Citations
- 97 Cal. 318
Full opinion text
Temple, C.
This appeal is from a judgment of the superior court of Los Angeles County annulling an order made by the common council of the city of Los Angeles sitting as a board of equalization.
The judgment was rendered in a proceeding under a writ of review, issued upon a petition and the affidavit of John Milner, the cashier of the plaintiff, a corporation doing a general banking business at Los Angeles. No return to the writ was made; but it was stipulated that “ the said petition and the matters stated therein shall be treated and considered as the certified transcript of the record and proceedings of the city council sitting as a board of equalization in the matter of the assessment complained of.”
This stipulation is not altogether satisfactory. Questions raised upon such a proceeding are to be determined by an inspection of the record, and, in general, not upon pleadings or evidence. It is perfectly manifest that many matters stated in the petition were not, and could not have been, in the records of the board of equalization. The only course open to us would seem to be to regard only those matters as transcripts of the record which are stated to be such, or are such orders as were required to be entered in the minutes of the board. For instance, the petition set's forth what petitioner claims was the evidence taken before the board.’ It is not stated that this evidence is set out in the minutes of the board, and the law did not require it to be done. We are not bound to consider this evidence as something apparent upon the face of the record;
The proceeding before the board was taken for the purpose of ordering the assessor to add certain property to the assessment roll, and an objection is made that the city of Los Angeles has not power to assess, levy, or collect taxes, because the legislature has not granted such authority by a general law, as required by the constitution. This question was decided adversely to respondent in the recent case of Security Sav. Bank v. Hinton, ante, p. 214, and need not be again considered.
The petition shows that petitioner duly made and returned-to the city assessor a list of all the personal property which was in its possession or under its control on the first Monday of March, 1891; that all its personal property, except mortgages, at that date subject to assessment for city taxes were, money $21,465.33, vaults and safe $4,000; that the city assessor listed and assessed to petitioner, money on hand $21,465.33, solvent credits unsecured $2,774, vaults and safe $4,000; that the city council, sitting and acting as a board of equalization August 5, 1891, ordered notice to be given petitioner to show cause, August 12, 1891, before the board, why its assessment of solvent credits should not be increased from $2,774 to $275,000. The notice given was in writing, as follows: —
et Los Angeles, Cal., Aug. 5, 1891.
61 To Farmers’ and Merchants’ Bank, John Milner, Cashier.
“ You are hereby notified to appear before the board of equalization of the city of Los Angeles on Wednesday, the twelfth day of August, 1891, at ten o’clock, a. m., in the council chamber in the city hall, and show cause why your assessment on solvent credits should not be increased from $2,774 to $275,000.
By order of the board of equalization.
“ Freeman G. Teed,
“ City Clerk, and Clerk of said Board, “ By Geo. F;. Seif, Deputy.”
That no other notice was given, but petitioner appeared before the board, by the affiant, and submitted itself to the board, answering such interrogations as were propounded to it, or to the affiant, touching its property. What is averred to be the testimony is set out in the petition, and it is alleged that no other evidence was taken at such hearing. It is claimed that this testimony does not show or tend to show that the petitioner had any solvent credits, or any which had escaped assessment. Nevertheless, the board made and entered in its minutes the following order, which it is claimed the board had no jurisdiction or power to make: “The Farmers’ and Merchants’ Bank, having been notified to appear on August 12th to show cause why its assessment for solvent credits should not be increased from $2,774 to $275,000, and John Milner, cashier of said bank, having appeared in response to said notice, was sworn, and testified in regards the assets of said bank; and it appearing to the board that said bank has returned a false and incomplete list of its taxable property, and that said bank should be assessed for solvent credits to the amount of $270,774, and that it has escaped assessment for solvent credits to the amount of $268,000, on motion of Mr. Tufts it is ordered that the assessor be directed to add to the assessment of said bank for solvent credits the sum of $268,000, and assess the bank for solvent credits in the total sum of $270,774.” That the assessor did, in pursuance of the order, enter upon the assessment roll an addition to the assessment of petitioner the sum of $268,000, solvent credits, making the total of solvent credits assessed to petitioner $270,774, instead of $2,774, as listed and returned by the assessor. ;
1. The first point made upon the record is, that it is j apparent therefrom that the proceeding was n