State Athletic Bd. of Control v. Blake Amusement Co.

• Decision Date: 23 May 1933
• Parties: STATE ATHLETIC BOARD OF CONTROL v. BLAKE AMUSEMENT CO.
• Court: Kentucky Court of Appeals

60 S.W.2d 950

249 Ky. 358

STATE ATHLETIC BOARD OF CONTROL v. BLAKE AMUSEMENT CO.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky

May 23, 1933

Appeal from Circuit Court, Jefferson County, Chancery Branch, First Division.

Proceeding between the State Athletic Board of Control and the Blake Amusement Company. From the judgment, the first-named party appeals.

Affirmed.

Bailey P. Wootton, Atty. Gen., and Overton S. Hogan, Asst. Atty Gen., for appellant.

Eugene R. Attkisson, of Louisville, for appellee.

REES Chief Justice.

This case involves the validity of chapter 153 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 1928, which sought to amend and re-enact certain sections of chapter 155 of the Acts of 1920 relating to the control of boxing and sparring matches or exhibitions. The validity of the act is assailed on the ground that it violates section 51 of the Constitution which provides that "No law enacted by the general assembly shall relate to more than one subject, and that shall be expressed in the title, and no law shall be revised, amended, or the provisions thereof extended or conferred by reference to its title only, but so much thereof as is revised, amended extended or conferred, shall be re-enacted and published at length."

The title of chapter 155 of the Acts of 1920 reads: "An Act to establish an Athletic Board of Control and prescribing the duties and power of same and to license and regulate the giving or holding of boxing or sparring contests or exhibitions in this State, providing for the payment of a tax and license, and prohibiting any betting or gaming at any such contest, and providing of penalty for violation of this act."

The body of the act deals only with boxing and sparring matches or exhibitions, and thus is confined to the subject-matter indicated by the title. The title of chapter 153 of the Acts of 1928, the validity of which is assailed in this proceeding, reads: "An Act to amend and re-enact Sections 1290a-3, 1290a-6. 1290a-8, 1290a-9 and 1290a-15 of an act entitled State Athletic Board of Control, being Chapter 155 of an act approved March, 1920, Carroll's Kentucky Statutes, 6th edition, 1922 Baldwin's Blue Book."

The act of 1920 authorized boxing and sparring matches, subject to certain regulations, created a state athletic board of control, and prescribed its duties and powers. The act of 1928 sought to place wrestling matches or exhibitions under the supervision of the state athletic board of control and to regulate them in the same manner as boxing and sparring matches. The act proposed to amend and re-enact sections 3, 8, 9, and 15 of the act of 1920 by inserting, after the words, "sparring match" or "sparring matches," wherever these words appear in these sections the words, "wrestling match" or "wrestling matches." Neither the title, nor the body, of the act of 1920 contains any reference to wrestling. The title of the 1928 act proposed to amend and re-enact certain sections of the 1920 act, but contains no reference to wrestling matches.

Appellant relies upon a number of cases in which the title of the amendatory act merely refers to the number of sections of the statutes proposed to be amended, and this method of amendment was approved. A reference to these cases, however, discloses that the matter in the body of the amendatory act related to the subject-matter in the particular section of the statute amended and was germane to the title of the amended act. In Ex parte City of Paducah, 125 Ky. 510, 101 S.W. 898, 31 Ky. Law Rep. 170, the validity of an act amending section 3140, Kentucky Statutes, was assailed on the ground that the title was defective. The title of the amendatory act (Acts 1906, c. 123) read: "An Act to amend and re-enact section three thousand one hundred and forty, Kentucky Statutes," and it was held that the title was sufficient. Section 3140, Kentucky Statutes, related solely to the number of firemen, policemen, and officers of the police and fire departments of cities of the second class. The amendatory act provided that the number of policemen and detectives should be not less than 30 in addition to a chief of police, captain of police, and lieutenant of police. Thus the subject-matter of the amendatory act was the same as the subject-matter dealt with in the body of the amended act.

In Guess v. Linton, 236 Ky. 87, 32 S.W.2d 718, the validity of section 2516 of the Kentucky Statutes, as amended by chapter 92 of the Acts of 1916, was involved. The title of the amended act merely referred to the number of the section of the statute which it was proposed to amend, and this was held sufficient. Section 2516 was a part of the chapter on limitation of actions and dealt with "actions that must be brought within one year after accrual of right." The act of 1916 added an action which must be brought within one year next after the cause of action accrued, and one reading the title of the amendatory act, in connection with the act to be amended, might reasonably suspect that this was the thing proposed to be done.

In the instant case, one reading the title of the 1928 act would receive no notice that it proposed to deal with any subject other than the regulation of boxing and sparring matches, but the body of the act introduces an entirely new subject and one not germane to the title of the amended act. The purpose of section 51 of the Constitution is obvious and has been stated in numerous opinions of this court. As said in Wood v. Commonwealth, 225 Ky. 294, 8 S.W.2d 428 430: "The title should give fair and reasonable notice to interested persons of the nature of the provisions...