Southern Drainage Dist. v. State

• Decision Date: 01 April 1927
• Citation: 112 So. 561,93 Fla. 672
• Parties: SOUTHERN DRAINAGE DIST. et al. (EDWARDS, Intervener) v. STATE et al.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

112 So. 561

93 Fla. 672

SOUTHERN DRAINAGE DIST. et al. (EDWARDS, Intervener) v. STATE et al.

Florida Supreme Court

April 1, 1927

Suit by the State and others, composing the State Board of Education against the Southern Drainage District and others to quiet title, in which John W. Edwards intervened. From an interlocutory decree overruling defendants' demurrers defendants and the intervener appeal.

Affirmed.

Syllabus by the Court

SYLLABUS

State board of education is proper authority to sue for state where title to school lands is involved (Rev. Gen. St. 1920 § 602, par. 1, § 3798). Under the provisions of section 602, par. 1, and section 3798, Revised General Statutes of Florida 1920, the possession, charge, oversight, management, and sale of school lands in Florida is delegated to the state board of education of Florida; it therefore necessarily follows that this body is the proper authority, under the law, to institute, for the state, suits in which the title to school lands is involved.

Florida cannot be sued in its courts without consent given by general law (Const. art. 3, § 22). The state of Florida cannot be sued in the courts of this state, without its consent given by general law, as provided in section 22, art. 3, of the Constitution of Florida.

Constitutional provision securing Florida's immunity from suit should not be construed so as to put state in process of court (Const. art. 3, § 22). 'The immunity of a state from suit is absolute and unqualified, and the constitutional provision securing it is not to be so construed as to place the state within the reach of the process of the court.' Hampton v. State Board of Education, 90 Fla. 88, 105 So. 323, 42 A. L. R. 1456.

Special statute permitting state to be sued to foreclose drainage tax lien on school lands would be invalid (Const. art. 3, § 22). Even if there were a provision in chapter 7599, Laws of Florida, Sp. Acts 1917, authorizing or consenting that the state be made a party defendant to a proceeding brought for the foreclosure of alleged drainage tax lien, upon lands in the Southern drainage district of Florida, owned and held by it for school purposes, such a provision would be invalid, for the reason that chapter 7599, Laws of Florida, is a special law.

Decree foreclosing drainage tax lien on state school lands without consent of state by valid law is void and also tax deed executed by virtue thereof. There being no valid law giving the Southern drainage district of Florida authority to sue the state for the foreclosure of an alleged drainage tax lien upon real estate granted it by Congress for school purposes, or to make the state a party defendant to such a suit, a final decree of foreclosure of such alleged drainage tax lien on the property, described in the bill of complaint as school lands, is null and void, as is also the tax deed executed by the court commissioner under and by virtue thereof.

Special statute, if interpreted as authorizing suit against state land, is void (Sp. Acts 1917, c. 7599, § 20; Const. art. 3, § 22). Section 20, chapter 7599, Laws of Florida, Special Acts of the Legislature of Florida 1917, in so far as it might be interpreted as authorizing a suit against real estate owned by the state, is null, void, and of no effect; it being contrary to and in conflict with section 22, art. 3, of the Constitution of Florida.

Statutes in so far as they provide for drainage tax on lands granted by Congress to state for school purposes held void in view of constitutional restrictions on expenditure of school fund (Sp. Acts 1917, c. 7599, §§ 14, 20; Act Cong. March 3, 1845 [5 Stat. 788]; Const. art. 12, §§ 4-7). Sections 14 and 20 of chapter 7599, Laws of Florida, Special Acts of the Legislature 1917, in so far as they provide for assessing, levying, and collecting, by sale or otherwise, drainage tax upon lands granted by the Act of Congress March 3, 1845 (5 Stat. 788) to, and held by, the state of Florida for school purposes, are null, void, and of no effect; they being contrary to and in conflict with sections 4 and 5, art. 12, of the Constitution of Florida.

Decree foreclosing drainage tax lien on state school lands, sale, and tax deeds held void as contravening constitutional restrictions on expenditure of school fund (Sp. Acts 1917, c. 7599, §§ 14, 20; Act Cong. March 3, 1845 [5 Stat. 788]; Const. art. 3, § 22, art. 12, §§ 4-7). For the reasons stated in the foregoing headnote, a final decree foreclosing an alleged lien for drainage tax, assessed and levied under the provisions of section 14 of chapter 7599, Sp. Laws of Florida 1917, against lands granted by the Act of Congress, March 3, 1845 (5 Stat. 788), to the state of Florida, and held by it for school purposes, as also the sale of the lands under such final decree and the tax deeds executed therefor, under the provisions of section 20, chapter 7599, Sp. Laws of Florida, are null, void, and of no effect.

