Mefford v. City Council of Sheffield
Decision Date | 30 June 1906 |
Citation | 148 Ala. 539,41 So. 970 |
Parties | MEFFORD v. CITY COUNCIL OF SHEFFIELD. |
Court | Alabama Supreme Court |
Appeal from Circuit Court, Colbert County; E. B. Almon, Judge.
"To be officially reported."
W. M Mefford was convicted of violating an ordinance of the city of Sheffield, and he appeals. Affirmed.
Charles P. Jones and W. F. Thetford, Jr., for appellant.
J. L Andrews, for appellee.
Prosecution was commenced against the defendant (appellant) before the recorder of the city of Sheffield for engaging in the business of wholesale dealer in kerosene oil in the city of Sheffield, without first obtaining a license to carry on such business. From a judgment of conviction rendered by the recorder, the defendant appealed to the circuit court of Colbert county. In that court the case was tried on an agreed statement of facts, and from a judgment of conviction rendered by that court, the defendant has appealed to this court.
The city of Sheffield was incorporated by an act of the General Assembly approved February 17, 1885 (Act 1885, p. 781). Subsection 27 of section 27 (page 798) of the charter as established by that act was amended by an act of the General Assembly approved February 28, 1889 (Acts 1888-89, p. 907, § 5). And so much of the section as amended, which bears upon the question presented by this case, is in the following language: "That subsection 27 of section 27 of said act be amended so as to read as follows: said city council shall have authority to levy and collect from all persons, firms and corporations trading or carrying on any business, trade, or profession; by agent or otherwise in said corporate limits, a license tax on said business, trade, or profession; provided, that no license tax shall exceed the sum of two hundred dollars, except license on retail, vinous, spirituous, and malt liquors, which shall not exceed one thousand dollars."
In the statement of facts on which this case was tried, is set out a license ordinance of the city which so far as it pertains to the question in hand is as follows:
It is conceded that the defendant did not have the license required. It is further shown by the agreed statement of facts that kerosene oil is a useful commodity, in general use, and is kept and sold by wholesale and retail grocery merchants and druggists as a part of their regular stock in trade; that there were during the entire year of 1904, both wholesale and retail grocery merchants and druggists carrying on their business in Sheffield, Ala.
The contention of the appellant is that the ordinance imposing a tax of $200 on wholesale dealers in oil violates the constitutional provision that all occupations or business enterprises or property of the same class must be taxed equally. As was said in Ph nix Carpet Co. v. State, 118 Ala. 143, 22 So. 627, 72 Am. St. Rep. 143: 1 Desty on Tax. § 36; Cooley on Tax. (2d Ed.) 378; Delaware Ry. Tax Case, 18 Wall. (U. S.) 206, 21 L.Ed. 888; City of New Orleans v. Kaufman, 29 La. Ann. 283, 29 Am. Rep. 328; Durach's Appeal, 62 Pa 491. The Legislature in the legitimate exercise of the taxing...
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