Bd. of Ed. of City of Louisville v. City of Louisville
| Citation | 288 Ky. 656 |
| Parties | Board of Education of Louisville v. City of Louisville et al. |
| Decision Date | 16 December 1941 |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court (Kentucky) |
3. Constitutional Law. — Where there is a reasonable doubt of the constitutionality of an act, the court, in recognition of its duty to sustain validity of a legislative act, resolves the doubt in favor of its constitutionality.
4. Statutes. — The title of Teachers' Retirement Act of 1938, containing recital that funds for payment of retirement annuities and disability benefits should be raised by contributions from teachers and from state, was not sufficiently broad to authorize local board of education or taxing authority levying school taxes to levy a special tax to pay pensions of superannuated teachers ineligible to become members of state system on merger of local system with state system, where no such provision was contained in title, and the act, in so far as it made provision for such tax, was, therefore, unconstitutional (Acts 1938, 1st Ex. Sess., c. 1; Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-49; Constitution, sec. 51).
5. Statutes. — The fact that first clause of title recited that it was an act providing a teachers' retirement system, though probably sufficiently broad, standing alone, to authorize a provision in body of act for levying a special tax by local board of education or local taxing authority to pay pensions of superannuated teachers not eligible to become members of state system, did not authorize such provision where the clause was followed by restrictive specifications, reciting, among other things, that funds for payment of retirement annuities should be raised by contributions from teachers and from state (Acts 1938, 1st Ex. Sess., c. 1; Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-49; Constitution, sec. 51).
6. Statutes. — A recital in title of Teachers' Retirement Act that fund for payment of retirement annuities is to be raised in part by contributions by state is not broad enough to authorize provision in body of act requiring local board of education or taxing authority to levy a special tax to pay pensions of superannuated teachers ineligible to become members of state system, notwithstanding tax levy by a local district in aid of schools is raised as a state tax and that municipality is state's agent in making the levy, since provision that state's contributions shall be payable out of its "general funds" excludes payment out of any school fund, local or general (Acts 1938, 1st Ex. Sess., c. 1; Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-49; Constitution, sec. 51).
7. Action. — It was within discretion of circuit court to decline to declare rights of parties to payment of annuities under Teachers' Retirement Act (Civil Code of Practice, secs. 639a — 1 et seq., 639a — 6; Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49).
8. Action. — Though, ordinarily, where circuit court has declined to declare rights, Court of Appeals will follow same course, nevertheless, where an important public question is involved which should be decided as early as practicable, Court of Appeals may exercise its discretion to declare rights of parties in accordance with spirit and purpose of Declaratory Judgment Act (Civil Code of Practice, secs. 639a — 1 et seq., 639a — 6).
9. Schools and School Districts. — Where, under general revision of school laws, city boards of education were authorized to establish retirement systems, and cities already operating annuity systems were authorized to adopt or revise their present systems, and board of education and teachers of Louisville adopted their present plan and continued the system under which they operated for 22 years, and this was acquiesced in by state school authorities, and thereafter the teachers were accepted into state teachers' retirement system, the Louisville system continued under statutory authority, and not as a strictly private organization, in application of rule of "contemporaneous construction," notwithstanding repeal of act under which Louisville system was created (Ky. Stats., sec. 4506-1 et seq.; Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-1 et seq.).
10. Constitutional Law; Contracts. — The strength of every contract lies in right of promisee to rely on constitutional security against impairment of its obligation by legislation and in right to resort to courts for redress of its violation (Constitution, sec. 19).
11. Constitutional Law. — The fact that a prospective beneficiary has made a compulsory contribution does not give him a "vested right" to receive a pension according to terms of the pension plan so that it cannot be changed.
12. Constitutional Law. — Where the conditions of a pension plan have all been fulfilled and a participant has been placed on pension roll, the pension becomes "vested" and cannot afterwards be revoked or impaired.
13. Statutes. — The invalidity of provision of Teachers' Retirement Act requiring local boards of education to levy extra tax to pay pensions of superannuated teachers ineligible to become members of state system, because not germane to title of act, does not affect provisions of act relating to merger of local systems into state system (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49; Constitution, sec. 51).
14. Schools and School Districts. — A local school tax is a "state tax," and city board of aldermen in levying it at request of local board of education is but agency of state.
15. Municipal Corporations. — The provision of Teachers' Retirement Act of 1938 that, on merger of a local retirement system into state system, payment of all benefits to members on retired rolls at time of discontinuance of local organization shall become obligations of school district in which local system was operated before its discontinuance, and that annuity funds shall be safeguarded by levying such a tax rate or making such appropriation to annuity fund from local school revenues as will guarantee discharge of all obligations to annuitants, is not violative of constitutional prohibition against General Assembly imposing taxes for "municipal purposes" (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-26, 4506b-49; Constitution, sec. 181).
16. Constitutional Law. — At time State Teachers' Retirement Act of 1938 became effective, retired beneficiaries of local systems which were discontinued and merged with state system had acquired a "vested right" to their annuities which could not be impaired by legislative action (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49).
17. Constitutional Law. — The granting of a "pension" by state payable solely from current taxation does not stand on plane of a contract, and does not vest any right in pensioner, but it is a periodical allowance as reward for continuous faithfulness in discharge of public duty, or a gratuity bestowed in recognition of public service, and, as such, is within reasonable discretion of Legislature and may be diminished or discontinued at is pleasure.
18. Constitutional Law. — The Legislature expresses will of the people and may exercise plenary power in all things where it is not restrained by Constitution or limited by powers surrendered to federal government.
19. Constitutional Law. — Where constitutional restrictions on legislative power are not specific, but are contained in general principles, courts will construe restrictions as flexible enough not to impair the efficiency of Legislature to meet responsibilities occasioned by changing conditions of society.
20. Schools and School Districts. — Teachers in public schools are "state employees" and render a "public service," and Legislature has power to provide a pension for them (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49).
21. Constitutional Law; Schools and School Districts. — The granting of pensions to school teachers by Teachers' Retirement Act is not violative of constitutional provision declaring equality of citizenship and providing that no grant of exclusive, separate public emoluments or privileges shall be made to any man or set of men except in consideration of public service (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-1 et seq.; Constitution, sec. 3).
22. Schools and School Districts. — The provision of Teachers' Retirement Act authorizing pensioning of teachers and payment of pensions, in part, out of taxation, is not violative of constitutional prohibition against General Assembly authorizing any city, town, or incorporated district to appropriate money for any individual except for construction or maintenance of public roads, or of prohibition against "taxes for local purposes," since levying of a local tax for benefit of local schools is done as state agency for "state purpose" (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, sec. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49; Constitution, secs. 179, 181, 181a).
23. Schools and School Districts. — The payment of teachers' pensions and retirement allowances out of public funds is proper as being for a "school purpose" (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49).
24. Schools and School Districts. — It is competent for the Legislature to provide for payment of retired teachers' pensions out of general school funds (Ky. Stats. Supp. 1939, secs. 4506b-1 et seq., 4506b-49).
25. Schools and School Districts. — On failure of provision in...
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Johnson, Governor v. Commonwealth
...Co., 249 Ky. 358, 60 S.W. (2d) 950. It is different where the title is specific. As lately said in Board of Education v. City of Louisville, 288 Ky. 656, 157 S.W. (2d) 337, 340: "It has been the consistent interpretation of this section of the Constitution that if the title of an act is gen......