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its the exercise of the power to cases where such provision is made.

Ringling v. Hempstead, 113 C. C. A. 464, 193 Fed. 596; Milner v. Pensacola, 2 Woods, 632, Fed. Cas. No. 9,619; 1 Dill. Mun. Corp. 4th ed, § 169; Mt. Pleasant v. Beckwith, 100 U. S. 514, 25 L. ed. 699; Meriwether v. Garrett, 102 U. S. 472, 26 L. ed. 197; Broughton v. Pensacola, 93 U. S. 266, 23 L. ed. 896; Milner v. Pensacola, 2 Woods, 632, Fed. Cas. No. 9,619.

There is no language used in the act indicating a method of protecting creditors, nor any power expressly granted the new municipality from which can be necessarily or fairly implied the power to it to levy and collect taxes upon the indebted territory to pay its debts.

State ex rel. Worley v. Lewis, 55 Fla. 570, 46 So. 630; Liberis v. Harper, 89 Fla. 477, 104 So. 853; 28 Cyc. 1658; Moseley v. Tift, 4 Flà. 402; Ex parte Sims, 40 Fla. 432, 25 So. 280; Basnett v. Jacksonville, 19 Fla. 664; 2 Dill. Mun. Corp. 4th ed. §§ 763 et seq.

Messrs. J. M. Sapp, Ira A. Hutchison, and J. Ed. Stokes, for respondents:

In determining what powers are conferred upon a municipality we must consider as granted and conferred all powers that are fairly within the terms of the grant and are essential to the purposes of the municipality, and not in conflict with the particular powers expressly conferred.

Liberis v. Harper, 89 Fla. 477, 104 So. 853.

When a municipal corporation is created, the power of taxation is vested in it as an essential attribute for all the purposes of its existence, unless its exercise be in express terms prohibited.

United States v. New Orleans, 98 U. S. 381, 25 L. ed. 225; State ex rel. Clyde v. Bristol, 109 Tenn. 315, 70 S. W. 1031.

By creating a successor, ample provision was thereby made for the protection of the creditors of the municipal government abolished, giving them the right to enforce all remedies against the new succeeding corporation which existed against the old corporation.

McQuillin, Mun. Corp. § 314; Dill. Mun. Corp. § 336; Adams v. Minneapolis, 20 Minn. 484, Gil. 438; 28 Cyc. 176, ¶ B, 177, C; Mobile v. Watson, 116 U. S. 289, 29 L. ed. 620, 6 Sup. Ct.

Rep. 398; Broughton v. Pensacola, 9U. S. 266, 23 L. ed. 896; Olney v. Har vey, 50 Ill. 453, 99 Am. Dec. 530 O'Connor v. Memphis, 6 Lea, 730; Mt Pleasant v. Beckwith, 100 U. S. 514, 2 L. ed. 699.

Buford, J., delivered the opinior of the court:

Upon the relation of the attorney general, this court issued a writ of quo warranto requiring the respond ents to answer by what warrant or authority they claim to have, use, enjoy, exercise, and perform the functions, franchise, and powers of the offices of commissioners of the municipality of the city of Panama City in Bay county, Florida.

The respondents by answer claim authority to act as such municipal officers by virtue of elections held pursuant to chapter 11,678, No. 343, Laws of Florida, Extraordinary Session, November, 1925. The title and some pertinent sections of the act are as follows:

"An Act to Abolish the Present Municipal Governments of the City of Panama City, the Town of Millville and City of St. Andrews, in the County of Bay, and State of Florida, and to Establish, Organize and Constitute a Municipality to Be Known and Designated as the City of Panama City, Bay County and State of Florida, to Define Its Territorial Boundaries and to Provide for Its Jurisdiction, Powers and Privileges.

"Be it enacted by the legislature of the state of Florida:

"Section 1. (A) That the present municipal government of the city of Panama City, Bay county, state of Florida be and the same is hereby abolished.

