McHUGH, Chief Justice.
The petitioner, the County Commission of Boone County (hereinafter the “County Commission”), seeks a writ of mandamus to compel the respondent, Ed Cooke, the Clerk of the County Commission of Boone County (hereinafter the “Clerk”), to publish notice of a public hearing, pursuant to The Tax Increment Financing Act found in W. Va.Code, 7-11B-1, et seq. [1995], regarding the issuance of tax increment bonds for the purpose of financing a county water project which will be referred to as the Boone County Development Project. The Clerk refused to publish [393]*393the notice of the hearing because he asserts that the Tax Increment Financing Act is unconstitutional on many grounds. For reasons explained below, we decline to issue a writ of mandamus.
I.
In order to facilitate an understanding of this case, it is necessary to initially analyze the Tax Increment Financing Act. That analysis will be applied to the Boone County Development Project.
A.
The Tax Increment Financing Act
The Tax Increment Financing Act allows a private project developer and a county commission to jointly make capital improvements or build facilities which result “in the increase in the value of property located in the area or encourage increased employment within the area[.]” W. Va.Code, 7-11B-2 [1995]. More specifically, the act authorizes a county commission to issue tax increment obligations1 in order to finance “development projects to foster economic development, including infrastructure and other public improvements prerequisite to private improvements[.]” W. Va.Code, 7-11B-4(c) [1995],
The objective of the Tax Increment Financing Act is to use the increased ad valo-rem tax revenue which is generated as a result of the development project to pay the principal of and interest on the tax increment obligations. The underlying premise of the tax increment financing scheme is the assumption that the assessed property value of the private project will increase as a result of the development project thereby increasing the amount of ad valorem taxes collected. Thus, in order to measure the increased assessed property value, the act initially requires a base assessed value to be established on the private project property. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-4(a) [1995]. The base assessed value is the taxable assessed value of the private project property in the year preceding the county’s adoption of a tax increment financing plan. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-3(b) [1995].2 After the tax increment financing plan is adopted by the county commission “the amount of tax attributable to the amount by which the current assessed value of a private project in a development project area exceeds the base assessed value, if any, of such private project, less the portion of tax allocated to the state[,]” is called the “tax increment.” W. Va.Code, 7-11B-3© [1995]. The tax increment is paid to the tax increment financing fund which, in turn, is used to pay the principal of and interest on tax increment obligations. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-4(a)(3) [1995]. Thus, the tax increment is the amount of additional ad valorem taxes collected as a result of the increase in the value of the private project property.
The process by which a county commission finances a project using tax increment financing begins when an agency or project developer requests the county commission to adopt a tax increment financing plan3 “with respect to a development project to be developed [by the county] in conjunction with a private project of a project developer.” W. Va.Code, 7-llB-4(a) [1995]. Before the county commission may enter an order approving a tax increment financing plan, the [394]*394county commission must hold a public hearing regarding the proposed plan. W. Va. Code, 7-11B-A(b) [1995]. The county commission must also submit the tax increment financing plan to the voters and receive an approving vote of three-fifths of the participating voters. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(b) [1995].
Once approved by the voters, the county commission is authorized to issue the tax increment obligations. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(a) [1995]. The county commission is also authorized to dedicate the tax increment, if any, to the tax increment financing fund. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-4(a)(3) [1995]. The moneys in the tax increment financing fund are then “used to pay the principal of and interest on tax increment obligations issued to finance the costs of such development project.” Id. The Tax Increment Financing Act does not change the rate of taxation; however, when a tax increment financing plan is adopted the allocation of a portion of the ad valorem tax assessed on the private project property is changed. The increase in assessed property value of the private project property does not directly inure to the benefit of other levying bodies such as the board of education.
The county’s development project is to “be sold, leased with an option by the lessee to purchase, leased or otherwise disposed of to a project developer.” W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(a) [1995]. In the event the moneys collected from the tax increment are insufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the tax increment obligations
then such bonds or notes shall be payable out of the revenues derived from the lease, lease with an option by the lessee to purchase, sale or other disposition in connection with the development project for which the bonds or notes are issued, or any other revenue derived from such project.
