Williford v. Board of Supervisors

138 So. 2d 299, 243 Miss. 304, 1962 Miss. LEXIS 348
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 26, 1962
DocketNo. 42299
StatusPublished

This text of 138 So. 2d 299 (Williford v. Board of Supervisors) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Williford v. Board of Supervisors, 138 So. 2d 299, 243 Miss. 304, 1962 Miss. LEXIS 348 (Mich. 1962).

Opinion

Rodgers, J.

This is a bond validation case. It came to this Court from the Chancery Court of Perry County. The Chancellor entered an order on the 7th day of November 1961, validating the bonds of Perry County in the sum of $200,000 for the purpose of building roads, over the objection of H. H. Williford, a taxpayer. The objector has appealed.

On May 1, 1961, the Board of Supervisors of Perry County, Mississippi, unanimously adopted a resolution declaring the intention of the Board to issue bonds of Perry County in the maximum principal amount of $200,000 to raise money for the purpose of constructing state-aid roads in the county. The resolution provided that the bonds mature annually over a period not to exceed twenty years from the date of issue, and that the amount needed to retire such bonds, principal and interest, in annual installments should not exceed sixty-five percentum of the funds allocated to Perry County during the preceding year.

The foregoing- resolution determined that the allocation to Perry County of state-aid construction funds from gasoline sales tax during the preceding fiscal year was $90,906.22, and that sixty-five percent thereof would amount to $59,098.04, and that the amount to retire the proposed bonds, principal and interest, in annual installments over a period of twenty years from the date of issuance was estimated to be $15,000 per annum, and that such sum did not exceed sixty-five percentum of the funds allocated to Perry County during the preceding-year.

Notice of their intention to issue the foregoing bonds was given by the Board of Supervisors in accordance [310]*310with. Chap. 196, Laws 1960. There was no petition filed requesting the Board to hold an election by the qualified voters of Perry County, and the Board proceeded to enter an order directing the issuance of the bonds, and that notice be given to prospective bond buyers, and asking that sealed bids be received. On the date given in the notice, the bids were duly opened and it was determined that Scharff & Jones, Inc. and Associates were the best bidders and accordingly their bid was accepted. The opinion of the State’s Bond Attorney, a certificate of “non-litigation”, and a certified copy of all of the proceedings before the Board were filed with the Clerk of the Chancery Court. Notice was then given to the Chancellor who fixed a date for a hearing on the bond validation proceedings, and directed that notice be given to the taxpayers. No objection had been made to any of the proceedings up to this point, but at this time, Mr. H. H. Williford, a taxpayer of the county, appeared and filed a written objection of the validation of the proposed road construction bonds. The chancellor heard the objection and entered the above-mentioned decree validating the bonds, from which decree appeal was made to this Court.

The appellant-taxpayer assigns only one ground in his assignment of errors, on which he seeks to reverse this case, namely: “The Chancellor committed * * * error in his decree * * * validating the State-Aid Road Bonds of Perry County, dated August 1, 1961.” The appellant argues, however, that (1) the Board of Supervisors of Perry County, Mississippi, went beyond the jurisdiction and authority conferred upon them by the Laws of 1960, Chap. 196; (2) and it is said that the Board of Supervisors modified the final terms of the sale of the bonds from the terms stated in the first notice because the Board gave notice that the bonds would be sold and retired from the total net gallonage of gasoline taxes allocated to the county. In the notice of approval [311]*311of the acceptance of the bid, the resolution of approval for the sale of the bonds provided that said funds would be “irrevocably pledged” for the payment of the bonds as long as they remain outstanding.- It was argued that this was erroneous because the Board had no authority to “irrevocably pledge” the funds granted to the county by the State for the purpose of building roads and the order attempting to do so was utterly void.

The final resolution here complained of contains the following paragraph: “Section 1. That bonds of the County of Perry, State of Mississippi, payable, both principal and interest, by the State Treasurer of the State of Mississippi primarily from the funds allocated to such county under the provisions of Section 10127, Mississippi Code, Annotated, as now or hereafter amended, which funds or their equivalent are irrevocably pledged for the payment of these bonds so long as any remain outstanding * * *”

The language in the final resolution above-quoted was evidently used to satisfy the conditions set out in the written bid filed by Seharff and Jones, Inc., where it was stated: “This bid proposal is subject to the following conditions: * * * (2) A bond attorney of national reputation acceptable to us shall give a final unqualified approving opinion on such bonds, stating’ that for the payment of such bonds the funds allocated to this County, pursuant to the provisions of Section 10127 Mississippi Code Annotated, or their equivalent are irrevocably pledged by the State of Mississippi * * *” (Emphasis supplied)

The form of the bond proposed to be issued by Perry County is made a part of the final -resolution, and in the bond itself, the Board of Supervisors agrees and contracts as follows: ‘ ‘ This bond is issued by the County of--, pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 196, Laws of Mississippi, 1960, and is not a general obligation of said County. Both principal and [312]*312interest are payable by tbe State Treasurer of tbe State of Mississippi primarily from funds allocated to such county under the provisions of Section 10127 Mississippi Code Annotated, as now or hereafter amended, which funds or their equivalent are irrevocably pledged for the payment of this bond and interest thereon so long as this bond or any of the bonds of the series of which it is a part shall remain outstanding.”

The question for determination is, does Chap. 196, Laws of 1960, give Perry County the authority to pledge the funds directed to be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of Perry County known as “Division of State-Aid Road Construction” under Sec. 10127, Miss. Code 1942, Rec., so that these funds “or their equivalent are irrevocably pledged by the State of Mississippi!” We have reached the conclusion that this question will have to be answered in the negative for the following reasons:

The Legislature passed a sales tax law in 1932. The statute was reenacted, with minor changes, two years later as Chap. 119, Laws of 1934. Section 13 (a) of Chap. 119, Laws of 1934, same being Sec. 10127, Miss. Code of 1942, was amended by Chap. 391, Laws of 1950, and a part of this tax was earmarked for the purpose of building roads in the counties. The law here in question, Chap. 196, Laws 1960, was also made effective on July 1, 1960. The effective date of these two laws, last above-mentioned, is important because it will be observed that the Legislature reserved the right to amend Sec. 10127 in the following language:

“Section 4. All such bonds shall be payable, both principal and interest, primarily from the funds allocated to such county under the provisions of section 10127, Mississippi Code, Annotated, as now or hereafter amended.” (Emphasis supplied.) The bonds authorized by Chap. 196, Laws 1960, are not state bonds nor state obligations. The pertinent part of the first section of [313]*313this law is in the following language: “Section 1. The board of supervisors

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Bluebook (online)
138 So. 2d 299, 243 Miss. 304, 1962 Miss. LEXIS 348, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williford-v-board-of-supervisors-miss-1962.