Barber v. Commissioner of Revenue
| Decision Date | 02 March 1984 |
| Citation | 674 S.W.2d 18 |
| Parties | Howard and Mary BARBER, Esker L. and Margaret C. Arwood, James L. and Blanche Case, and Bertha Borman, Appellants, v. COMMISSIONER OF REVENUE, Commonwealth of Kentucky, ex rel Campbell County Fiscal Court, City of Silver Grove, Campbell County, Kentucky, Appellees. |
| Court | Kentucky Court of Appeals |
Charles T. Lester, Jr., Fort Thomas, for appellants.
Justin D. Verst, Newport, for City of Silver Grove.
William Wehr, Newport, for appellees.
Before HAYES, C.J., and HOWERTON and McDONALD, JJ.
The appellants are owners of a trailer park in the City of Silver Grove, Campbell County, Kentucky. Howard Barber operates the business, and he, with his wife, has contracted to purchase the property. He is the real party in interest on this appeal. We will hereafter refer to all appellants as BARBER.
Barber appeals from a portion of a judgment in the Campbell Circuit Court which found him liable to the City of Silver Grove in the sum of $3,891.75 for fire protection service charges. He argues that the City of Silver Grove does not have the authority to impose the fire protection service charge in the manner in which it was levied. He further argues that even if the fire protection service charge is valid, he cannot be assessed for charges against property he does not own or be required to be the collector for the city on property of others temporarily located in his trailer park.
As a general rule, a city has broad powers to do whatever is necessary for the health, safety and welfare of its residents. Fire protection is a proper and customary governmental service. Such service may be provided by a fire department within the city, by volunteers which operate city-owned equipment, or by contract with a nearby fire department or volunteer service. Fire protection may also be provided through a fire protection district. Proper fire protection also requires the installation of adequate water supplies and reasonably-spaced fire hydrants. Any degree of fire protection necessarily costs money. The question is: How is it properly assessed against the property owners who will be benefited?
In 1965, the City of Silver Grove adopted an ordinance which placed a levy "upon all improved real property within the territorial limits of the City of Silver Grove." The levy was to be known as the "fire protection service charge." The original levy charged each family residence $10, with the provision that the same levy would apply to occupied house trailers. Multi-family housing carried an additional $5 levy for each extra unit. Buildings other than garages and outbuildings associated with a residence, but which were neither a residence nor a business, were also charged $10 per year. Businesses paid an annual service charge of $20. The ordinance provided that the billing would be made with the ad valorem taxes, and it further provided that the funds collected for this purpose would be set aside in a special account from which all expenses for fire protection would be paid. The ordinance was amended in 1976 to raise the levies to $15 for each single-family unit, $7.50 for each apartment or multi-unit after the first, and $25 for businesses.
Cities may levy ad valorem taxes on real and personal property. They may also sell licenses on businesses and collect taxes based on income derived from occupations within the city. They may raise revenue from franchises and have service charges for such things as permits and solid and sewage waste disposal. The normal way to pay for fire protection, however, is through an ad valorem tax on all real and personal property. Such a tax would equally affect residences, businesses, mobile homes, automobiles, and some building contents, on the basis of value. For example, if a residence in Silver Grove had an assessed value of $30,000, a five-cent-per-hundred-dollar value would produce $15 per year. The same five-cent-per-hundred-dollar value would produce a $25 return on business property with a value of $50,000. For ad valorem taxes to be valid, they must be levied in proportion to the value of the property. Kentucky Constitution, Sec. 174. The fire protection service charge is not an ad valorem tax; but, if it were, it would be invalid since it is based on a flat rate regardless of the value of the property. Standard Oil Co. v. Commonwealth, 119 Ky. 75, 82 S.W. 1020 (1904).
The City of Silver Grove argues that the service charge may qualify as an ad valorem tax under KRS 82.085. The statute provides for some flexibility and differentiation in rates within different areas of...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
City of Bromley v. Smith
...of a flat tax for life squad and other nonfire-related emergency services was constitutional. It distinguishes Barber v. Comm'r of Revenue, Ky.App., 674 S.W.2d 18 (1984), on the grounds that the life squad services are not fire-related and not related to the value of the property. The City ......
-
Cincinnati v. Campbell Cnty. Fiscal Court
...of their respective arguments, both parties cite extensive case law, none of which is directly on point. See, e.g., Barber v. Comm'r of Revenue, 674 S.W.2d 18 (Ky.App.1984) (holding that a fire protection service charge was unconstitutional where enabling statute only authorized funding thr......
-
Plaintiffs Seek Rehearing Of Kentucky Supreme Court Decision Upholding 911 Fee
...Apartment Ass'n, Inc. et al. v. Campbell County Fiscal Court et al., 2014-SC-000383-TG (Ky. Oct. 29, 2015) (to be published). [2] 674 S.W.2d 18 (Ky. App. [3] 149 S.W.3d 402 (Ky. 2004). The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advic......