W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(a) [1995]. The legislature has by reference to W. Va.Code, 13-2C-7 [1975] in the Tax Increment Financing Act stated that the bonds do not constitute an indebtedness of the county issuing them within the meaning of the Constitution of West Virginia. W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(a) [1995].4 Additionally, the Tax Increment Financing Act makes clear “that the portion of property taxes allocable to the state shall be paid over to the state in accordance with law.”5 W. Va.Code, 7-11B-4(a)(3) [1995],
When the tax increment obligations are retired, the tax increment financing fund is to be dissolved and the tax increment is to be “paid into the general fund of the taxing units in proportion to their respective contributions to the fund.” W. Va.Code, 7-11B-7(a) [1995]. The act further states that upon the dissolution of the tax increment financing fund the “real and tangible personal property shall be assessed and taxes collected and allocated in the same manner as applicable in the year preceding the adoption of the tax [395]*395increment financing order.” W. .Vq.Cpde,/I-llB-7(b) [1995], _
B.
The Boone County Development Project
Sometime in 1995 the West' Virginia-American Water Company (hereinafter the ‘Water Company”) requested the County Commission to adopt a tax increment financing plan pursuant to the Tax Increment Financing Act in order to improve water service in Boone County. The plan would require the County Commission to work in conjunction with, the Water Company in order to implement the improvements in water service. More specifically, the Water Company would agree to undertake certain company projects such as constructing .war ter mains, and the County Commission likewise would agree to undertake a county project of constructing other water mains! The estimated cost to the Water Company for the company project is $9,430,000.00. The estimated cost to the County Commission for the county project is $5,396,000.00.
The Water Company informed the County Commission that the project by the county was not likely to occur without tax increment financing. See W. Va.Code, 7-llB-4(c) [1995]. Therefore, the Water Company’requested the County Commission to., approve a tax increment financing plan in order to finance the county project through the 'issu-anee of tax increment obligations (bonds); The principal amount of the tax-increment obligations (bonds) was not to exceed $5,500,-000.00, the interest rate was not to exceed 10%, and the obligations (bonds) were to mature no later than thirty years. -The Water Company estimates that due to an increase in property values from the project, an extra $141,800.00 in taxes per year could be placed into the tax increment financing fund to pay the principal of and interest on the tax increment obligations (bonds) issued by the County Commission to finance the cost of the county project. ;
Furthermore, the Water Company agreed to enter into a lease agreement regarding the county project with the County Commission whereby the Water Company will operate, maintain and pay rent on the county project in an amount necessary to pay the principal of and interest on the obligations (bonds) in the event the moneys in the tax increment financing fund are inadequate to make such payments. See W. Va.Code, 7-11B-6(a) [1995].
Because the County Commission must hold a public hearing pursuant to W. Va.Code, 7-HB-4(b) [1995] regarding the issuance of the tax increment obligations (bonds) prior to entering an order approving the tax increment financing plan, the County Commission directed the Clerk to publish the notice of the public hearing. As indicated above, the Clerk refused to publish notice of the public hearing because he maintains the Tax Increment Financing Act is unconstitutional. More specifically, the Clerk asserts that the Tax Increment Financing Act creates an unconstitutional debt in violation of W. Va. Const, art. X, § 8; unconstitutionally extends the credit of the State to aid a county in violation of W. Va. Const, art. X, § 6; unconstitutionally reduces expenditures for public education; violates a citizen’s right to equal protection of the laws and due process pursuant to U.S. Const, amend. XIV and W. Va. Const, art. Ill, § 10; and creates unequal taxation of county property in violation otW.Va. Const, art. X, § 1.
II.
We stress that the desirability of the proposed water project is not the issue. Increasing the property values, encouraging increased employment, and seeking better delivery of water within Boone County are laudable goals. Therefore, we do not doubt the salutary purposes of the Tax Increment Financing Act. The role of this Court, however, is not to recognize the benefits of statutory enactments. We must “determine ‘the constitutionality of the law.’ ” Farley v. Graney, 146 W.Va. 22, 32, 119 S.E.2d 833, 840 (1960) (citing W. Va. Const. art. VIII, § 3). We recognize the legislature’s power is almost plenary and may not be questioned by this Court unless the legislature’s actions violate the Constitution of West Virginia or the Constitution of the United States. See syl. pt. 3, State ex rel. Lambert v. County [396]*396Comm’n, 192 W.Va. 448, 452 S.E.2d 906 (1994) (This Court must use every reasonable construction of a legislative enactment in order to sustain its constitutionality). However, no matter how commendable the goals of the Boone County Commission or how great the power of the legislature, this Court is obligated to follow the mandates of the West Virginia Constitution. Id.
