Auston v. Wilson

BARNARD, P. J. The plaintiffs brought this action to enjoin the enforcement of a license tax ordinance of the city of Bakersfield. This ordinance imposes a license fee of $125 per quarter upon any person, firm or corporation operating a school of cosmetology or beauty culture in said city. Only two such schools were and are operated in that city, being those run by the respective plaintiffs herein. After a hearing [125]the court found that the classification of said business was reasonable and proper, that the license fee provided for is fair, just and reasonable, that no irreparable injury would be done to the plaintiffs, and that it is not true that the license thus imposed would compel the plaintiffs to discontinue the operation of their businesses. From the judgment entered this appeal was taken.

The appellants contend that this ordinance is arbitrary, unreasonable, exorbitant and oppressive because of its amount, and therefore void. They concede that the classification of this as a separate business is proper, and further concede that such ordinances are presumed to be constitutional and that every intendment is in favor of the findings of the trial court. In support of their contention that this license fee is unreasonable and oppressive they point out evidence in the record showing that a much smaller fee was imposed by this ordinance upon some seventeen other kinds of business, that a smaller fee is charged for the privilege of operating schools of cosmetology in some eight other cities in this state, and that one of these schools made a net profit of about $2,400 and $1900, respectively, in the two years next preceding the imposition of this license, and the other made a net profit of about $600 and about $1800 in the same years.

The appellants rely on certain cases from other jurisdictions, including Bryan v. City of Malvern, 122 Ark. 379 [183 S. W. 957] , Hirschfield v. Dallas, 29 Tex. App. 242 [15 S. W. 124], and City of Mankato v. Fowler, 32 Minn. 364 [20 N. W. 361], in which license fees of $600, $500 and $300 per annum, respectively, were held illegal and void. In the first and third of these cases the decision was based upon the fact that the legislative body was only authorized to impose licenses for the purpose of regulation under the police power and that it did not appear that any such amount was needed for that purpose. In the second of these cases it was held that the evidence was sufficient to show that the fee imposed would have the effect of prohibiting the business.