least, as to any further notice, was that it was hard to believe that the proposition was seriously made. Where a rule of conduct applies to more than a few people it is impracticable that everyone should have a direct voice in 'its, adoption. The constitution does not require all public acts to be done in town meeting or an assembly of the whole. General statutes within the state power are passed that affect the person or property of individuals, sometimes to the point*541 of ruin, without giving: them a chance to be heard. ' Their rights are protected in the only way that they can be in a complex-society, by their power, immediate or remote", over those who make the rule. If- the result in this case had been reached, as it might have been,, by the state’s doubling the rate of taxation, no one would suggest that the 14th amendment was violated unless every person affected had been allowed an opportunity to raise his voice against it before the body entrusted in the State Constitution with the power. In considering the case in this court we must assume that the proper state machinery has been used, and the question is, whether if the state constitution had declared that Denver had been undervalued as compared with the rest of the state, and had decreed that for the current year the valuation should be 40 per cent higher,, the objection now urged could prevail. It appears to us that to put the question is to answer it. There must be a limit to individual argument in such matters if government is to go on. ’ ’
We think the foregoing case is decisive of the question here. The principles involved are the same, namely, whether after the local boards of equalization have equalized the property, every tax payer affected having full opportunity to be heard, a horizontal increase, involving the property of a large number of people, may be made by the State Board of Equalization without further notice, and the court, in the foregoing case, held that it may do so, and that no such notice is necessary to be given. The fact that in the case from which we have quoted the time of meeting of the board was fixed by law, was not, we think, given any controlling weight in determining the general principle above stated. Nor do we think that there is any material difference in that respect between that case and the case at bar, as we shall proceed to show.
(b). We have seen that no notice is required whenevér the statute fixes the time and place of meeting of the State Board of Equalization. We think that this rule is substantially applicable in this state. The state board has its ses
• “We do not think the principle of those cases is affected by an adjournment of the Ohio board without fixing a date of meeting. How were the rights of the bank affected and to what inconvenience was it put ¥ It did not appear at the first meeting of the board. It rested on the evidence it had returned to the auditor, and it knew that the report it had made to the comptroller of the state would be before the board, and it knew also the duties and power of the board. The board was a public tribunal, open to be invoked, and charged with duties, and necessarily subject to adjournment. What it had done the bank could have easily ascertained, and as easily what it contemplated doing. Any inquiry wordd have ascertained both. By the exertion of a*544 very trifling trouble the bank would have,been .informed of every meeting of the board. ’ ’
' "We shall not take the time and space to go into a'more detailed examination of .this case, but a careful reading thereof will show that no better opportunity for a hearing was afforded in that case than in the case at bar; in fact, we think that the opportunity afforded in that case was not as great as here. (See also Chicago & N. W. R. Co. v. The State, 128 Wis. 553, 654.)
. We deduce from the foregoing the following: Where a rule of conduct applies to more than a few people, it is impracticable to give every one affected a voice in its adoption, and it is doubtful that any opportunity for a hearing is necessary to be given in such ease. If such opportunity is necessary to be afforded at all, it needs in any event to be reasonable only, and as to what is reasonable depends on the nature of the case. That reasonable opportunity to be heard is, we think, given under the laws of this state in connection with the equalization of property by the State Board of Equalization, and its action with that end in view is not violative of due process of law.
7. It is insisted that the State Board of Equalization, in order to exercise the rights granted it by law, must adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the provisions of Section 2810, supra. We have already seen that the board in fact adopted some regulations in classifying lands. That was done, perhaps, informally by adopting a uniform blank for the returns of the assessments, but the law does not specify the manner in which such rules and regulations shall be adopted. It is apparent from a reading of the section of the statute cited that in many matters no rules or regulations are necessary. The statute, for instance, prescribes that the board shall examine the returns of the assessments and make a comparison of the valuations and equalize property. No rule could add to the duty thus prescribed or power granted. We have not been cited to any particular rule which should have been adopted for the safety of tax payers,
Finding no reversible error in the record, the judgment of the court below accordingly should be and the same is hereby affirmed.
Affirmed.