State v. City of Clearwater

• Decision Date: 23 May 1936
• Citation: 124 Fla. 354,168 So. 546
• Parties: STATE v. CITY OF CLEARWATER.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

168 So. 546

124 Fla. 354

STATE v. CITY OF CLEARWATER.

Florida Supreme Court

May 23, 1936

En Banc.

Proceeding by the City of Clearwater, a municipality in the county of Pinellas, state of Florida, for the validation of the proposed issuance of revenue certificates of the city wherein Francis P. Fleming and others appeared as amici curiae. From a decree of validation, defendant appeals.

Affirmed with direction. Appeal from Circuit Court Pinellas, County; T. Frank Hobson, judge.

COUNSEL

Chester B. McMullen, of Clearwater, for appellant.

John C Polhill and S.E. Simmons, both of Clearwater, for appellee.

Francis P. Fleming and Giles J. Patterson, both of Jacksonville, Ralph Richards, of Clearwater, J. W. Watson, Jr., and Mitchell D. Price, and Charles W. Zaring, all of Miami, Sumter Leitner, of Arcadia, W. G. Vaughn, of Melbourne, James Messer, Jr., of Tallahassee, Allen Clements, Jim Clements, and James A. Franklin, all of Fort Myers, Ernest E. Mason, of Pensacola, J. M. Austin, of Leesburg, and William

M. Madison, of Jacksonville, amici curiae.

OPINION

PER CURIAM.

The city of Clearwater, Fla., under and by virtue of Chapter 9710, Laws of Florida, Sp. Acts of 1923, and acts amendatory and supplementary thereto, for a number of years has owned and operated a municipal gas plant which produces illuminating gas that is distributed by it to consumers throughout the city.

OnJanuary 6, 1936, the city, acting through its duly elected and qualified commissioners, adopted an ordinance stating that certain additions and improvements to the gas plant were necessary, and authorizing an issue of gas revenue certificates in the amount of $79,000 to finance these improvements. The ordinance specifically provided that these certificates should be paid off out of a special fund, to wit, revenues to be derived from the operation of the gas plant; and that no taxes should ever be levided or no moneys diverted from any other city funds for the purpose of paying either interest or principal of the said certificates. The ordinance did not provide for an election to authorize or ratify the issuance of these certificates under section 6 of article 9 of the Constitution of Florida, and the city proposes to issue and sell the certificates without having them voted on by the freeholders.

The situation presented in this case is in all respects like unto that dealt with in the case of B. C. Wilson and State of Florida v. City of Bartow (Fla.) 168 So. 545, this day decided and is controlled by the same applicable principles of law.

So...