Board of Supervisors v. Jenks

Citations

• 65 Ill. 275

Syllabus

<p>1. Taxes—right to enjoin collection, on behalf of others. As each individual tax is a separate and distinct burthen, wholly disconnected from that of other persons, it follows that each individual has the legal right to contest the validity of the tax imposed upon him, but no tax-payer has the right to enjoin the collection of similar taxes imposed upon other persons for whom he is not agent, trustee, or acting in some other fiduciary relation.</p> <p>3. In order to avoid multiplicity of suits, many persons may join in exhibiting a bill to enjoin the collection of a tax upon their property, by becoming plaintiffs and parties to the record; but it can not be held that a litigiously disposed person may, on his own motion, file a bill in his own name, and on behalf of all other tax-payers of his county or township, and thus stop the collection of all the revenue within the locality.</p> <p>8. Same—constitutional limitation on the power of the legislature. Sec. 3 of Art. 9 of the constitution of 1848, which declares that the general assembly shall provide for levying a tax by valuation, to be ascertained by some person or persons to be elected or appointed in such manner as the general assembly shall direct, and not otherwise, is not a delegation of power to the general assembly, but a limitation on its power. It restricts the power and means of ascertaining the value of taxable property by requiring such value to be determined by persons elected or appointed under a law for that purpose.</p> <p>4. Same—legality of appointment of assessors underr special lam. Where, during a contest of an election for the removal of a county seat, the legis.lature passed a special act requiring the business of the county to be transacted at the place certified by the proper officers as having been determined the county seat, and requiring the board of supervisors to be convened at such place, and if all the assessor’s books should not have been then returned, directing the board of s