Baldwin v. Ellis

Foote, C. —The plaintiff instituted this action with the object in view of recovering a sum of money alleged to have been illegally exacted from him, as taxes, by the defendant as tax collector of Los Angeles County.

A general demurrer was interposed to each of the alleged causes of action set out in the complaint, and being sustained, and the plaintiff declining to amend his pleading, judgment passed for the defendant, and from that this appeal is prosecuted.

The demurrer was properly sustained to the second cause of action set out at folio 75 of the transcript; for the reason that the action was brought against the defendant as tax collector, and not as an individual, and therefore in order that a judgment could properly be obtained against him as such, the allegations in that statement of the cause of action should have averred the fact of his being such officer. There is an allegation of the necessary kind in the firshcause of action, but none in the second. These two must stand or fall by reason of their several recitals, and in the absence in one of any special reference to anything contained in the other, cannot be aided by anything save what is in itself averred. (Haskell v. Haskell, 54 Cal. 262.) The main question involved in the case is this: Has or not the state board of equalization the lawful right to increase or lower the assessment roll of the county of Los Angeles so as to affect taxes for county purposes ?

The appellant's contention is, that it has no such power granted by law; that its rightful action affects the said roll only so far as state taxes are concerned.

[497]By section 8650 of the Political Code, the county assessor must prepare an assessment book under the direction of the state board of equalization.

Under section 3655, same code, it is made his duty to transmit a summary of his assessment to that board on the first Monday in July of each year.

The board of supervisors of each county, acting as a board of equalization, must meet on the first Monday in July in each year, and must perform its duties as such, as prescribed in section 9, article 13, of the state constitution, which were accurately defined in Wells, Fargo, & Company v. Board of Equalization, 56 Cal. 198, speaking of the powers thereby granted to county and state hoards, as follows: “And conferring on the local boards, the county boards, the power only to increase or lower the individual assessments upon the roll of their respective counties, and thus to make them equal with each other, and equivalent to the value in money of the property assessed.”