Citations
- 24 Ohio St. 492
Full opinion text
Day, C. J.
The question in the case is, whether county commissioners are authorized by law to rebuild a bridge costing over $10,000, without first obtaining the consent of a majority of the electors of the county. The determination of the question depends upon the construction to be given to sections 2 and 3 of an act passed May 1, 1871 (68 Ohio L. 117), as amended April 26,1872 (69 Ohio L. 113), “ prescribing the rate of taxation for county, bridge, road, and township purposes.”
These sections of the act, so far as material, are as follows : The second section, as passed in 1871, authorizes county commissioners to levy annually a tax for road and bridge purposes, and to set apart such portion of the road tax as they may deem proper “to be applied to the building or repairing of bridges in their respective counties.” The •section contains the following additional provision: “ Provided, that in case an important bridge or bridgeSj belonging to or maintained by any county, shall be destroyed by any casualty, and the restoration thereof may be necessary for public accommodation, the- commissioners of said county may levy a special tax for that purpose, not exceeding one-half mill on the dollar of the taxable property of such county, the proceeds of which tax shall be applied solely to the restoration of such bridge or bridges.”
The third section provides that the “ county commissioners of any such county shall not levy any tax, or appropriate any money for the purpose of building public county buildings, purchasing sites therefor, or for lands for infirmary purposes, or for building any bridges, except in case