Obviously a primary issue raised in this mandamus proceeding is whether the Tax Increment Financing Act creates a debt in violation of W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8.6 Article X, § 8 of the Constitution of West Virginia limits the amount of debt that may be incurred by a county, city, school district or municipal corporation.7
The County Commission, however, maintains that the tax increment obligations issued pursuant to the Tax Increment Financing Act are exempt from the debt restrictions set forth in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8. More specifically, the County Commission asserts that because the tax increment obligations will be paid out of a special fund, that is, the tax increment financing fund, the debt restrictions in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 are inapplicable.
We are mindful that the underlying purpose of constitutional debt restrictions is to protect the fiscal integrity of our governmental entities. See State v. Spelsberg, 191 W.Va. 553, 556, 447 S.E.2d 16, 19 (1994). Thus, the common thread linking the various financing schemes which we have approved of as not implicating our constitutional restrictions on debt is that they do not impair “the financial integrity of the State’s existing tax structure!!]” State ex rel. Marockie v. Wagoner, 190 W.Va. 467, 472, 438 S.E.2d 810, 815 (1993).8
Generally, this Court has recognized three categories of bonds which do not implicate our constitutional restrictions on debt.9 The first category of bonds is those issued pursuant to W. Va. Const. art. XIV, § 2, relating to constitutional amendments. We have concluded that those bonds “override the more general bond limit restrictions because they [397]*397were approved by the voters for the specific purposes contained in the amendment.”10 Winkler, 189 W.Va. at 755, 434 S.E.2d at 427.
The second category of bonds is those which are “payable from lease rental payments or similar contract arrangements for a necessary service on the part of the public agency.” Id. at 760, 434 S.E.2d at 432. We have given our approval to this financing arrangement because of the state agencies’ “recurring needs for services, such as rental space and utility services_ In such a situation, the lease payments are used to retire revenue bonds that were issued to construct [a] building.” Id. at 756, 434 S.E.2d at 428. See, e.g., State ex rel. State Building Comm’n v. Moore, 155 W.Va. 212, 184 S.E.2d 94 (1971). As noted in Winkler, the rationale of the lease-financing arrangement formed the basis for our approval of contract arrangements for a necessary service on the part of a public agency even though the contract was not a lease. Winkler, 189 W.Va. at 756-57, 434 S.E.2d at 428-29. The rationale behind the lease-financing arrangement also formed the basis for “our approval of the issuance of industrial and commercial revenue bonds under ...” the Industrial Development and Commercial Development Bond Act found in W. Va.Code, 13-2C-1, et seq. Id. at 757, 434 S.E.2d at 429. Under this act, “a county acquires land' and contracts with a private corporation to lease the land for a rental sufficient to retire the bonds that are issued by the county to secure the funds to build the facility.” Id. See, e.g., State ex rel. Ohio County Comm’n v. Samol, 165 W.Va. 714, 275 S.E.2d 2 (1980); State ex rel. County Court of Marion County v. Demus, 148 W.Va. 398, 135 S.E.2d 352 (1964).
The County Commission does not argue that the tax increment obligations fall within the two categories of bonds described above. Instead, as previously indicated, the County Commission relies on a third category of bonds.
The third category of bonds are bonds which are liquidated out of a special fund. Winkler, 189 W.Va. at 757, 434 S.E.2d at 429. We have explained that “[t]his concept is related to the lease-financing arrangement, but differs because the special fund is ordinarily a tax or a fee generated from the facility itself, such as tolls for the use of a bridge or road, or parking-garage fees.” Id. The general basis for the special fund concept was expressed in State ex rel. Hall v. Taylor, 154 W.Va. 659, 672, 178 S.E.2d 48, 56 (1970):11
It is difficult to state the ‘separate fund doctrine’ precisely. Its application varies somewhat among appellate courts of various states. It is applied uniformly in relation to projects or facilities which are self-liquidating, such as the toll bridge eases. Some courts hold that the doctrine applies [398]*398in any ease of a fund created by a special excise tax as distinguished from property taxes.
See Winkler, 189 W.Va. at 757, 434 S.E.2d at 429. More recently, we stated that “the special fund doctrine is based on the fact that a specific source of revenue is required to be identified and committed to the repayment of the bonds beyond mere annual appropriations from the general revenue fund.” Winkler, 189 W.Va. at 758, 434 S.E.2d at 430. The legislature may accomplish this by creating a new tax source or increasing the amount to be paid on an existing tax account. State ex rel. Marockie, 190 W.Va. at 472, 438 S.E.2d at 815. This Court has also used language that the legislature may also “utilize an existing special revenue source to liquidate revenue bonds so long as that source of funds has not gone into the general revenue fund.” Id. (footnote omitted).
