Comstock v. County of Yolo

Belcher, C. C. This is an action to recover a sum of money which was paid by plaintiff, under protest, to prevent the sale of his property in satisfaction of an alleged illegal tax.

The appeal is by the plaintiff from a judgment in favor of defendant, and rests upon the judgment roll.

The tax in question was levied in pursuance of the supposed authority given by the County Government Act, which provides: “ The boards of supervisors in their respective counties have jurisdiction and power, under such limitations and restrictions as are prescribed by law, to lay out, maintain, control, and manage public roads .... within the county; to levy taxes upon the taxable property of their respective counties for all county purposes, and also upon the taxable property of ¡any district for the construction and repair of roads and highways and other district purposes; provided, that no tax shall be levied upon any district until the proposition to levy the same has been submitted to the qualified elec[600]tors of such district and received a majority of all the legal votes cast upon such proposition; and to do and perform all other acts and things required by law not in this act enumerated, or which may be necessary to the full discharge of the duties of the legislative authority of the county government.” (County Government Act, sec. 25, cl. 1, subd. 4, 13, 35; Statutes and Amendments to Codes, 1883, p. 304.)

On the twenty-eighth day of August, 1884, the board of supervisors of Yolo County, by a resolution duly passed and entered upon its minutes, ordered that a proposition to levy a tax upon the taxable property of road district No. 1 in that county, for the construction and repair of roads and highways therein, sufficient in amount to raise the sum of nine thousand dollars, and to be levied according to the value of the property as shown by the assessment roll of the county for that year, be submitted to the qualified electors of the district at an election to be held for that purpose on the thirteenth day of September, 1884. By the resolution, polling-places were duly fixed, inspectors and judges of the election were appointed, and the clerk of the board was ordered to issue a proclamation, under his hand and the seal of the board, calling an election in accordance therewith, and to cause a copy of such proclamation to be published in the Woodland Daily Democrat, a newspaper published in the county, and to be posted at each place fixed for holding the election, for at least ten days before the day of said election.