The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-04-22
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE
TERRITORY OF HAWAII


w. T ROBINSON. A CITIZEN AM
| TAXPAYER OF THE COUNTY OF
MAUI. TERRITORY OF HAWAII
AND ON BEHALF OF ALL AMI
/ SINGULAR THE CITIZENS AMI
TAXPAYERS OF SAID COUNTY, v
L. NJ BALDWIN. AS TREASURER
OF THE COUNTY OF MAUI, TER
/ RITORY OF HAWAII.
SUBMISSION OF AGREED FACTS
/ Argued March 27. 1908.
/ Decided April u, 1908
HARTwELL. c. J., WILDER AND
BALLOU, JJ.
Counties-bonds-l with re-
spect to taxable property.
| The limitation in Sec SIS of the Organic
Act Of bonded Indebtedness of a sub
division of the Territory to a certain
| percentage of the assessed value of
taxable property of such subdivision
refers to property taxable by such
| subdivision. and a county without
the power of taxation has no power
to issue bonds.
OPINION OF THE COURT BY
HARTWELL, G. j.
The parties seek an adjudication up
on the validity Of certain bonds Of the
County of Maui proposed to be issued
under Act 139 s. I. 1867 entitled .An
Act to Authorize an Issue of Bonds
by the County of Maui. in the sum
Of One Hundred Ten Thousand Dollars.
Under the Provisions of Act Sixty-F'ive
of the Session Laws of Nineteen Hun
dred and Seven
The agreed facts are mainly those
which are set forth or referred to in
Act 139. which was vetoed by the
governor and passed over the veto,
and in Act 65 s. L. 1907, entitled '.An
Act TO Enable the Counties to Provide
for County Loans" The governors
veto of Act 139 was based on the first
objection made by the plaintiff, name
~, that the provision in Sec. that
the act take effect upon the date of it's
approval by the President of the Uni
ted States was an unlawful delegation
of legislative power.
The other grounds on which the
plaintiff contests the issuing of the
bonds are in substance as follows:
That Acts s. and 139, authorizing coun-
charge upon county revenues, conflict
with Act 50 S. L. 1908. Act So s. L.
1905 and Act Al s. L. 1907, authorizing
territorial bonds and making their
payment a charge upon the consolida-
ted revenues of the Territory, by i'm
pairing the obligation of the territorial
bonds; that Act 65, authorizing the
treasurer of each county to issue bonds
of the county, does not authorize the
county to issue them; that the resolu-
ton of the board of supervisors, re-
ferred to in Act IS9, authorizing the
issue of bonds ''redeemabIe in not more
than five years and payable in not
more than fifteen years from date of
ISSUE" does not comply with Sec. 8
Of Act 65 requiring that no bonds be is
sued until a resolution authorizing the
issue thereof. setting forth amongst
other things 1.-The term of the proposed
bond ISSUE" shall have been passed
by the supervisors of the county and
confirmed by an act of the legislature
approving and permitting such pro-
posed issue.
Act SIS was approved and became law
April is. 1907, and it appears from Act
139 that the resolution of the board |
of supervisors making the bonds pay
able in not more than fifteen years |
from date of issue was adopted April
II. The agreed statement shows that |
March II, 1908, the board of supervisors |
passed a resolution definitely fixing the |
term of the bonds by making them |
payable in fifteen years from date Of |
issue.
The plaintiff also claims that the |
first resolution of the board of super
visors was invalid by reason Of the alb |
sence at its meetings of one of its |
members who had received sufficient /
notice of the meeting and was too III
to attend, but approved of the resolu- |
ton and would have voted for it If |
he had been able to be present. Final |
", the plaintiff contends that the bonds ,
We're not officially approved by the i
president by signing his name without
official designation to the following |
statement:
December Is, 1907. By virtue of the |
power in me vested by Section Fifty /
five of the Act of Congress approved !
April thirtieth, A. D. Nineteen Hun |
bred, (31 Statutes at Large, page 141), |
I hereby approve the incurrence of /
debt and issue of bonds in the sum OF /
one hundred and ten thousand dollars /
by the County of Maui, Territory of /
Hawaii. pursuant to authority confer /
red on said Maui County by Acts of |
the Legislature of said Territory of |
April is. 1907 (No. 65), and May l, |
1907 CNo. 1897"
Another possible objection to the /
issue of the bonds is suggested by the /
provision in Sec. 3, Act 139. Nothing
in this act contained shall be held in |
any manner TO authorize or empower
said county TO levy or impose taxes"
and the limitation placed by the Or
ganic Act, Sec. So. upon Indebtedness
which may be contracted "by or in /
behalf of the Territory or any political /
or municipal corporation or subdivision /
thereof" The limitation is thus ex- /
pressed: The total of such indebted
ness incurred in any one year by the
Territory or any subdivision shall not
exceed one per centum upon the as /
sessed value of taxable property Of the I
Territory or subdivision thereof. as the I
case may be. as shown by the last |
inn md