Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-04-12

The quarterly tenn OF our County court II
now in session. Jud gr Page presiding. he
GRAND Jury summoned at tins term found eight
indictments against AZ many persons.
On MnG.l;y TN. tunrt appointed VI. ".
Gilbert I.arllr surveyor for th!> county. II"
accepted the office.
Mr. &. NJ Ca>,lclpan'S flock Of sheep Wa
attacked by dogs one night last week and s"Ine
twelve ewes and aulb, were destroyed.
Exenpiion OF Manuf;.ctorses from
Taxation.
The following opinion of +. /. Smith, jr,
Corporation Attorney, upon the act to exempt
from city taxes for II term Of year,
Wa ordered to be published at the last meeting
Of the City Council:
To the Honorabks City Co" cly At .r"nfr"
am in receipt OF III" resolution introduced
in the Common Council, entitled AN act |"
promote and encourage manufactures IN thrctE
of Alexandria" upon which my opinion IS de-
sired By section first Of this nc. it IL provided,
that on and after the passage Of this act. any
person, firm or corporation, that shall establish
any manufacturing business, WITHIN ell! liz q!
this city shall Dc exempt from All taxation "t
the part Of the city, tor the reri"d OF ten year.
from. the passage of this act BY artc.c ten sc
ton one Of the Constitution of the State, nov III
force, the following PROVISIONS made with refer
rnce TO taxation hy State, county and c0rpnra."
bodies and rs this i the fundamental Iaw"i oar
State it furnishes the fu.e By winch IL guide ttr
present enquiry: 'TaXltlon rAc"ptaS Hereinafter
provided, whether Imposed BY the State county,
or corporate bodies, shall he equal and uniform,
and All properly, b III real and personal. shall be
taxed III prop"rti IN toits value I" b"aScer;alncd
NJ prescribed by law No one species f property,
from which tax may bc collected, shalt be ;aXct
higher than any other species OF property al
equal value By section third OF the same ar
ticlc--"The Legislature luay exempt all proper
" used exclusively Tor State, county, municpL,
benevolent, charitable, educational and religious
purposes" 50 that 1t appears the property
sought by the resolution to be exempted trrm
t.xution, does not fall within the exemption.
speciticd in section three. We are then Referred
to section ne for a solution 81 this question. BY
this last mentioned section direct lln'tato on Is
placed upon the TAXING power; Ut State, county
and corporate bodies. Does 1t so limit the an
thurity Q: the City Cuuntil OF AlcXandria n L
prevent its making the exemption proEidcd l"v
bv tn, resolution? liitGocS, then such Il res".u-
ton would be repughant IL the S,a.e T. n.ttu-
ton, and consequently void The conStitut 'on"i
requirement of equality and uniformity only cX-
tends to such objects III taxation IL the leGlsa-
,ure shall determine To be properly subject IT,
the burden The power u determine the persons
and the objects u be taxed is trusted exclusively
to the Legislative department.: bat over AL those
the buruen must BE- spread, or 1t vii! be uncqual
and unlawful as to those VII" are selected I"
Limitation. page jl5; Weeks vs.. milwaukee,,
18th Wisconsin, 434
Now if the resolution exempted ~ manuac-
turing interests; not only those to be-, hut ais"
those which have been est"b!ishei from taxa
ton; and the requirement of equality and uni
tornty was the only one in the C"nsttuti,,t,
then the resolution would be in harmony with
the Constitution Bnl neither Of these lnc;> cN
isl The resolution attempts /" nj the buT'icn
from the >h uderS OF some, ana lca\ II uD"n
Il II
requirement Of equality and uniformity, pr"-
vidcS. tint n propcrtv b"h r'"1 and rer>"nu!.
shall he taxed IN proportion 10 IL value ~
takes any discretion to the >ul"c,s Of taNatl"n
entirely from under The control ot the legislative
department Of our State and municipal govern
menlS and dive>ts them Of tie power o. d"t"r;n-
i:.ing upon what property, and n what proper
ton the burden siIali hc laid. This section, al
the Coz siitution must be accepted II nf,tdins
the governing principe for all laws made with
reference Ia taxation or local. 4 III"
que. tions involved here, have been passed upon
by the highest Courts Of several States OF the
mon, | embrace in this document extract,
from some OF the reported 'as"-. In the case al
Hill vs. IIlgdon, 9TH Ohio Reports, n. S.)pAg"
24G the Court say BY tue positive terms al
ti"n laws >hal h PASSED taxing, by unitortu
rule all moneys, etc. ard ais" All real and p"'
sonul property, according u It's true va!u" ~
money In the case of the city OF Llnrav!!,r
vs. Richards, decided Al the present term, ~
have held, that THIS section Is equally applicable"
to- and furnishes lhc governing principle t"r all
laws lcvying taN"S for general revenue wh:thrr
for State, county, township or corporation par
pos u.s. and that IL r,nluIrc> II uniform ral' per IL
/" bG levied upon all property, according /" At
true value in money, wtthlm the limits "i the
State, or the head subdivision for which th,.
revenue i: collected The General Assembly /.
no longer invested with the discretion u app"r-
item the fax. an IL determine upon what prop
erty; and ia What proportion the burden shall
be- laid. Aunliorm rate per ~ must he levied
upon all property subj 1t to taXa.l"n """rdI's
t, it, true value III in"n'y, :" that MI may bear
All equal buruen.
ON Trustees w Mcdonnell, Reported l:!'E
Illinois, page al; ''lh. Constitution Of the Stat"
expressly declares that the mode OF lcvying
tax shall be- by valuation, so that every p"r-"n
and corporation shalt pay Il tax III proportion /"
the value of his or her property. Under thu
provision the Leg.l ,ture would have no power
to exempt from taxation one species Of PERSONAL
while it collected II Tux from another,
within the same jurisdiction, and 1t is never L.
be presumed that the Legislature intended /"
pass a law which should b"c 'ntrary t" III" C"n-
sttutiou either in its letter or >pirit. And IN
o. Kane vs. Treat e. II =, 18th Illinois, page IG --
"By our Constitution, the principle Of equality,
based upon valuation, i adopted ~ tn" rutr
governing the levy and collection of taxes. Art
}, section =, State Constitution. By the 5Lh Sec
corporate authorities of ccurtlcs, town>hip-
school districts. cities, towns and Villages, may
be vested with power to assess AID collect taxes
for corporate purposes such taxes t" b" UNIFORM
in respect to persons and property within tn.
Jurisdiction OF the bod ~ imposing the same. And
the Genera Assembly shall require thata'i prop
erty within the limits of municipal corporations
belonging to individuals shall be taxed for Ia"
payments of debts contracted under al: hprty %!
law That the city Of L,Sal'e is within, and n
much part Of the town of 1.aSale, rs the latter
is part of the county will not be controversial.
The city. although u municipal corp ration, !,
undcniaby part of the mum cpal corporation
of the town Of LnSale and is within lts Jurs .lc-
ton That II rond tax itunoscd by the town, un-
der the law authorizing i, is tax for corporate:
purposes is equally true The construct on AMI
i ecping in repair the roads Of the town i one 81
the objects of the creation of these bodies, a.I
the tax cannot be Justly said to be for any other
than II corporate purpose. 1t then follows that
# it were the design Of the Legislature to c1empl
The inhabitants Of the city from this commot.
burden, by this enactment, it was repugnaatr
he Constitution, and i imperative and void.
The town auLhoritie, therefore had the light l.