"(B) That the present municipal government of the town of Millville, Bay county, state of Florida, be and the same is hereby abolished.

"(C) That the present municipal government of the city of St. Andrews, Bay county, state of Florida be and the same is hereby abolished.

"Section 2. That the municipality to be known and designated as the city of Panama City is hereby estab

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lished, organized and constituted in the county of Bay, state of Florida, the territorial boundaries being designated.

"Section 4. (a) That the title, rights, ownership of property, uncollected taxes, dues, claims, judgment, decrees, choses in action held and owned by the municipality of the city of Panama city, county of Bay, state of Florida, shall pass to and be vested in the municipal corporation hereby created and established to succeed such municipality. "(b) That the title, rights, ownership of property, uncollected taxes, dues, claims, judgments, decrees, choses in action held and owned by the municipality of the town of Millville, county of Bay, state of Florida, shall pass to and be vested in the municipal corporation hereby created and established to succeed such municipality.

"(c) That the title, rights, ownership of property, uncollected taxes, dues, claims, judgments, decrees, choses in action, held and owned by the municipality of the city of St. Andrews, county of Bay, state of Florida, shall pass to and be vested in the municipal corporation hereby created and established to succeed such municipality.

108 So. 836.)

"Section 5. That the ordinances of the former city of Panama City, Bay county, state of Florida, shall be and become the ordinances of the city of Panama City hereby organized and established until altered, amended, modified and repealed by the city commission of the said city of Panama City, hereby created and established.

"Section 6. The elective officers of said city shall be four commissioners and a commissioner at large, who shall also hold the office of mayor, all of whom shall be elected for the term of two years. The commissioner at large shall be elected by a majority vote of the qualified voters of the city .. commissioner shall be elected by as a whole voting. the qualified voters of each ward.

One

"Section 22.

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The enumer

ation of particular powers of this

charter shall not be held or deemed to be exclusive, but, in addition, to the powers enumerated herein amended thereby, or appropriate to the exercise thereof, the city shall have and may exercise all other powers which under the Constitution and laws of Florida, it will be competent for this charter to specifically enumerate.

"Section 160. Nothing in this act contained, or the abolition of the municipality of the town of Millville or of the municipality of the city of St. Andrews or of the city of Panama City or the consolidation of said municipalities as the city of Panama City, shall in any wise affect any franchise or grant heretofore made or granted to any person, or corporation for the construction, operation and maintenance of telephone systems, electric light and power plant or system and/or gas, lighting, heating and power plant or system and/or supplying said municipalities respectively and the inhabitants thereof with telephone service, electricity or electric current and/or gas, for heat, light, power and mechanical purposes and uses, or any contract between the holder of such franchise and either said municipalities of Panama City, Millville or St. Andrews or any contract between the holder of any such franchise and any private person or corporation, or the rate or rates charged or permitted to be charged for gas, electricity or electric current for heat, power, light or other purpose.

"Section 160a. That any and all franchises and grants of privileges. of any kind heretofore granted by the town of Millville, city of Panama City, or city of St. Andrews, or by any municipality which has been succeeded by any of them now outstanding and held by any person, firm or corporation is hereby approved, ratified and confirmed by the city of Panama City hereby organized, and all the rights of the

holders and owners of said fran

chises, grants and privileges and also all the obligations of the said holders and owners shall hereafter

hold and continue as to the territory embraced in the municipality which granted the said franchise, grant or privilege to use the same effect as if the said municipality which granted the same had not been succeeded by the city of Panama City hereby organized, and the city of Panama City hereby organized shall perform and carry out to the holders and owners of said franchises, grants and privileges every duty and obligation that the municipality which granted the same is bound to do.

"Section 195. All assessments and liens for sidewalks, paving or other improvements, and all certificates of indebtedness, improvement certificates, and all collections of the same heretofore made and obtained by the corporation of the city of Panama City, and all contracts, bonds, and obligations of the city of Panama City, are hereby legalized and declared valid and of full force, virtue and effect and binding in law or in equity, and shall be collected by the city of Panama City and used for the benefit of that portion of said city formerly constituting the city of Panama City.

