161 Ga. 125 | Ga. | 1925
The express charter powers of the Mayor and Aldermen of the City of Savannah include authority to “lay such taxes on the inhabitants of said city, and those who hold taxable property within the same, . . as said corporate authorities may deem expedient for the safetjr, benefit, convenience, and advantage of said city, and may enforce the payment of such . . taxes in such manner as said mayor and aldermen may prescribe.” Code of 1863, § 4756; Code of Savannah (1907), § 40. The power to “lay” and “enforce the payment” of taxes as provided in the foregoing excerpt, “in such manner as said mayor and aldermen may prescribe,” is sufficient to include authority, not only to levy ad valorem taxes upon property, but also to appoint boards of assessors to assess the value of taxable property in' the city for the purposes of municipal taxation, and to contract with other persons or agencies for the purpose of aiding the tax-assessors in estimating the values of properties in the city. The foregoing power was not taken away by subsequent enactment (Acts 1890-1, p. 231) now contained in the Civil Code (1910), § 862, providing that: “The mayor and council of each town or city are authorized, at their option, to elect three freeholders, residing in the town or city, as assessors, who shall value and assess all the property within said town or city liable for taxation. All persons dissatisfied with the value placed on their property shall appear before said asses
This ruling does not contravene the decision of this court in the case of Decatur County v. Roberts, 159 Ga. 528 (126 S. E. 460), holding in effect that the provision'of the statute (Acts 1904, p.
The ruling announced in the second headnote- does not require elaboration.
The contract specified certain services that the company should render to the city in aid of the board of tax-assessors, and further provided as follows: “The City is to pay $25,000 in installments as follows, expressly subject, however, to the provisions of the next succeeding paragraph: [then follows a schedule of payments and their maturities, the first payment falling due November 15, 1924, and the last March 31, 1925], final payment to be made upon satisfactory fulfillment of services. [Then follows the above-mentioned next succeeding paragraph] The City has [the] right to discontinue services under agreement without assigning reason therefor at any time, and upon payment of amount due under schedule of payments on account, upon written notice of one week to president of Company at 18 S. 7th St., Philadelphia. Company firmly bound by obligations of this agreement, except that it may discontinue the services in event that payments on account shall not be made as stipulated.” Paragraph 9 of the petition alleges that the contract requires payment by the city of $25,000. Paragraph 11 alleges: “No provision was made in the tax levy for the year 1924 for any such expenditure.” Paragraph 15 alleges: “The city has a floating debt of $340,000, representing the excess of disbursements over receipts for several years past.” These allegations were denied. Paragraph 13 of the petition alleges: “The city now owes $60,000 for money borrowed during the year 1924.” This was admitted in the answer; but paragraph 14 of the petition, alleging that the “money was borrowed to pay current expenses, although expressed to be for casual deficiencies in revenue,” was denied. There was no evidence to prove those allegations of the petition above mentioned, which were denied by
It was held in Manly Building Co. v. Newton, 114 Ga. 245 (40 S. E. 274): “County authorities may, without being said to create a debt within the meaning of the constitution, contract for the building of a court-house to be paid for out of available funds in the treasury, or with the proceeds of taxes that have been or may lawfully be levied during the year in which the contract is made.” See also Carruth v. Wagener, 114 Ga. 740 (40 S. E. 700); Gaines v. Dyer, 128 Ga. 585 (7) (58 S. E. 175); Spalding County v. Chamberlin, 130 Ga. 649 (3) (61 S. E. 533); Hogan v. State, 133 Ga. 875 (3) (67 S. E. 268); Monk v. Moultrie, 145 Ga. 843 (90 S. E. 71); City Council of Augusta v. Thomas, 159 Ga. 435 (3)
The ruling announced in the fourth headnote does not require elaboration.
In an amendment to the petition it was alleged: “23. It is the purpose and intent of the city, in having the Somers system applied to realty valuations, to have such real estate (except that owned by public-service corporations) bear the entire cost of such increase in revenue, by having such real estate assessed in an increased sum, rather than adopt the alternative of an increase in the rate of taxation. 24. The resolution set out in the original petition, and the contract to be made pursuant thereto, are unlawful and contrary to par. 1, sec. 2, art. 7 of the constitution of said State [Civil Code (1910), § 6553], in that it will not operate uniformly upon the same class of subjects, viz., real estate, in that the real estate of public-service corporations will be exempt from the operations of said resolution and contract. 25. Said resolution and the proposed contract are unlawful and void, in that they unfairly discriminate against persons other than public-service corporations in the assessment of their real estate, and in favor of such public-service corporations. 26. Said resolution and the proposed contract are unlawful and void, in that they are not general in their operation, but exclude the real estate of public-service corporations from their operation.” 'A witness testified: “I am president of Manufacturers’ Appraisal Company. In brief, the Somers system of valuation is the application of science - to the valuation of real estate; the result is for the tax-assessors, who may
As stated in the second headnote, the' resolution therein referred to was not a delegation of legislative power, but was merely the expression of authority to the mayor to enter into the contract for employment of agencies to render specified services. The contract made in pursuance of the resolution does not purport to bind the municipal authorities to accept or adopt any recommendations or estimates that might be made by the persons or agencies employed to aid the assessors. The results of the services to be rendered by the company are, at most, information furnished to the city on the subject of valuation of property of certain classes of persons. The information may or may not be helpful, and may or may not be accepted and acted upon by the municipal authorities. In these circumstances the contract of the city engaging such services does not impose any liability or fix any valuation upon the property of public-service corporations or upon the property of other persons, and consequently does not impose unequal burdens upon the property of such classes of taxpayers, and does not offend the uniformity
The rulings announced in the sixth and seventh head-notes do not require elaboration.
Judgment affirmed.