135 Ala. 465 | Ala. | 1902
1. Before the adoption of the constitution of 1875, the legislature had the power to authorize a county to contract debts, in the promotion of railroad and other enterprises of a public beneficial nature, not violative of the constitutional restrictions in behalf of life, liberty and property, ‘and to authorize the levy of taxes for their payment. “The power, then, in the legislature, to authorize the counties of the State to make, contracts, to own property and incur obligations, is” (as was said in Ex parte Selma & Gulf R. R. Co., 45 Ala. 727), “'without limit, save such as policy and discretion may demand.”—Marengo County v. Coleman, 55 Ala. 605; Chambers County v. Lee County, 55 Ala. 537; Mobile County v. Kimble, 54 Ala. 36; Slaughter v. Mobile County, 73 Ala. 134.
2. Under the constitution of the State preceding that of 1875, under which these adjudications were made, the legislature had unlimited poAver over the subject, the unhappy consequences of which are well known. Much litigation ensued; taxes to an oppressive extent were levied; bondholders instituted legal proceedings to compel the levy of taxes, and the confiscation of the property of the people was threatened. In the constitution of 1875 its framers incorporated a provision to limit the power of the State to levy taxes be
3. The legislature, on February 28, 1901, (Acts of 1900-1901, p.. 1702), passed an act, — to quote its title,- — ■ “To make Jefferson county a sanitary district, to establish a sanitary commission therefor, make the commission a body corporate, prescribe its powers and duties, and to regulate and provide for sanitation In said
It is said, however, by the complainant, that the first act purports to be for Jefferson county, and is not such an enterprise as will be beneficial to all the people of the county, while it is proposed to pay for it out of the funds raised by taxation on the property of all the people, or, in other words, that the sewer system and the benefits to be derived from it, when and if constructed, are local, confined to a part only of the people of the
In Slaughter v. Mobile County, 73 Ala. 137, in construing the act for the improvements of the river, bay and harbor of Mobile, at the expense of the county, the court said, that while the act “is not in itself a contract, it is nevertheless an authority to make contracts, one or more, to the exent of one million of dollars. The question arises-, what is the nature of the act, and what the effect of its repeal. Its purpose, as is plainly expressed, was to improve the river, bay and harbor of Mobile, at the expense of Mobile county. This, we must presume, was with the consent, and at the request of the taxpayers 'of the constitutional body, made known through their representatives.” The -same intendments will be indulged in reference to the- sewer system proposed by these -acts — that it is a health system in which all the people of the county are more or less interested. It is no more local than a county road or bridge to open, build or improve which, the inhabitants of Birmingham or Mobile,. remote from the improvements, are taxed the same as those who live in their immediate localities,
5. Again it is urged that the two acts are unconstitutional for the reason that — as claimed — these laws were local and special, and no notice of the intention to apply to the legislature, for their passage was published in Jefferson county for twenty days prior to the introduction of the bills.—Constitution of 1875, Art. IV, § 24. It was long ago held that this court will indulge the intendment that the legislature conformed to every constitutional requirement, which the journal of its proceedings docs not. affirmatively show was disregarded, and that we must uphold a legislative enactment until its unconst.itutionality is clearly shown. Harrison v. Goody, 57 Ala. 49; Clarke v. Jack, 60 Ala. 271. The printed journals of the house of representatives, where the bills originated, are silent as to notices ■as to these bills. We will, therefore, presume they were given, as the law required.
Affirmed.