165 Ga. 153 | Ga. | 1927
The Blue Island State Bank, a corporation, brought its petition against the present county commissioners of Wilcox County, who have in charge its county affairs, for mandamus to compel them to levy a tax to pay a warrant issued by former county commissioners of said county. Petitioner alleges that it is a bona iide holder for value of said warrant drawn in its favor and executed in 1918 by former commissioners of. roads and revenues of said county. This warrant is dated September 2, 1918, is addressed to the treasurer of said county, and directs him, on April 1, 1919, to pay to petitioner or order $2,000, with interest from January 1, 1918, at six per cent, per annum, on account of renewal of warrant dated August 17, 1915, in favor of A. L. Greenberg Iron Company. This warrant was duly attested by the clerk of the former commissioners. Petitioner alleges that said warrant was lawfully issued for legally incurred indebtedness of said county, that it was presented for payment on March 26, 1925, to the Bank of Rochelle, treasurer of said county, and payment was declined by the treasurer for lack of funds with which to pay the same. Petitioner alleges that said warrant is past due, that no part of the same has been paid, and that there is due thereon the principal sum of $2,000, with interest from January
The petition alleges that the instrument sued upon was lawfully issued, for lawfully incurred indebtedness of the county. It appears from said instrument, a copy of which is attached to the petition and made a part thereof, that this indebtedness was originally contracted with A. L. Greenberg Iron Company, to whom the county issued its warrant therefor on August 17, 1915, that the instrument sued on was issued in renewal of said original warrant, and that the renewal warrant had been presented for payment to the treasurer of the county, and payment refused because of lack of funds, that no part of the same had been paid, that the same remained unpaid at the time of the institution of the present proceeding on March 31, 1925, that the defendants, as commissioners of said county, had declined to levy any tax with which to pay this renewal warrant, and that the same would not be paid unless this was done. The demurrer admits the allegation of the petition that this warrant was lawfully executed and in payment of a lawfully incurred debt by the county. Further
The warrant in question was given in renewal of the warrant issued on August 17, 1915, and payable to the order of A. L. Greenberg Iron Company. It does not appear that when this warrant was given the county did not have in its treasury ffunds sufficient to meet it, or that a sum sufficient to meet it could not be raised by taxation during the year 1915. The petition .alleges that the debt represented by that warrant was legally contracted,
Where a county is without funds to carry on its affairs, a liability for a legitimate current item of expense may be incurred, provided, at the time of incurring the liability, a sufficient sum to discharge the same can be lawfully raised by taxation during the current year. Manly Building Co. v. Newton, 114 Ga. 245 (40 S. E. 274); Butts County v. Jackson Banking Co., 129 Ga. 801 (60 S. E. 149, 15 L. R. A. (N. S.) 567, 121 Am. St. R. 244); Wright v. Southern Ry. Co., 146 Ga. 581 (91 S. E. 681); Bird v. Franklin, 151 Ga. 4 (105 S. E. 834). As we have seen, the county, at the time of contracting such liability, may issue a warrant therefor, payable at a future date; and if the warrant is so issued, and the county allows payment of the same to go by default, and there are no available funds in the treasury with which to pay the same, the county is authorized, subsequently, to levy a tax for the discharge of the liability. Wilson v. Gaston, supra. Express provision is made by the Code for the payment of past-due or accumulated debts of the county. Civil Code (1910), §§ 507, 508, 513. Where a warrant is issued for a past-due or accumulated debt of the county, and in renewal of a
The petition otherwise making a case for the grant of a mandamus, and as the demurrer thereto seems to have been sustained upon the ground that the giving of the original warrant was for a debt illegally contracted, which does not appear from the allegations of the petition, but the contrary appearing therefrom, we are of the opinion that the trial judge erred in sustaining the demurrer to the petition.
Judgment reversed.