22 Ind. App. 422 | Ind. Ct. App. | 1899
— In May, 1896, the appellee filed with the commissioners of Pulaski county his claim for fees for the collection of certain taxes by him collected while treasurer
The errors assigned by appellant bring before the court
As will be seen by the special finding of facts, the court found that during the years 1891, 1892, and 1893, a large amount of taxes known as ditch taxes was placed upon the tax duplicates of said Pulaski county, to be collected as other taxes are collected, and the appellee between the 1st day of September, 1892, and the 7th day of September, 1893, as the treasurer of said county collected all of said ta-xes, and receipted to the persons paying the same, and paid over the money so collected according to law. The ditches and drains mentioned in the special finding were established under the act of 1881, beginning with section 4285 R. S. 1881. It is provided in said act that all the assessments levied for the location, construction, and repair of such public ditches and drains shall be placed upon the tax duplicate by the auditor, and collected by the treasurer “as other taxes are collected.” See sections 4300, 4305 R. S. 1881. Section 5927 R. S. 1881, provides that the treasurer of each county shall receive the sum of $800 per annum. The next section provides that he shall receive a certain per cent, of all taxes collected. He receives this, not as fees, but according to the statute, as “further compensation.” In view of these statutes directing as they do that drainage assessments shall be
In the case of Beatty v. Pruden, Trustee, 13 Ind. App. 507, this court said: “By being placed upon the tax duplicate, the claim becomes a lien on the property of the landowner to the same extent as any other lien for taxes, and may be collected by the same process. It was not necessary for the legislature to declare in express terms that the claim shall be a lien upon the property of the owner the same as taxes are liens upon such property. Assessments for such improvements are themselves a species of taxation, and that they are so recognized by the law making power in this instance is manifested by the expression 'as other taxes/’ The extension of the claim upon the tax duplicate, like other taxes, places it in the same category with these and creates a lien upon the owners’ property the same as if the claim wure the result of a state, county or township tax levy.”
In the case of Cullen v. Strauz, 124 Ind. 340, the Supreme Court held that ditch assessments placed upon a tax duplicate became delinquent if not paid when the state and county taxes were paid, and that a valid tax sale may be based upon delinquent ditch taxes alone.
In the case of Manor v. Board, etc., 137 Ind. 367, the Supreme Court held that a county treasurer is entitled to his per centum, under section 5028 R. S. 1881, for the collection of gravel road assessments which are placed upon the tax duplicate and collected as other taxes are collected. McCabe, C. J., after quoting the section of the statute last referred to says: “The fair and reasonable interpretation of the section