The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1919-10-04
ATTORNEY GENERAL ON
1919 DAMAGE CLAUSE
Letter to Forrest County Sheriff
Explains Problem That is
Vexing Tax Collectors.

The following copy of letter to
| Sheriff HARRISON, of Forrest county,
has been received by Sheriff w. Ed.
Smith and handed to the Leader for
| publication:
Dear Sir
have your inquiry Of September
Goth, which is as follows:-
"As sheriff and tax collector of
Forrest County, will mail the tax
payers of this county statement Of
the amount due for the year 1913,
and state that after December 18th
+ of this year ten per cent damages
| will be added on all unpaid tax. Now,
will the next sheriff be able to say
to the taxpayers that he will not coli
lect the damage after he takes office
or will he be forced to collect this
damage and turn same into the coun-
OPINION.
Section 4314 OF the Code of 1906
provides that it is the duty of every
person assessed to pay his taxes to
the collector on or before the 18th
day of December, and under Section
4315 all taxes remaining unpaid on
mediately be collected by the collec-
tor by distress or otherwise, and un-
der Section ,2197. the collector is al
lowed ten per centum on all taxes
collected after the 18th day of De-
cember whether collected by distress
or otherwise. But, in constituting
this section our court has held that
the tax collector shall not be entitled
to such compensation even after the
18th day of December unless a resort
was made by him to distress or some
of the other statutory modes Of en-
forcing payment of delinquent tax
es. The tax collectors of the various
counties, however, have uniformly
elected not to do those things ne
cessary to collect the ten per centum
commission allowed them, and the
public has, therefore, fallen into the
general belief that If taxes were paid
by the first day of February no PEN
against them. The first day of Feb
ruary is the last day on which per-
son, may pay his taxes without be-
ing disqualified to vote, and the pub
lie has lost sight of the fact that 1t
is their duty to pay all taxes on or
before the 18th day of December.
The situation beginning January
S, 1920 will be entirely different for
the new salary law, being Chapter
102, Laws of 1915, will go into effect
on that date and Section of this
Act provides that all fees and COM
missions and other emoluments,
which the law now provides, may
be demanded, received and taken by
the sheriff and tax collector, chancery
clerk, circuit clerk, and tax assessor
shall hereafter be collected by each
respectively, but all of said commits
sions, fees, and emoluments shall
hereafter be paid by said officer re-
spectixely intos the county treasury.
1t is, therefore, the duty of the in-
coming tax collector to collect by dis
tress or otherwise this ten per cent
um commission from all persons pay
ing taxes after he goes into office,
and also against all persons paying
taxes after the 18th day Of Decem-
Der thereafter.
There is no obligation in this new
salary law requiring you and the
other tax collector, whose terms ex-
pire on January 4th, 1920, to col
lect this ten per centum commission,
and l suggest that you do not begin
proceedings by distress or otherwise
to do so, but conform to the previous
practice of tax collectors, at the same
time giving publicity to the provis-
ions of the new salary law so that
the public may not be required to
pay ten per centum additional to-
their already high taxes.
Yours very truly,
ROSS A. COLLINS,
General.
Jackson, Miss, Sept. 80, 1919.