People Ex Rel. Goodman v. Wabash Railroad

70 N.E.2d 718, 395 Ill. 520, 1946 Ill. LEXIS 473
CourtIllinois Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 20, 1946
DocketNo. 29744. Affirmed in part and reversed in part, and remanded.
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 70 N.E.2d 718 (People Ex Rel. Goodman v. Wabash Railroad) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Illinois Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People Ex Rel. Goodman v. Wabash Railroad, 70 N.E.2d 718, 395 Ill. 520, 1946 Ill. LEXIS 473 (Ill. 1946).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Smith

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is an appeal by the Wabash Railroad Company, Illinois Central Railroad Company and Illinois Terminal Railroad Company, from judgments of the county court of Champaign county, overruling certain objections to taxes filed by said companies. There is also a cross appeal perfected by the county collector from those parts of the judgments sustaining certain objections filed by the same companies. Separate objections were filed by appellants and separate judgments entered. However, an order was entered by one of the members of this court upon stipulation of the parties, consolidating the causes on this appeal and directing that the appeal be submitted on one record, as one appeal, in this court.

The objections overruled and which are involved on the appeal relate to two items of county taxes extended, namely: taxes for the maintenance and operation of a county tuberculosis sanitarium and certain specific items contained in the county levy for general corporate purposes. The facts are stipulated and are not in dispute.

The record relating to the tuberculosis santarium tax discloses that in 1916 a petition was filed with the county board, signed by one hundred legal voters of the county, requesting the board to submit to the voters of the county the proposition to levy a tuberculosis sanitarium tax in accordance with section 2 of the County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act, passed on June 28, 1915. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1943, chap. 34, par. 165.) Pursuant to this petition the proposition was submitted to the voters of the county at a general election held on November 7, 1916. A majority of the votes cast on the proposition was in favor of levying such tax. Thereafter the county established and has maintained for more than twenty-five years a county tuberculosis sanitarium, pursuant to said statute. Under the decisions of this court this vote authorized the county to levy taxes for tuberculosis sanitarium purposes only within the maximum rate authorized by law for general county purposes and as a part of such rate. It did not authorize it to levy taxes for the purpose of acquiring, maintaining and operating a tuberculosis sanitarium in addition to the maximum county rate authorized by law. (People ex rel. Graff v. Wabash Railway Co. 286 Ill. 15.) It is stipulated that following said election the county board levied taxes annually for county tuberculosis sanitarium purposes and for more than fifteen years last past said taxes have been extended in addition to the maximum rate authorized for general county purposes.

Pursuant to a resolution theretofore adopted by the county board, there was submitted to the voters of the county at the general election held on November 7, 1944, the proposition to levy taxes for county tuberculosis sanitarium purposes, in excess of the maximum rate fixed by law for general county purposes, for the years 1944 to 1952, inclusive, said excess not to exceed one mill on each one dollar of the assessed valuation of property. At said election a majority of the votes cast upon the proposition was in favor of such additional tax. The taxes here involved for county tuberculosis sanitarium purposes were levied and extended in addition to the maximuip rate allowed by law for general county purposes under the authority of that vote.

It is contended by appellants that the vote on November 7, 1944, authorizing a levy of taxes for tuberculosis sanitarium purposes, in excess of the maximum rate allowed by law for county purposes, was ineffective and did not authorize the extension of such taxes in excess of the maximum county rate, for the reason that said election was not called pursuant to a petition of one hundred or more voters, as specified in said section 2 of the County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act. It is contended that the county board, in the absence of such petition, was without authority to call that election; that the election having been called without such petition having been presented to the county board, the vote was wholly inoperative and ineffective to authorize the extension of such taxes in addition to the maximum county rate authorized by law for general county purposes.

We think this is a misapprehension of the law. Section 1 of the County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1943, chap. 34, par. 164,) confers power upon the county board to levy taxes for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a county tuberculosis sanitarium when authorized in the manner provided in said act. Section 2 provides that when one hundred legal voters shall presént a petition to the county board asking that an annual tax' be levied for the establishment and maintenance of a county tuberculosis sanitarium, the county board shall- instruct the county clerk, and it shall be his duty to submit to the voters of the said county the proposition of levying such tax at a rate of not to exceed one and one-half mills on the dollar. If such proposition is approved by the voters, the county board is authorized thereafter to levy the tax at the rate authorized.

There is no provision contained in the County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act authorizing the county board to submit to the voters the proposition of levying taxqs for county tuberculosis sanitarium purposes in addition to the maximum rate authorized for general county purposes. The authority to extend taxes in addition to the maximum statutory rate for general county purposes is provided for in section 27 of the Counties Act. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1945, chap. 34, par. 27.) There is no reference to this section in the County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act and that act is not exempted from the provisions of this section. (People ex rel. Graff v. Wabash Railway Co. 286 Ill. 15.) The only way in which a county may be authorized to exceed the general statutory limit for county purposes in levying taxes is by following the requirements in said section 27. Section 27 does not require a petition as a prerequisite to the authority of the county board to submit to the voters the proposition of levying taxes in addition to the statutory limit. (People ex rel. Moomey v. Illinois Central Railroad Co. 301 Ill. 288.) When the steps designated in said section 27 are followed, the county board is authorized to levy and collect taxes in excess of the statutory limit. People ex rel. Hines v. Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern Railroad Co. 366 Ill. 318.

The County Tuberculosis Sanitarium Act must be complied with in order to authorize the county to levy taxes for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a tuberculosis sanitarium. When the requirements of that act have been observed, then the county is authorized to include ah amount for such purpose in its annual appropriations and levy taxes for that purpose within the limits of the rate authorized. In extending such taxes, however, they must be included within the maximum rate authorized by law for general county purposes. Taxes levied for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a county tuberculosis sanitarium are taxes levied for general corporate purposes of the county. As such they must be included within the maximum rate prescribed for county purposes. People ex rel. Smith v. Wabash Railway Co. 377 Ill. 68.

Section 27 of the Counties Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1945, chap. 34, par.

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70 N.E.2d 718, 395 Ill. 520, 1946 Ill. LEXIS 473, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-ex-rel-goodman-v-wabash-railroad-ill-1946.