Young v. Lane

• Decision Date: 06 February 1895
• Citation: 43 Neb. 812,62 N.W. 202
• Parties: YOUNG ET AL. v. LANE ET AL.
• Court: Nebraska Supreme Court

43 Neb. 812

62 N.W. 202

YOUNG ET AL.

v.LANE ET AL.

Supreme Court of Nebraska.

Feb. 6, 1895.

Syllabus by the Court.

1. The constitution prohibits a county board from levying taxes which in the aggregate excede $1.50 per $100 valuation, unless authorized so to do by a vote of the people of the county, except for the payment of indebtedness existing at the adoption of the present constitution. In re House Roll 284, 48 N. W. 275, 31 Neb. 505, and State v. Weir, 49 N. W. 785, 33 Neb. 35, followed.

2. Section 17, c. 82a, Comp. St. 1893, construed to be permissive only. Accordingly held, that where county authorities have levied taxes, to provide for the current expenses of a certain year, to the constitutional limit, the court has no authority to control the action and discretion of such county board, and compel it to reduce the amount of any levy made for county purposes, and levy in lieu thereof a tax for the soldiers' relief fund.

Original actions between Young and others, members of the soldiers' relief commission of Rock county, and Lane and others, board of commissioners of said county.W. H. Holmes, for plaintiffs.

J. J. Carlin, for defendants.

RAGAN, C.

This is a submission without action, under the provisions of section 567 of the Code of Civil Procedure, of a controversy between the members of the soldiers' relief commission of Rock county and the board of commissioners of said county, to determine whether said county board has authority to levy, in addition to a fifteen-mill tax imposed by said county board for county purposes, a three-tenths of one-mill tax for the soldiers' relief fund. From the agreed statement of facts it appears that the county commissioners of Rock county, on the 9th of January, 1894, made an estimate of the necessary expenses of the county for the current year, and the same was published as provided by law; that among the different items of expense so estimated and published was one for the sum of $200, for the soldiers' relief fund; that on the 12th day of February, 1894, the soldiers' relief commission of said county, in pursuance of the provisions of the statute, filed with the county clerk of said county a report, in writing, setting forth that the sum of $200 would be required to be levied by the county board as a soldiers' relief fund. On the last day of the session of the county commissioners, sitting as a board of equalization, for the year 1894, said board made the following levies: General fund, nine mills; bridge fund, four mills; road fund, two mills; Brown county funding bond, one mill; this last...