Baltimore & Ohio Railroad v. Koontz

Citations

• 77 Va. 698
• 1883 Va. LEXIS 106

Syllabus

<p>1. Constitution—Cotmties—Taxation—Railroads—County authorities are not authorized by the constitution of this state, independent of the action of the legislature, to assess railroad or other property for taxation and county levies upon it.</p> <p>2. Legislature—Counties—Taxation—Railroads.—By Acts i879-’8o, chapter 106, section 1, the legislature, for the first time, empowered the supervisors to levy a tax on the real estate of railroad companies, whose roads pass through their county, prescribing that such tax should be equal to the tax imposed upon other property for county and school purposes, and based upon the assessment per mile of the same property made by the state for its purposes.</p> <p>3. State .Assessment—County levy—Ultra vires.—For the purposes of state taxation for 1881, no assessment was made on railroads until September 28th, 1881, when the railroads in the county of S. were assessed by the board of public works at $15,000 per mile. Consequently the assessment at $5,000 per mile of those railroads, made July 25th, 1881, by the supervisors of that county, and the levy of taxes thereon for that year, was ultra vires and void.</p> <p>4. Idem—Idem—Subsequent assessment and levy.—But the assessment made April 17th, 1882, by the supervisors of S. county, of the railroads therein, at $15,000 per mile, and the levy of taxes thereon for 1881, was made in pursuance of law, and was valid.</p> <p>5. Board of Supervisors—Special meetings.—Acts i878-’9, chapter 56, section 4, provides for special meetings of the board; and chapter 58, section 6, directs the board at the meeting in July of each year, or as soon thereafter as practicable, to order a levy upon all property assessed with state taxes within the county.</p>