"(a) All assessments and liens for sidewalks, paving or other improvements, and all certificates of indebtedness, improvement certificates and all collections of the same heretofore made and obtained by the corporation of the town of Millville and all contracts, bonds and obligations of the town of Millville, are hereby legalized and declared valid and of full force, virtue and effect and binding in law or in equity, and shall be collected by the city of Panama City and used for the benefit of that portion of said city formerly constituting the town of Millville.

"(b) All assessments and liens for sidewalks, paving or other improvements, and all certificates of indebtedness, improvement certificates and all collections of the same heretofore made and obtained by the corporation of the city of St. Andrews and all contracts, bonds and obligations of the city of St. Andrews are hereby legalized and de

clared valid and of full force, virtue and effect and binding in law or in equity, and shall be collected by the city of Panama City and used for the benefit of that portion of said City formerly constituting the city of St. Andrews."

Other pertinent sections of the act will be hereafter quoted and construed.

The Constitution of Florida contains the following:

"No bill of attainder, ex parte facto law nor any law impairing the obligation of contracts, shall ever be passed." Const. § 17, Declaration of Rights.

"The legislature shall" have power to "establish a uniform system of county and municipal government. which shall be applicable, except in cases where local or special laws are provided by the legislature that may be inconsistent therewith." Const. § 24, art. 3.

"The legislature shall authorize the several counties and incorporated cities or towns in the state to assess and impose taxes for county and municipal purposes, and for no other purposes, and all property shall be taxed upon the principles established for state taxation. But the cities and incorporated towns shall make their own assessments for municipal purposes upon the property within their limits." Const. § 5, art. 9.

A demurrer to the answer presents an issue challenging the validity of chapter 11,678, Laws of Florida, upon the essential ground that the enactment does not contain sufficient provisions, as required by the Constitution, for the protection of the creditors of the municipalities that are abolished by the act.

It appears that each of the three abolished municipalities has large bonded and other indebtedness still outstanding.

The constitutional provision referred to is as follows: "The legislature shall have power to establish and to abolish municipalities, to provide for their government, to prescribe their jurisdiction and powers,

(-- Fla. 108 So. 836.) and to alter or amend the same at any time. When any municipality shall be abolished, provision shall be made for the protection of its creditors."

See 8, art. 8, Constitution of Florida.

By the enactment of chapter 11,678, the legislature abolished the city of Panama City, the town of Millville, and the city of St. Andrews in Bay county, Florida, and treated and established in lieu thereof, and as successor to each of the three municipal corporations, one corporation under the name of the city of Panama City, the corporate limits of which include every part of each of the abolished municpalities, and also some additional territory. Section 98 of the act provides as follows: "The city of Panama City shall have power to levy taxes each year for the ordinary purposes of the municipality. In addition to the foregoing levy, said municipal corporation may annualy levy and collect a special tax for permanent improvements and the adornment, paving and improvement of the streets and public grounds of the city and the propery of the municipality beyond the limits of the city. Said corporation may also levy and collect a special ax annually not to exceed three mills upon the real and personal property in the said city, to be assessed and collected as other municpal taxes are assessed and collected for the purpose of giving publicity o the advantages, facilities and productions of Panama City, and the section surrounding, and for the entertainment of its visitors. Said Corporation shall also levy and collect annually upon its taxable property aforesaid, such sums as may be necessary to pay interest upon the ndebtedness of the city and for the maintenance of its properties and public works, and to create a sinkng fund for the payment of such ndebtedness as may be incurred; and to pay the bonds of the city already issued or any bonds which may be issued in accordance with

law; to pay any judgment against the city and such sum as may be commanded to be levied by any mandamus legally issued against the city."