The special fund concept was the basis of our approval of the funding mechanism utilized in State ex rel. State Building Comm’n v. Moore, 155 W.Va. 212, 184 S.E.2d 94 (1971). In Moore the profits accruing from the sale of alcoholic liquors were dedicated to paying the principal of and interest on the “State Building Revenue Bonds.” This Court concluded that the issuance of the revenue bonds did not implicate our constitutional restrictions on debt because the use of a portion of the profits from the sale of alcoholic liquors to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds did not affect the general revenue appropriations or taxes imposed upon the taxpayers. Id. at 234, 184 S.E.2d at 106-107.
Likewise, in State ex rel. State Road Commission v. O’Brien, 140 W.Va. 114, 82 S.E.2d 903 (1954) we found our constitutional restrictions on debt were not implicated when the principal of and interest on bonds used to finance the construction of a bridge were paid from revenue provided by the tolls from the bridge. We emphasized in O’Brien that the reason our constitutional restrictions on debt were not implicated is because neither the general revenue nor any other revenue of the State was committed to fund the bonds. Id. at 126, 82 S.E.2d at 909.
Similarly, in State ex rel. Board of Governors of West Virginia University v. O’Brien, 142 W.Va. 88, 94 S.E.2d 446 (1956) this Court was confronted with the question whether the issuance of revenue bonds in order to fund the construction of new buildings at West Virginia University violated our constitutional restrictions on debt. The principal of and interest on the revenue bonds were to be paid from fees collected by the students at the university and put into a special fund. This Court concluded that the bonds did not implicate our constitutional restrictions on debt because
[t]he promise made is to pay solely out of the special fund to be created, not out of general or property tax revenues but from fees collected from students at the university ... No taxes or properties of the State are pledged or in any way made liable for the payment of the bonds. As already made clear, a debt to be paid in such manner does not constitute a debt within the meaning of that constitutional provision [W. Va. Const. art. X, § 4]. That provision, as previously pointed out, was intended to prohibit the creation of debts, by the State, required to be repaid by a public tax.
Id. at 96-97, 94 S.E.2d at 451 (emphasis added).
More recently, we found that the use of monies allocated from the net profits of the West Virginia Lottery to liquidate the School Building Authority’s revenue bonds did not implicate the constitutional restrictions on debt because the net profits of the lottery were a new source of revenue that had not been treated as a part of the general revenue of the State. Syl. pt. 3, State ex rel. Marockie v. Wagoner, 191 W.Va. 458, 446 S.E.2d 680 (1994). See also syl. pt. 1, in relevant part, State ex rel. Council of the City of Charleston v. Hall, 190 W.Va. 665, 441 S.E.2d 386 (1994) (We held that W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 was not implicated by “a contract for a term of twenty-five years whereby a city is obligated to pay a fee for solid waste disposal when that fee comes from a special fund collected by the city for such solid waste disposal.”).
[399]*399In the cases noted above, various financing schemes passed constitutional muster because a new tax source was utilized, the amount to be paid on an existing tax account was increased, or an existing special revenue source was used which had not been placed into the general revenue funds, thus “the financial integrity of the State’s existing tax structure ...” had not been impaired. State ex rel. Marockie, 190 W.Va. at 472, 438 S.E.2d at 815. Clearly, the special fund concept has been held not to violate constitutional restrictions on incurring debt only when the general tax revenue of the State or county has not been affected.
In the case before us, the County Commission argues that the increase in the property taxes collected as a result of the increase in the value of the property creates a new source of revenue because those taxes would not exist but for the development project. The County Commission concludes that the issuance of tax increment obligations which are paid from the tax increment financing fund, a special fund, does not create a debt which is subject to the restrictions set forth in W. Va. Const., art. X, § 8. We find this argument to be illusory.
As our discussion above reveals, the critical issue in determining whether our constitutional restrictions on debt are implicated is whether the funds used to pay the principal of and interest on tax increment obligations affect the general revenue of the county. None of the cases discussed above in which this Court held that the use of a special fund did not implicate our constitutional restrictions on debt involved the use of ad valorem taxes to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds.
