184 Ky. 97 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1919
Opinion op the Court by
Reversing.
The city of Clinton, is a city of the fifth class, with a population of less than five thousand. The value of the taxable property, in the city, for the year, 1917, amounted to the sum of $727,064.00, and for the year, 1918, to the sum of $613,659.00. There is outstanding, against the city, an indebtedness of $10,500.00, represented by the bonds of the city, heretofore, issued. At the regular election, held in November, 1918, under an ordinance of the council of the city, properly enacted, the question, whether or not, the city should incur an indebtedness of $30,000.00, to purchase from the Clinton Water & Light Company, its water and light plants then in operation in the city, was submitted to the legal voters of the city. "Under the ordinance, the city was to issue sixty bonds of $500.00 each, three of which should mature each year, and ' each bearing interest from date, to evidence the indebtedness for the $30,000.00. At the election, two hundred and eighteen voters, voted in favor of incurring the indebtedness, and eighteen voted in opposition to it. The officers, of the city, were proposing to close a contract for the purchase of the water and lighting plants for the sum of $30,000.00, and in payment, to issue and deliver the bonds, of the city, to the proprietors of the plants for the amount, in number, bearing interest and maturing, as stated above, and to enjoin them from so doing, and to prevent the incurring of the debt by the city, the appellants instituted this suit. The city, and its officials filed an answer, to which the appellants offered a general de
Section 158, supra, does, not contain any technical terms, and being a provision of the Constitution, adopted by a popular expression of the people, at large, its terms should be given a meaning, in accordance with their usual and customary signification, and in accordance with their fair intendment. Section 157 and section 158, supra, were intended by the people, in the adoption of the Constitution, to protect themselves against' themselves, when they should act under sudden impulse, or from expectations growing out of mistaken optimism, as to advantages and ability to pay, and thus to burden themselves with public debts, for which they would receive, in the end, no fair consideration, and beyond the reasonable ability of municipalities to pay, and to protect the minority against the excessive optimism, of the majority, but, it was not intended, by the section, to deprive the municipality of all remedy necessary to preserve its health and safety, when an unexpected, and hard, pressing necessity makes such remedy necessary. Hence, applying the definition made of an emergency, in City of Marion v. Haynes, supra, while the facts of this case present an emergency, which will authorize the municipality to create an indebtedness, in excess of three per centum of the value of its taxable property, to provide a system of water works, it is, also, proposed to create the debt, in part, for the purchase of an electric lighting plant and system. What part of the $30,000.00 debt is to be created to secure the water works system, and what part is to go to pay for the lighting system,is not designated. It will be observed,that under the ordinance the question, submitted at the election, was whether the debt should be incurred for the purchase of the water works system and the electric lighting plant, and the question propounded' to the,
Hence, the court, below, was in error, in overruling the demurrer to the answer, and the cause is remanded with directions to sustain the demurrer, and for proceedings consistent with this opinion.