People ex rel. Board of Water Commissioners v. Common Council of East Saginaw

• Decision Date: 05 January 1876
• Citation: 33 Mich. 164
• Court: Michigan Supreme Court
• Parties: The People on the relation of the Board of Water Commissioners v. The Common Council of East Saginaw

33 Mich. 164

The People on the relation of the Board of Water Commissioners

v.

The Common Council of East Saginaw

Supreme Court of Michigan

January 5, 1876

Submitted on Briefs November 3, 1875

Application for Mandamus.

Writ denied, without costs to either party.

Wisner & Draper, for relators.

Timothy E. Tarsney, for respondents.

OPINION

Marston, J:

The legislature in 1873 passed an act to incorporate a board of water commissioners for the city of East Saginaw, to supply the city with pure water, and to provide for the completion and management of the East Saginaw water-works.

The first section of this act authorized and empowered and made it the duty of the common council of East Saginaw to appoint five persons, residents and freeholders of the city, who, and their successors, should be a body corporate with certain powers, and amongst others, to purchase, hold and convey personal and real estate, to make by-laws, ordinances rules and regulations, and do all legal acts that might be necessary and proper to carry out the effect, intent and objects of the act.

The fourth section gave the board power to borrow, from time to time, and for such time as they should deem expedient, a sum of money not exceeding three hundred thousand dollars, for the purpose of constructing water-works, upon the credit of the said city of East Saginaw, with authority to issue bonds pledging the faith and credit of said city for the payment of the principal and interest thereon, which bonds were to be signed by the board, or a majority of them, and by the mayor of said city, and payable at a period not exceeding twenty years from their date. The amount authorized to be issued was afterwards increased to three hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

Section twenty-two gave said commissioners the custody and control of all money, revenues, accounts and bonds belonging to said board, with authority to deposit the same as they might deem for the best interests of the city; also authorized them to appoint a treasurer, who should pay out such moneys as the board should order.

Section twenty three made it the duty of said board, whenever their receipts from water rates or other sources accumulated to a certain amount, with the aid of the mayor of the city, to invest the same in stocks, or upon real estate, such investment to be made in the name of said board, and in such manner as to make the same available for the payment of the principal and interest of such bonds; and then provided as follows: "It shall be the duty of said commissioners to pay the interest on such bonds, and, as fast as such surplus fund will permit, also the principal, as the bonds become due, as funds for such purpose shall from time to time accumulate. The said commissioners may, when they have funds for that purpose, purchase the bonds so issued as aforesaid, whether the same shall have become due or not; and in case the said commissioners shall at any time not have funds on hand sufficient to meet any of the said bonds at the time when they shall become due, they shall have the right to issue new bonds for such amount as they shall deem expedient, in the place of bonds so becoming due as aforesaid."

Section twenty four: "It shall be the duty of said commissioners, at least ten days before the time fixed by the charter or ordinances of said city for assessing city taxes, to make a special report to the common council of said city what, if any, sum will be needed by said commissioners, over and above the revenue of said board, to meet the payment of interest or principal of the bonds issued as aforesaid; and it shall be the duty of the common council to raise said amount by special tax, in the same manner as general taxes, to be designated a water tax; and the said amount shall be paid over to said board by the treasurer of said city, weekly, as collections are made."

The petition and answer assume that under and in pursuance of this act the common council of East Saginaw did appoint five commissioners, who qualified and entered upon the discharge of their duties as provided in said act. The petition sets forth,...