The record-union., 1892-08-30
THEY MEAN BUSINESS.
The City Trustees Moving Earnestly
in the Levee Matter.
An Important Legal Opinion on the
City's Powers-The Necessary
Ordinance IS Passed.

Uer0ay was DTlel. Ouiy ohO ih'POA'O
matter was to be considered, and that was
very important-the levees.
Shortly after Mayor Comstock called
the board to order Clerk Young read the
following legal opinion, touching the
levee question, from the law firm OF Nc
Kune Il George:
SACRAMENTO Call, August 27, 1892:
r. Honorable the Board OF Trustees Of the CIty
Of .Saerdnento: Referring TO Ordinance OF
your board, No. 297, passed August %, 1892,
and matters touching the submission OF cer-
tain questions therein mentioned 10 Vole OF
the electors OF this city for decision, we nave
considered the subjects propounded as thor
oughly as the limited time VIII permit. ana
we answer your several queries as 1olloWS:
Eirst-The ordinance above noted having
been passed by your board on the day the
same was INTRODUCED, contrary to practice
which has grown up in such matters to read
an ordinance at the session 1t was introduced,
and allow ii TO lie over till the next meeting
for final passage, is the ordinance legally
passed, or must 1t come up for further nearing
at our next session?
Answer-In such matters your powers as a
board are limited only by the Constitution,
general laws OF the State and Charter under
which you act, and by the further consldera-
tion that your ordinances must be reasonable.
Your Charter provides (Sec. 2, Subdivision y
that your board shall have power Ito make
ordinances not repugnant 10 the Constitution
OF the United States or of the State OF Cali
fOrnia." A rule of law in the construction OF
such provisions is, that unless the Charter
otherwise provides, such board can adopt Its
own procedure. There is no provision of the
Charter providing that an ordinance when
introduced must lie over TO the next meeting
for consideration, and whilst usually il will
be prudent to postpone the final vote TO an
other meeting, an ordinance passed without
auch postponement will not be- thereby, rem
dered invalid.
Second-Is the status of the present debt of
our city such that when compared with the
value of the property Of the city listed for tax
alton, a further sum ofS100, 900 can be legally
added to our present Indebtedness?
Answered. The value OF property listed for
taxation within the city must be the tax-rou
as corrected by the City Board OF Equaliza-
ton, equal to 81 5,363,175.
(b) The funded debt OF the city, excepting
bonds and coupons held by the Commission
ers appointed under the Act approved March
20, 1872, to provide for the redemption OF The
funded Indebtedness of the City of Sacra-
mento may be set down as follows:
Ropaid o,,onS 39999'o9900
Ad. Bonds for Street Improve
mem eilIs-.-..-..... SO,OOO
Ad. Bonds 1or Levee Improve
100000
Total..................... ...........S1 ,x49, 800
Section Five OF Chapter 261 OF the Statutes
OF California, approved March 10, 1883, as
amended by Act Of March IL, 1891 Statutes
OF 1891, page S4), provides that no city shall
incur an Indebtedness for public improve
ment which shall, IN the aggregate, exceed
10 per cent. of the assessed value OF all the
taxable real estate and personal property OF
property of this city is So, ,3o4, ,476 20.
(c) Can the bonds and coupons held by that
Commission be considered as indebtedness"
of the city within the true intent and mean
ing OF Section above mentioned.
The Act under which tina commission is or
ganized is entitled IAN Act TO provide for the
redemption OF The funded Indebtedness OF the
City OF sacramento"
II will be noted that the scope of the Act as
indicated in its title, is not to make, preserve
or continue the funded Indebtedness of the
city, but to redeem 1t.
The scope of the Act is to the like effect and
clearly indicates that the bonds, when pur-
chased, do not continue to be a charge against
the city.
l. The annual tax provided for in Section l
has been sraised from the taxpayers of this
city, not to preserve the bonds as debt to be
again paid for by taxation, but for the re-
demption of such bonds.
2. The money, when collected from the tax
payers, went into special fund to be known
as the Funded Debt Sinking Fund, and when
that money was used in taking up the bonds
OF the city, the bonds thus purchased as bonds
against the city became and were liquidated
3. The Act provides that the Commission
ers with the funds of the city shall purchase
funded Indebtedness, and thus il will be seen
that the Commissioners, as agents Of the city,
with the funds of the city, have made those
purchases and now hold the bonds as such
agents, and not in their own right.
4. 1t seems perfectly clear that all other
bonds of the funded debt of this CITY being
paid, those held by the commission are paid.
If they constituted debt against the city,
they could not be cancelled by the payment
of other bonds.
We might have contented ourselves with
giving your honorable board our opinion
merely, but we think it best to mention some
OF our reasons for advising you that the large
amount of bonds and coupons bought by the
commissioners of the funded debt with
moneys received by taxation for that purpose
are in no just sense a debt against the city
and we advise that your board Is not pre-
vented by any statutory enactment from add
ing another 100000 to the city debt if in
your opinion, the same is required
irH- nOT1 fof inc
necessary in such preliminary legislation and
might in the future become embarrassing to
you in taking further action.
We have prepared an ordinance which COM
plies, we think with the provisions of Act of
March 10, 1889, as amended, leaving out all
unnecessary matter.
We add a clause. marked I'd" to the ordi
nance framed by us out of abundant caution.
rather than because we think it necessary. and
than 100000.
Section of the Act of March 9, 1889. as
amended, provides that your honorable BODY
may, after the due publication of an ordinance
like the one we submit, 'calI special election
and submit TO the qualified voters of said
city, town or municipal corporation the pro-
position for the purpose set forth in the ordi-
nance and no question other than the incur
ring of Indebtedness for said purpose shall be
submitted"
The ordinance calling such special election
shall recie the objects and purposes for which
the Indebtedness is proposed to be incurred
the estimated cost of the proposed public i'm
provement, the necessity for such improve
ment. and that the bonds of the municipality
shall issue for the payment of the cost of such
Improvement as in such ordinance set forth
The validity of the action of your board in
the matter must rest largely, in case observed,
in the preparation of this second ordinance
and we direct your attention to the following
matters TO be observed in its preparation:
l. You should have plan of the contem-
plated improvements.
2. You should have estimates of the cost
thereof.
3. These should be prepared by a compe-
tent engineer, and we herewith submit form
for the appointment of the engineer with your
determination that he is competent.
4. The plans contemplated by the statute
mean an engineers statement by profile or
language or both, giving not only the Quan-
tity of The earth TO be put in place but the
place where ii is to be put with other matter
which enter into his computation of cost to
be included in his estimates
In addition to the usual entry in your min
uteS and Endorsements on the Ordinance
showing its passage, there should be appended
10 IL the approval of the President of the
Board of Trustees.
II You take the course suggested, Ordinance
No. 297 should be repealed
The new ordinance may be passed without
material delay.
The additional question submitted to us we
reserve for further consideration not having
will work no delay.
We take the liberty to suggest that the
plans, Specifications and estimates of the con-
templated improvements of our leVee system
should be completed at as early day as
practicable, so that the second ordinances prO-
yided for in the Act may be framed with
full knowledge of the things to be DONE
Your City Surveyor is prepared to take
action at once. Indeed. he has already many
data which will enter into his specifications
and when he completes his field work he can
give your body the necessary information to
enable you TO determine exactly what shall
be done in the premises. His specifications
may then be mace 10 conform to your de-
termination. MCkUNE s. GEORGE
Dated August 90, 1892.