The ad valorem tax is the most fundamental tax imposed upon the citizens of this State to fund local government, including schools. See State ex rel. Ayers v. Cline, 176 W.Va. 128, 128, 342 S.E.2d 89, 94 (1985) (We noted that property taxes were a principal source of revenue for local governments). Our constitution has established strict parameters governing the implementation and use of the ad valorem tax. For instance, W. Va. Const. art. X, § 1 mandates that all taxes levied on property must be equal and uniform and must not exceed certain maximum rates.12 See n. 7, supra. W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 restricts a county’s authority to incur a debt that must be paid from the county’s share of ad valorem taxes. The very purpose of these two constitutional provisions is to insure the county has sufficient funds to operate government, yet do so in a fiscally sound manner. Thus, it is clear that the tax increment financing fund is not a special fund because it clearly implicates the ad valorem taxing power of the county. Our conclusion is supported by cases from other jurisdictions.13
[400]*400For instance, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin was confronted with deciding whether the tax increment bonds issued by the City of Hartford in order to rehabilitate parts of the city were debt within the meaning of Wisconsin’s constitutional debt limitation provision.14 City of Hartford v. Kirley, 172 Wis.2d 191, 493 N.W.2d 45 (1992). The Supreme Court of Wisconsin concluded that the tax increment bonds were debt:
Even assuming, arguendo, that the tax increments would not have existed but for the district’s creation, we conclude that the City’s ... [tax increment financing] bonds ... constitute debt because they are payable solely from general property tax revenue. This Court has in the past recognized a distinction between the pledging of general tax revenues and the pledging of project revenues.
Id. 493 N.W.2d at 54 (emphasis added). See also City of Tucson v. Corbin, 128 Ariz. 83, 623 P.2d 1239 (App.1980) (Even though the tax increment is placed into a special fund, the use of tax increment bonds creates a debt which is subject to the constitutional debt limitation); Richards v. City of Muscatine, 237 N.W.2d 48 (Iowa 1975) (Tax increment bonds are a debt subject to the constitutional debt limitation even though the bonds are paid from a special fund because the fund is made up of the city’s general revenue); Muskogee Urban Renewal Authority v. Excise Board of Muskogee County, 899 P.2d 624 (Okl.1995). But see State v. Miami Beach Redevelopment Agency, 392 So.2d 875 (Fla. 1980).15
In arriving at its conclusion, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin focused on the purpose behind the constitutional debt limitation provision:
The very fact that the constitutional debt limit is calculated as a percentage of the taxable property located within a municipality’s boundaries shows that the drafters of the constitutional provision were concerned about a municipality’s incurring excessive obligations to be paid out of general property tax revenues. To hold that ... [tax increment financing] bonds payable from the general property tax revenues are not debt would permit the City to commit large portions of its general property tax revenues to special funds without regard to the constitutional debt limitation_ Such a holding would virtually nullify the constitutional debt limitation.
[401]*401City of Hartford, 493 N.W.2d at 55-56 (citation omitted). As another court has succinctly stated, by using tax increment financing “a city could divide its general revenues into several special funds, each with a bond issue restricted to recourse against its own fund— and thus commit large portions of the city’s revenues without regard to ... [the constitutional debt limitation provision]. The constitutional debt limitation could thus be virtually nullified.” Richards, 237 N.W.2d at 64.
We share the same concerns as other courts have expressed above. Accordingly, we hold that when tax increment obligations are issued pursuant to W. Va.Code, 7-11B-1,-et seq. [1995], The Tax Increment Financing Act, to finance a county development project authorized therein, a debt is created within the meaning of article X, § 8 of the Constitution of West Virginia and such tax increment obligations may only be issued in accordance with article X, § 8.
Because we have concluded that the Tax Increment Financing Act creates a debt within the meaning of W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8, we must determine whether the Tax Increment Financing Act and the proposed tax increment financing plan for the Boone County Development project satisfy the restrictions in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8. W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 sets forth three conditions which must be satisfied before a county, city, or municipal corporation may incur debt.16 First, a county, city or municipal corporation may not incur an indebtedness “in any manner, or for any purpose ..., including existing indebtedness, in ... [an aggregate amount] exceeding five per cen-tum on the value of the taxable property therein to be ascertained by the last assessment for State and county taxes[.]” W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8. Second, the county, city, or municipal corporation to incur debt must provide
for the collection of a direct annual tax on all taxable property therein, in the ratio, as between the several classes or types of such taxable property, specified in section one of this article [W. Va. Const, art. X, § 1], separate and apart from and in addition to all other taxes for all other purposes, sufficient to pay, annually, the interest on such debt, and the principal thereof, within, and not exceeding thirty-four years.