After enactment of 1921 statute, there was no semblance of authority to levy drainage tax on state school lands (Sp. Acts 1921, c. 8907, amending Sp. Acts 1917, c. 7599). After the enactment of chapter 8907, Laws of Florida, Special Acts of the Legislature 1921, amending chapter 7599, Sp. Laws of Florida 1917, there was no semblance of authority to levy a drainage tax on lands granted to and held by the state for school purposes; therefore, any levy of a drainage tax against lands held by the state for school purposes, or tax deeds executed for such land upon sale for delinquent drainage tax after the provisions of chapter 8907 became operative, were null and void, not only upon the constitutional grounds set forth in the eighth headnote, but also because there was no longer a law authorizing a drainage tax upon school land.

State board of education suing Feb. 9, 1926, to quiet title against drainage tax deed filed for record April 24, 1925, held not guilty of laches (Rev. Gen. St. 1920, § 2927). Under Rev. Gen. St. 1920, § 2927, state board of education suing February 9, 1926, to quiet title against drainage tax deed recorded April 24, 1925, was not guilty of laches.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Dade County; H. F. Atkinson, judge.

COUNSEL

Gilbert C. Robinson and Burdine & Barco, all of Miami, for appellants.

J. B. Johnson, Atty. Gen., and H. E. Carter, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellees.

OPINION

CAMPBELL, Circuit Judge.

On February 9, 1926, the appellees, as complainants in the court below, filed a bill of complaint against the appellants, as respondents, wherein the complainants, as and constituting the state board of education of the state of Florida, sought to have the title of the state of Florida to certain lands, therein described as section 16, township 54 south, range 38 east, quieted against certain alleged clouds, the alleged clouds consisting of a final decree of foreclosure of a tax lien for drainage taxes on the land, and also certain tax deeds on said lands, issued to the Southern drainage district, for delinquent drainage taxes on the same for different years.

The bill of complaint alleges that the land described therein was, under the provisions of the Act of the Congress of the United States of America March 3, 1845 (5 Stat. 788), granted to the state of Florida for school purposes. It is further alleged that the state of Florida never parted with the title to the said land; that under section 602, par. 1, Revised General Statutes of Florida, the state board of education of Florida is directed and empowered to obtain possession of, take charge, oversight, and management of all lands granted to the state for educational purposes; that the said land is wild, uncultivated, unimproved, and unoccupied.

The alleged clouds upon the state's title are fully set forth in the following quoted allegations of the bill of complaint to wit:

'That the defendant Southern drainage district claims and asserts an interest in and title to the hereinabove-described lands under and by virtue of the hereinafter-mentioned final decree of foreclosure and tax deeds against and to said above-described lands, to wit: The final decree of foreclosure rendered and entered in the circuit court of the Eleventh judicial circuit of Florida, in chancery, dated the 13th day of December, 1919, in the suit by said Southern drainage district under the provisions of chapter 7599, Special Acts of the Legislature of 1917, against said above-described land to enforce an alleged delinquent tax levied against said above-described land by said Southern drainage district, the final decree being recorded among the public records of Dade county, Fla., in -----, on page -----; the tax deed to the hereinabove-described land from R. B. McLendon, tax collector for Dade county, Fla., to Southern drainage district, dated March 24, 1921, and filed for record April 24, 1925, and recorded among the public records of Dade county, Fla., in Deed Book 585, on page 81; the tax deed to the hereinabove described land from J. R. B. Clemons, court commissioner of the Eleventh judicial circuit of Florida to Southern drainage district, dated March 31, 1922, and filed for record April 23, 1925, and recorded among the public records of Dade county, Fla., in Deed Book 585, on page 83; the tax deed to the hereinabove-described land from J. R. B. Clemons, court commissioner of the Eleventh judicial circuit of Florida, to Southern drainage district dated August 28, 1923, and filed for record April 23, 1925, and recorded among the public records of Dade county, Fla., in Deed Book 585, on page 85; the tax deed to the hereinabove-described land from J. R. B. Clemons, court commissioner of the Eleventh judicial circuit of Florida, to Southern drainage district, dated March 18, 1924, and filed for record

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