Town of Albertville v. Rains

• Decision Date: 26 July 1895
• Citation: Town of Albertville v. Rains, 18 So. 255, 107 Ala. 691 (Ala. 1895)
• Parties: MAYOR, ETC., OF ALBERTVILLE v. RAINS ET AL.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

18 So. 255

107 Ala. 691

MAYOR, ETC., OF ALBERTVILLE v. RAINS ET AL.

Supreme Court of Alabama

July 26, 1895

Appeal from chancery court, Marshall county; S. K. McSpadden Chancellor.

Bill filed by a majority of the citizens and property owners of the town of Albertville, against the mayor and councilmen, to release them from any obligation on a subscription by the defendants, in behalf of the town, to the state agricultural college, there in process of erection, and to enjoin defendants from a collection of the municipal taxes.From an order overruling their motion to dismissthe bill for want of equity, and to dissolve the injunction temporarily issued defendants appeal.Reversed.

Lusk &amp Bell, for appellants.

HEAD J.

This bill is filed by a majority of the citizens and property owners of the town of Albertville, in this state, against the mayor and councilmen of that town, praying that they be "released and relieved from any obligation to pay any part of the sum of two hundred and fifty dollars," which, the bill alleges, has been unlawfully subscribed by the defendants, for the corporation, to the state agricultural college, which is now being built within the corporate limits of the town, and that defendants be enjoined from "collecting, or attempting to collect, any general taxes or license taxes from the citizens of the corporation of Albertville, until the property of said corporation is assessed, and the values regulated in proportion to the volume of business and value of trade or profession, as the law directs, and until said defendants publish a full and complete report of the financial condition of said corporation."

The town was chartered, by special act, February 18, 1891.Acts 1890-91, p. 971.Full power is given by the charter to the mayor and councilmen to levy taxes on real and personal property, within the town, in order to provide public revenues; and ample procedure and machinery are provided for the assessment and collection of such taxes, with power to sell property, real and personal, of defaulters.It is provided in section 12 that "when books of assessment shall be completed and returned to the mayor and councilmen, and they have levied a tax on the property so listed and assessed, the mayor shall issue his warrant annexed to the tax-list or book of assessment to the collector of the corporation tax, which list shall contain the names of the tax-payers, a description of the real estate, its valuation, and the taxes assessed thereon, and the amount of personal property assessed to each tax-payer, and the tax assessed thereon, and such tax-list with the warrant annexed, shall have force and effect of an execution, and shall be a preferred lien on all the property within the corporate limits, or brought within the corporate limits of every person assessed with the same over all encumbrances except the state and county taxes from the date of the assessment."It is further provided, in section 17, that "from every person, firm or corporation conducting or carrying on any business, trade, occupation or profession within the corporate limits of Albertville, the mayor and councilmen are authorized to collect a license tax, the amount thereof to be, as far as may be required by the volume of the business or trade and the value of the occupation or profession, and to enforce the collection of such license tax by penalties fixed by ordinance."Section 20 provides that "the territory embraced within the corporate limits of Albertville be and the same is hereby constituted a public school district, and the mayor and councilmen, for the use of the public schools, are authorized to collect all poll tax from persons liable therefor living within the corporate limits of Albertville; and a payment of such poll tax to the tax collector of Albertville shall be a full discharge of liability therefor to the tax collector of Marshall county."Section 9 authorizes the mayor and councilmen to purchase, and provide for the payment of the same, all personal and real estate deemed necessary, from time to time, for public use and convenience, and to construct suitable public buildings for council chambers, market houses, and schoolhouses.Section 14 provides that, after giving notice by advertisement, by posting, or in a newspaper published in Albertville, for 20 days, that the corporation taxes are required to be paid to him on or before a certain day, it shall be the duty of the tax collector to enforce the collection of the same by a levy upon and sale of personal property of delinquents, etc.

The grievances complained of by the original bill are: (1) That in November or December, 1893, the defendants, for the corporation, subscribed $250 to the state agricultural college, which is now being built within the corporate limits of the town; and that complainants, who never authorized or agreed to the subscription, are illegally assessed and taxed by the defendants, and by them called upon and urged to pay said taxes, for the purpose of liquidating said subscription arbitrarily subscribed by defendants, as aforesaid.(2) That the requirements of said sections 12and14 of the charter have not been complied with.(3) That the mayor and councilmen have not sought to equalize the value of property assessed, or to provide that the same be assessed at its proper valuation, and in accordance with law, but that they are seeking and attempting to assess the property of said...