Id. (emphasis added). Third, “no debt shall be contracted under this section, unless all questions connected with the same, shall have been first submitted to á vote of the people, and have received three fifths of all the votes cast for and against the same.” Id.
The County Commission maintains that even if the tax increment obligations are debt [402]*402the Tax Increment Financing Act meets all of the conditions set forth in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8. More specifically, the County Commission asserts that the first condition relating to debt not exceeding five percent of the taxable property ascertained by the last assessment is satisfied because Boone County currently has no general obligation bonded indebtedness outstanding. If the County Commission’s assertion is true, which we will assume for purposes of this opinion, then the County Commission is correct in asserting that the first condition set forth in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 has been met.
Although the County Commission’s argument is unclear, it asserts that the second condition set forth in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 is “not implicated here, since the commitment of tax revenues is limited to the amount derived from existing regular levies applied to the additional assessed values resulting from the private project.” (citing W. Va. Code, 7-llB-4(a)(4), footnote omitted and emphasis added). The County Commission’s assertion ignores the clear language of the constitution. As noted above, W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 explicitly states that a county, city, or municipal corporation may not incur a debt unless it provides “for the collection of a direct annual tax on all taxable property therein, in the ratio, as between the several classes or types of such taxable property, specified in section one of this article [W. Va. Const. art. X, § 1], separate and apart from and in addition to all other taxes for all other purposes ” in order to pay off the debt, (emphasis added). The above language indicates that if a county increases its current debt or creates a new debt, it must also adjust its taxes accordingly in order to pay the principal of and interest on such debt. Generally, this is accomplished by adjusting the county’s levy rate. However, as is explicit in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8, if the levy rate is adjusted, the new rate must not exceed the maximum rate established in W. Va. Const. art. X, § 1. See also W. Va.Code, 11-8-6b [1953] (Sets the maximum levies a eounty commission may assess on each classification of property).
As previously explained, the Tax Increment Financing Act provides that ad valo-rem taxes collected as a result of the increase in the property value of the private project property are to be used to pay the principal of and interest on the tax increment obligation. Using revenue generated from the increased valuation of the private project property, however, does not satisfy the constitutional requirement that a “direct annual tax on all taxable property ... separate and apart from and in addition to all other taxes for all other purposes” be assessed to pay the principal of and interest on the increased or new debt. Instead, using revenue generated from the increased valuation of the private project property is using an existing tax to pay the principal of and interest on the increased or new debt. Therefore, the very fact the Tax Increment Financing Act commits tax revenues which are “derived from existing regular levies applied to the additional assessed values resulting from the private project” makes the act unconstitutional.17
Accordingly, we hold that the issuance of tax increment obligations pursuant to W. Va.Code, 7-11B-1, et seq. [1995], The Tax Increment Financing Act, is not in accordance with W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8 because W. Va.Code, 7-11B-1, et seq. [1995] does not provide “for the collection of a direct annual tax on all taxable property therein, in the ratio, as between the several classes or types of such taxable property, specified in section one of this article [W. Va. Const. art. X, § 1], separate and apart from and in addition to all other taxes for all other purposes” in order to pay the principal of and interest on such tax increment obligations and is, therefore, unconstitutional. We need not address the other issues raised by the Clerk since the Tax Increment Financing Act does not survive this initial constitutional barrier.
[403]*403III.
In conclusion, this Court held the following in syllabus point 2 of State ex rel. Encera v. City of Wheeling, 153 W.Va. 538, 170 S.E.2d 367 (1969): “A writ of mandamus will not issue unless three elements coexist— (1) a clear legal right in the petitioner to the relief sought; (2) a legal duty on the part of respondent to do the thing which the petitioner seeks to compel; and (3) the absence of another adequate remedy.” In the case before us, the County Commission has failed to meet the first of the three elements necessary for the issuance of a writ of mandamus. As we explained above, the Tax Increment Financing Act violates W. Va. Const. art. X, § 8. Thus, the County Commission does not have a legal right to continue the process outlined under the act in order to fund the county project. We, therefore, decline to issue a writ of mandamus.
Writ denied.