State ex rel. Board of Health v. Common Council

Citations

• 52 La. Ann. 1263

Syllabus

<p>Syllabus.</p> <p>1. The Board of Health of the city of New Orleans Is a part of the city government. The General Assembly has not conferred upon It an unrestricted power of determining for itself how much money should be appropriated for its purposes by the common council in any given year.</p> <p>There is no more ground for independent action on its part in this matter, than there would be for the Department of Police, or any other department of the city. The intention of the General Assembly was that the Board of Health and the council should act together for the attainment of any object in which they have a common interest.</p> <p>2. The fact that since the adoption of the city’s budget several of the items budgeted for therein have been adjudged illegal, and the amounts appropriated therefor have been liberated to be applied to other purposes, does not authorize a particular person to mandamus the council to appropriate the liberated amount for his benefit.</p> <p>This is a matter for the council to pass upon.</p> <p>3. Courts are not vested with power to frame a budget for the city, of New Orleans ; to assume the administration of its affairs, to constitute themselves, in effect, the mayor and common council, for the purpose of determining what are, or are not, reasonable allowances for the performance of particular duties.</p> <p>Those matters are confided by the law to the discretion and control of the corporate authorities. (Moore vs. The City of New Orleans, 32nd Annual, 726.)</p>