Los Angeles Brewing Co. v. City of Los Angeles

MARKS, J. This is an appeal from a judgment .permanently enjoining defendants from attempting to impose upon and collect from plaintiff a license tax upon its business of manufacturing beer and distributing beer, wines and liquors within the City of Los Angeles.

Plaintiff is a domestic corporation with its principal place of business in the City of Los Angeles, and prior to December 6, 1933, had been engaged in the business of manufacturing and distributing beer having an alcoholic content of more than one-half of one per cent and not more than three and [393]two-tenths per cent by weight which is equal to four per cent by volume. Prior to December 6, 1933, it had obtained licenses under the provisions of two excise tax laws passed by the legislature. (Stats. 1933, pp. 340 and 625.) On that date it obtained several licenses under the provisions of a third act of the legislature which then became operative. (Stats. 1933, p. 1697.) It then obtained from state authorities licenses permitting it to carry on the following businesses : “Off sale” beer and wine license, “off sale” license for liquor other than beer or wine, wholesale dealer’s license for liquor other than beer or wine, wholesale dealer’s license for beer and wine, brewery license, importer’s license, and proceeded to engage in such businesses. All these licenses were in full force and effect at the time this action was instituted.

The City of Los Angeles is and has been a municipal corporation organized under a freeholders’ charter which reserved to the City the control of its municipal affairs. (Stats. 1925, p. 1024 et seq., as amended.) The individual defendants are officers of the City of Los Angeles to which we will refer as the City.

Since 1926 there was in full force and effect the City’s ordinance No. 56,600, which provided for the licensing of certain professions, trades, callings, occupations and businesses within the City and imposing a license tax upon them. This ordinance contained a penal clause which provided penalties for those violating its terms. On August 22, 1933, the city council passed, and the mayor approved, ordinance No. 72,-975, which amended section 35 of the license ordinance and imposed license taxes on distributors of alcoholic liquors within the City. The pertinent terms of this amendatory ordinance and their effect prior to December 6, 1933, are sufficiently set forth and discussed in the case of Los Angeles Brewing Co. v. City of Los Angeles, bearing our Civil Number 1720 (ante, p. 379 [48 Pac. (2d) 65]), so those matters need not be repeated here. On December 5, 1933, the city council passed another ordinance again amending section 35 of the general license ordinance. This amendatory ordinance was approved by the mayor on December 6, 1933, and in the usual course would have gone into effect on January 5, 1934. This ordinance contained the following provisions: “Bach and every person conducting, managing and/or carrying on the business of selling or offering for sale alcoholic liquor in