Section 185 of the act provides as follows: "All general laws of the state applicable to municipal corporation, now or which may hereafter be enacted, and which are not in conflict with the provisions of this charter or with ordinances and resolutions hereafter enacted by the city commission, shall be applicable to this city; provided, however, that nothing contained in this charter shall be construed as limiting the power of the city commission to enact any ordinance or resolution in conflict with the Constitution of the state or with the United States."

Section 1903, Revised General Statutes of Florida, provides as follows: "Tax for Bonds.-It is hereby made the duty of the city council to assess and collect such taxes from the citizens and upon the property within the city, as shall be necessary for the payment of interest upon, as well as the final payment of said bonds: Provided, however, that all property shall be taxed upon the principle established by state taxation."

In one of the general laws of the state applicable to municipal corporations is § 1832, Revised General Statutes of Florida, which provides as follows: "Powers of Corporation. The provisions of the previous sections having been complied with the persons therein named, and their successors, shall thereupon constitute and become a body corporate with full power and authority to take and to hold property, real. personal and mixed, and to control and dispose of the same for the benefit and best interest of the corporation aforesaid, to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, and to do all such other acts and things as are incident to corporate bodies."

It is contended by the relator that

the former city of Panama City, city of St. Andrews and the town of

Millville, as abolished, each had a

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Section 196 of the act provides as follows:

"That the territorial boundaries of the city of Panama City as constituted on the date of passage of this act, and all property included therein shall be held responsible for, and be bound for all contracts, judgments, and debts now held against said city and no other territory or property included herein and covered by this act shall be responsible for such contract, judgments and debts, nor shall any tax ever be levied upon any of such other territory or property for the payment of such contracts, judgments and debts.

"(a) That the territorial boundaries of the town of Millville as constituted on the date of passage of this act, and all property included therein shall be held responsible for, and be bound for all contracts, judgments and debts now held against said city, and no other territory or property included herein and covered by this act, shall be responsible for such contract, judgments, and debts, nor shall any tax ever be levied upon any of such other territory or property for the payment of such contracts, judgments and debts.

"(b) That the territorial boundaries of the town of St. Andrews as constituted on the date of the passage of this act, and all property included therein shall be held responsible for and be bound for all contracts, judgments and debts now held against said city, and no other territory or property included herein covered by this act, shall be responsible for such contracts, judgments, and debts nor shall any tax ever be levied upon any of such other territory or property for the payment of such contracts, judgments and debts."

Section 197 of the act provides as follows: "That upon this charter taking effect all of the property, rights and choses in action of every kind and character on said date belonging to either the town of Millville, city of Panama City, or city

of St. Andrews heretofore existing shall become and be the property, rights and choses in action of the city of Panama City hereby organized and created."

Thus we have a case in which it is shown that three municipalities have been abolished, and one municipal corporation established in lieu thereof. The powers conferred upon the corporation by the legislature of Florida are:

To succeed to all the property of the abolished corporations. Section 197 of the act.

Section

To sue and to be sued. 185 of the act, together with § 1832, Revised General Statutes of Florida.

To assess and collect taxes. Section 1903, Revised General Statutes of Florida, together with § 98 of the act.

To bind the property within the abolished corporations for the payment of the respective obligations of such abolished corporation. Section 196 of the act.

The act also provides all necessary machinery for the assessment and collecting of taxes for all municipal purposes.

Municipal cor

It was within the province of the legislature under the provision of § 8, art. 8, of the Constitution, to abolish porations-poweither or all of the er to abolish. abolished municipal corporations, but when doing so the legislature was bound to provide for the protection of the creditors of such corporation. This might have been done by providing for the continuation of the assessment and collection of taxes and the disbursement of funds by proper officials named for that purpose, without the continuation of any corporate existence, or the legislature might have done just as it did in this case; that is, provided for the protection of the creditors by the creation of a new corporation and the creation of which had the legal effect of establishing a successor to all the rights and all the liabilities of the abolished corporation. "If a municipal corporation goes out

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