RENNE v. OXFORD TOWNSHIP.
Docket No. 51,680
Supreme Court of Michigan
February 9, 1968
Rehearing denied May 6, 1968
380 Mich. 39
Calendar No. 12
The
2. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW-DISTRICT OR TERRITORY AFFECTED-MEANING.
The words “district or territory affected” coupled with “all electors” and “all other questions” as used in the constitutional provision on ad valorem tax rate held, not to conclusively mean political subdivision, but may in some circumstances render electors eligible to vote upon a question shown as affecting the district or territory in which they reside, even though they do not reside in the specific political subdivision which has initiated the election in question (
3. TOWNSHIPS-ZONING ORDINANCE-ELECTORS ENTITLED TO VOTE ON REFERENDUM.
Electors residing in incorporated village were not entitled to vote at referendum election on a township zoning ordinance which affected only the unincorporated portion of the township, where electors in the unincorporated portion initiated the petition for election and there is no showing that electors residing in the village were electors in the district or territory affected (
REFERENCES FOR POINTS IN HEADNOTES
[1, 11] 28 Am Jur, Initiative, Referendum and Recall § 8 et seq.
[2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 12] 25 Am Jur 2d, Elections § 12 et seq.
[4] 5 Am Jur 2d, Appeal and Error § 1009.
[6] 16 Am Jur 2d, Constitutional Law § 494 et seq.; 50 Am Jur, Statutes § 49 et seq.
[7] 16 Am Jur 2d, Constitutional Law § 88.
[10] 25 Am Jur 2d, Elections § 58 et seq.
No costs are allowed on appeal where Supreme Court interpreted words of the
SEPARATE OPINION.
BRENNAN, J.
5. ELECTIONS-WORDS AND PHRASES-DISTRICT OR TERRITORY AFFECTED-POLITICAL SUBDIVISION.
Interpretation of words “district or territory affected“, as used in provision of
6. STATUTES-CLASSIFICATION.
The legislature‘s determination that electors of a part of a political subdivision are the only ones who should vote on a certain issue, if a reasonable classification, should be upheld (
DISSENTING OPINION.
T. M. KAVANAGH, SOURIS, and ADAMS, JJ.
7. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW-CONSTRUCTION OF CONSTITUTION-CONVENTION DEBATES-INTENT.
Courts may properly resort to the constitutional convention debates explaining changes made in a new
8. ELECTIONS-ELECTORS-QUALIFICATIONS-REFERENDUMS.
Every citizen of the United States who has attained the age of 21, who has resided in this State 6 months, and within a city or township 30 days, meets requirements of local residence provided by law, and is an elector qualified to vote on referendums concerning zoning ordinances (
9. TOWNSHIPS-ZONING-ELECTIONS.
The territory taken into a village when the village is incorporated is not separated from the township, but remains part thereof and is subject to taxation therein, and its residents are electors thereof.
A qualified elector is any person who possesses the qualifications of an elector as prescribed in the
11. SAME-CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTION-REFERENDUM.
Constitutional provision restricting right to vote on increasing ad valorem tax rate limitation and issue of bonds to electors having certain qualifications, and providing that all electors in district or territory affected may vote on all other questions refers in both parts only to increases in ad valorem tax rate limitations and bond issues, and does not apply to a zoning case (
12. SAME-ELECTORS-CONFLICT BETWEEN STATUTE AND CONSTITUTION.
Statutory provision limiting voting on zoning ordinance amendments to persons residing in and owning property assessed for taxes located in the unincorporated portion of the township held, unconstitutional, since it conflicts with the constitutional provision that the legislature shall define residents for voting requirements and the legislative definition (
Appeal by leave granted from Court of Appeals, Division 2; Quinn, P. J., and N. J. Kaufman, and McGregor, JJ., affirming Oakland, Moore (Arthur E.), J. Submitted October 4, 1967. (Calendar No. 12, Docket No. 51,680.) Decided February 9, 1968. Rehearing denied May 6, 1968.
5 Mich App 415, affirmed.
Complaint by Anthony Renne against Oxford Township and Lee Valentine, Nina Chamberlain, Loella Francis, William Offer, and Harold Albertson, members of the township board, to restrain holding of a referendum election on a township
Anthony Renne, in propria persona.
Paul M. Mandel, for defendants.
Amicus Curiae: Bell Development Company, by Gordon E. Gable (Clan Crawford, Jr., of counsel).
PER CURIAM. Leave to review the decision below (5 Mich App 415) was granted to consider the possibly too broad conclusion of Division 2 that (p 420) “Read as a whole, the apparent meaning of ‘district or territory affected’ is clearly ‘political subdivision‘.” The quoted words appear in section 6 of article 2 of the
“Sec. 6. Whenever any question is required to be submitted by a political subdivision to the electors for the increase of the ad valorem tax rate limitation imposed by section 6 of article 9 for a period of more than five years, or for the issue of bonds, only electors in, and who have property assessed for any ad valorem taxes in, any part of the district or territory to be affected by the result of such election or electors who are the lawful husbands or wives of such persons shall be entitled to vote thereon. All electors in the district or territory affected may vote on all other questions.”
