Daily Los Angeles herald., 1884-09-05
couxvy lIcEnsr TAX.
Opinion of District Attorney Stephen
M. white.

Opinion of District Attorney Stephen
M. white.
Petitions J. N. Gregory, Morford 4 Son,
Pomeroy 4 Mills, ct ais, to refund
License Taxes.
Sept. lst, 1884.
TO fhe Honorable Board Of Supervisors,
Los AHgeies County
Under an ordinance declared valid by
the Supreme Court, money has been
collected from the petitioners above re-
ferred TO, for license taxes. When the
collection was made, there Is no doubt
that the county was legally entitled to
the amounts received by the Collector
from all parties who made payment. Be
fore he finished collecting all Of those
license taxes, which were colectablc un-
der the ordinance, your honorable body
passed a resolution ostensibly repeating
the ordinance.
You have no power to grant the re-
quest Of the tax payers above referred
TO for two reasons:
First-The ordinance was never re.
pealed. l was never consulted as 10 the
method of calculating repeal. Had
| been called on | should have advised
against the course adopted. No one
ever heard Of an act of the Legislature
being repealed in any other way than by
AN act of the Legislature; nor can an
ordinance be repealed otherwise than by
an ordinance. 1 have no doubt. how
ever, that your order vacating the up
pointment OF the license tax collector Is
entirely valid, so that according to my
view you have now license ordinance
but no ono to collect the license tax.
Second-When the money was col.
lected it was legally ,lue to the county.
There was at that time q valid public
charge which was satisfied by making
the payment complained Of. The repeal
of the ordinance, II indeed II was ever
repealed, could not affect tho absolute
petitioners in this matter claim that at
the time of the supposed repeal of the
ordinance they bad paid their license
tax for the quarter commencing July
LIST, 1884. while other parties equally
liable, aud upon whom the Same obliga-
tions rested, have made no payment
whatever; and thus 1t is said that the
public burdens are not equally and just
ly distributed This Board, however,
cannot turn itself into Court of Equi
ty. Its powers are none others than
those conferred upon it by the Statutes;
and II by reason OF your previous action
injustice has been done, it can not now
he remedied.
when l give you law rs ! understand
it, and in this respect / can not OF
course be governed by policy or expe.
diency. This Board enacted the ordin-
ance, and also made the order by which
II was attempted TO repeal it, neither Of
which acts so far as they have been
operative, eau be recalled. There are
some things which, il done, cannot be
undone. II you can refund this money
you have the power to distribute the
funds now in the County Treasury TO auy
person to whom you see fit to donate
them.
Tho license tax money has not only
been paid into tho Treasury but has also
been expended. The moment it reached
the Treasurer's hands, 1t became abso-
lutely the property of the county, not
subject to divestiture by any act Of this
Board.
] shall certainly advise you as well as
the County Treasurer to refund no
money which has been legally paid to
the county, and there is no other course
open to you but to deny all the petitions
filed in the above matter.
Respectfully,
STEPHEN NJ. WHITE,
District Attorney.