State v. Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans

161 So. 606, 182 La. 268, 1935 La. LEXIS 1594
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedApril 18, 1935
DocketNo. 33395.
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 161 So. 606 (State v. Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans, 161 So. 606, 182 La. 268, 1935 La. LEXIS 1594 (La. 1935).

Opinion

BRUNOT, Justice.

This is an appeal, by the relator, from a judgment rendered in favor of the respondent and against the relator, discharging the rule nisi issued in the case, denying the writ of injunction prayed for in the petition, and rejecting the relator’s demands.

It is admitted that the facts are correctly stated in relator’s brief, from whieh we quote the following:

“By the provisions of Act No. 166 of the Regular Session of 1934, approved July 13, 1934, the Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans, * * * was recognized and declared to be a body corporate. The Act authorized the Board of Administrators of the Charity Hospital to demolish certain of the present unsuitable buildings and to erect new ones in their place; to borrow money and issue bonds in an amount not exceeding eight million dollars ($8,000,000) for the aforesaid purposes; to pledge the fees, fines, penalties, charges, etc., already provided for by law; and, in addition, to pledge the funds dedicated to the use of the Hospital by the provisions of Act No. 8 of the Regular Session of 1932, as amended by Act No. 18 of the Regular Session of 1934, Act No. 25 of the First Extraordinary Session of 1934, p. 82, § 11; Act No. 20 of the Third Extraordinary Session of 19,34, and Act No. 10 of the First Extra Session of 1935, toward the payment of any amounts which might be due on principal and interest, and provide a reserve fund therefor until the said bonds and interest thereon were finally paid and discharged. The Board of Administrators were further authorized to enter into a contract with the Federal Emergency Administrator of Public Work's, or any board, body or agency succeeding to its powers and duties, to secure any loan and/or grant for the purposes above set forth.
“Pursuant to the provisions of the above mentioned acts, an executive meeting of the Board of Administrators was held on March 9, 1935, and, the entire Board being present, a resolution was adopted unanimously providing for the issuance of not exceeding Eight Million ($8,000,000.00) Dollars of bonds of the Board of Administrators of the Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans; fixing the form and details thereof; providing for the payment of said bonds and interest thereon; and the award thereof to the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works, or other agency, public or private, all in accord with the provisions of the above mentioned act”

The resolution of the Board of Administrators of the Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans is annexed to and made a part of relator’s original petition.

*273 There is also included in the pleadings a supplemental and amended petition, in which relator alleges as follows:

“That the purported dedication of $400,000.-00 per year which is to be paid from the revenues derived from the taxes levied by Act No. 8 of 1932, as amended, to be used toward the payment of principal and interest that may be due by said Hospital to the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works by reason of the contemplated loan, or to any purchaser Or holder of said bonds, has been eliminated by the provisions of Act No. 10 of the Special Session of 1935, and if said loan is completed the Hospital will not have sufficient revenues to meet the required payments, and that further the provisions of security would not enure to the benefit of any purchaser of said bonds.”

In disposing of the relator’s contentions, the learned judge of the civil district court has written a concise but accurate and carefully considered opinion, which ,we quote with approval:

“The Attorney General, in attempting to enjoin the Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans from entering into a contract with the Federal Emergency Relief Administration of Public Works, whereby the said Administration would undertake to lend the Charity Hospital approximately $8,000,000 for the purpose of demolishing certain buildings which now comprise the Hospital and erecting new ones in their place, and for which loan the Charity Hospital will issue bonds of its Board of Administrators, to be paid out of certain revenues dedicated to the Hospital by the State for that purpose, contends that the proposed demolition of the old hospital and construction of a new one and the proposed issuance and sale of bonds in connection therewith is ilegal, null and void.
“The basis of his contention is that Act No. 166 of 1934 and section 11 of Act No. 8 of 1932, as amended by Act No. 18 of the Regular Session of 1934, as amended by Act No. 25 of the First Extraordinary Session of 1934, and as amended by Act No. 10 of the First Extra Session of 1935 are unconstitutional.
“Act No. 166 of 1934 authorizes the Board of Administrators of the Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans to demolish certain of the old buildings and to erect new ones; the borrowing of the necessary money with which to accomplish this and the issuance of bonds in an amount not exceeding $8,000,000; the pledge of revenues and/or other funds and avails to secure the payment of the said bonds; and an agreement with the Federal Government for a loan and/or grant for the use of the Hospital. This act, in section 7, dedicates to the Board of Administrators of the Charity Hospital $400,000.00 per year from the proceeds derived from the collection of the Corporate Franchise Tax, levied by Act No. 8 of the Regular Session of 1932, and the Acts amendatory thereof.

“The first objection of the Attorney-General is that section 11 of Act No. 8 of 1932, as amended, makes a ‘dedication’ to the Board of Administrators for thirty years, in violation of article 4, § 1 of the 1921 Constitution. However, the constitutional restriction is that no appropriation shall be made for a longer term than two years does not apply here, because the Legislature has made no appropriation to the Board of Administrators *275 from the treasury of the State. The Act specifically provides that the money is to be paid by the Secretary of State directly to the Board of Administrators. Hence this is not an appropriation, but a dedication. Board of Hospital Administrators v. Richhart, 139 La. 446, 71 So. 735; Citizens’ Insurance Co. v. Hebert, 139 La. 708, 71 So. 955.

“In regard to the second contention of the Attorney Generali, that Act 166 violates article 4 of section 2 of the 1921 Constitution in that it authorizes the Board of Administrators to incur a debt on behalf of the State, the jurisprudence is settled that bonds and debts of State Agencies, which are separate and distinct legal entities, are not debts or liabilities of the State. Caldwell Brothers v. Board of Supervisors of Louisiana State University et al., 176 La. 825, 147 So. 5; Board of Commissioners of Caddo Levee District v. Pure Oil Co., 167 La. 801, 811, 120 So. 373; Board of Commissioners of Tensas Levee District v. Earle, 169 La. 565, 125 So. 619; Munson v. Board of Commissioners of Atchafalaya Levee District, 43 La. Ann. 15, 8 So. 906; Excelsior Planting & Manufacturing Co. v. Green, Tax Collector, 39 La. Ann. 455, 459, 1 So. 873.

“The contention that Act No.

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161 So. 606, 182 La. 268, 1935 La. LEXIS 1594, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-charity-hospital-of-louisiana-at-new-orleans-la-1935.