The phrase, “district or territory affected,” coupled as it is in the last sentence with “all electors” and “all other questions,” may in conceivable circumstances render electors eligible to vote upon a question shown as affecting the district or territory in which they reside, even though they do not
We hold that plaintiff has made no showing that any elector or electors residing in the village of Oxford, distinguished from the electors of the unincorporated part of the township, were “electors in the district or territory affected.” Such failure of proof both warranted and required holding that plaintiff was not by section 6 entitled to restrain the election which the “electors residing in the unincorporated portion of the township” had initiated pursuant to section 12 of the township rural zoning act* (
None of the other questions considered in the opinion of the panel has been submitted here, all parties in this Court having confined themselves to the issue of applicability of said section 6.
Affirmed. No costs.
DETHMERS, C. J., and KELLY, BLACK, O‘HARA, and BRENNAN, JJ., concurred.
*
T. M. KAVANAGH, J. (dissenting). Plaintiff filed a complaint in circuit court to restrain defendants from holding a referendum election on an amendment to the zoning ordinance of Oxford township. The trial court denied the relief sought. Plaintiff appealed to the Court of Appeals, which affirmed the trial court. (5 Mich App 415.) This Court granted leave to appeal.
The facts in this case are that plaintiff obtained rezoning of certain lands he owned in defendant township. The zoning was changed from agricultural to commercial to permit construction of a mobile home park. The township board enacted the amendment to the zoning ordinance on December 8, 1965. On January 5, 1966, petitions signed by more than 15% of the persons residing in and owning property assessed for taxes located in the unincorporated portion of the township were filed with the township board requesting submission of the amendment for approval or rejection by the persons residing in and owning property assessed for
Plaintiff contends the township rural zoning act1 is unconstitutional because it is contrary to the provision of
“Whenever any question is required to be submitted by a political subdivision to the electors for the increase of the ad valorem tax rate limitation imposed by section 6 of article 9 for a period of more than five years, or for the issue of bonds, only electors in, and who have property assessed for any ad valorem taxes in, any part of the district or territory to be affected by the result of such election or electors who are the lawful husbands or wives of such persons shall be entitled to vote thereon. All electors in the district or territory affected may vote on all other questions.”
Plaintiff states the last sentence of section 6 provides that all the electors in the district or territory affected may vote in the referendum election on the amendment to the zoning ordinance. He argues the people in the township other than property owners living in the unincorporated portion thereof are people affected by the election and therefore may vote.
In determining the meaning of constitutional provisions, it is proper that we make reference to the constitutional debates. Burdick v. Secretary of State (1964), 373 Mich 578. From a reading of the debates of the Constitutional Convention of 1961, we find many discussions of the delegates concerning the overall effect of article 2, § 6. It was thought by many of the delegates that the property requirement therein should not be included in the new Con-
“All persons having the qualifications of electors may vote on all other questions involving an increase in any ad valorem tax rate and on borrowing by this state.” (2 Official Record, Constitutional Convention 1961, p 2899.)
This proposal was revised by the committee on style and drafting and reported to the convention on May 7, 1962, and read in pertinent part as follows:
“All electors in the district or territory affected may vote on all other questions.” (2 Official Record, Constitutional Convention 1961, p 3049.)
We find this same wording in the Constitution as adopted.
The delegates intended section 6 to be read as a whole. Both sentences concern ad valorem tax rate limitations and the issuance of bonds in the territory in which the property to be taxed is located. To hold otherwise would make the last sentence of article 2, § 6 redundant and in conflict with the express provisions of article 2, § 1.
We hold that since section 6 concerns itself only with increases of ad valorem tax limitations and bond issues, it does not apply to a zoning case. Therefore, we need not concern ourselves with the lack of proof as to whether electors within the village were affected by the amendment to the zoning ordinance.
“Every citizen of the United States who has attained the age of 21 years, who has resided in
Looking to the other portions of the Constitution to determine whether it is “otherwise provided” that an elector is not qualified to vote, we find the only exceptions in section 6 of article 2. There are no provisions restricting the voting franchise on referendums concerning zoning ordinances.
Article 2, § 1, provides that the legislature shall define residence for voting purposes. Looking to the Michigan election law—
“The term ‘qualified elector‘, as used in this act, shall be construed to mean any person who possesses the qualifications of an elector as prescribed in section 1 of article 2 of the State Constitution and who has resided in the city or township 30 days.” (Emphasis supplied.)
This Court held in Bray v. Stewart (1927), 239 Mich 340, 344:
“The territory taken into the village when incorporated is in no way separated from the township. It still remains a part thereof, is subject to taxation therein, and its residents are electors thereof.”
Justice BLACK, writing for this Court, in Taylor v. Township of Dearborn (1963), 370 Mich 47, 50, recognized this statement and quoted it in a footnote. See, also, to the same effect, Village of DeWitt v. Township of DeWitt (1929), 248 Mich 483.
We now turn to the provisions of the township rural zoning act, as amended. Pursuant to section 12 thereof, as amended by
We therefore hold that section 12 of the township rural zoning act, insofar as it limits voting only to those persons residing in and owning property assessed for taxes located in the unincorporated portion of the township, is unconstitutional.
The order of the Court of Appeals affirming the lower court should be reversed and the case remanded to the trial court for entry of a judgment in accordance with this opinion.
Plaintiff should have costs.
SOURIS and ADAMS, JJ., concurred with T. M. KAVANAGH, J.