1887 ceed to collect the taxes charged in each list, and for that purpose shall be required to give at least ten days' notice of the time when he will attend at the several voting places in such notice, for the collection of taxes, and shall remain at each place from 9 A. M. to 3 P. M., and shall make two visits to each preVisits and noti- cinct in the county during the months of November and December, and shall keep his office open at the county site daily during the month of January. ces. ble for taxes. SEC. 36. Comptroller's warrants shall be receivable for State What receiva general revenue; Provided, That warrants issued prior to July 1, 1871, must first be examined and approved by the board constituted by Section 1, of Chapter 2081, Laws of Florida. Orders upon the County Treasurer of any county shall be receivable by such county for county revenue, and orders issued by the County Board of Public Instruction shall be receivable in the counties where such orders are issued for county school Collectors not to deal in war rants, scrip, &c. Penalty. Receipts. taxes. SEC. 37 No Collector of any county shall either directly, or indirectly purchase or receive in exchange any Comptroller's warrants, county orders, juror's certificates, or school district orders, for a less amount than expressed on the face of such orders or demand; and any such person so offending shall, for each offence, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum not less than one thousand dollars, nor more than ten thousand dollars and be removed from office. SEC. 38. The Comptroller shall furnish the Collector with a Receipt book. receipt book, with stubs, which shall be in such form as the Comptroller may prescribe. The Collector shall, on the payment to him of any taxes, fill out the receipt as prescribed by the Comptroller, taking a copy of the same on the stub to be retained by him, and deliver the receipt to the tax-payer, and shall note on his tax roll the payment thereof; and if any Collector shall wilfully return to the Comptroller and County Commissioners as unpaid any tax which has been paid to him, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding twelve months or by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars. Penalty for false return. SEC. 39. All taxes shall be due and payable on or after the When taxes due first Monday of October of each and every year, and the Collector is hereby vested with the power, and it shall be his duty to collect by levy and sale of the goods and chattels, lands and tenements assessed, all taxes that remain unpaid on the Deputy collec- first day of February. Collectors of Revenue may appoint a deputy or several deputies to levy upon and seize personal property for unpaid taxes, and each deputy shall have the same power tors. as the Collector has in levying upon and selling personal property, and a written appointment from the Collector, with a statement from him of the persons against whom or the person in whose name the property is assessed and the amount of taxes due, shall be sufficient warrant and authority for such deputies to act, and it shall not be necessary for a deputy to take tax roll or warrant annexed thereto with him; Provided, That Deputy Collectors so appointed shall be liable to same penalties prescribed in this act as Collectors of Revenue for violations of this act for neglect of duty or otherwise. taxes. 1887 SEC. 40. When personal property shall be levied upon for any taxes, the Collector or his deputy shall give public notice Sale of person al of the time and place of sale and of the property to be sold at property for least fifteen days previous to the sale, by advertisement, to be posted up in at least three public places in the couuty, one of which shall be the court house door, one in the election district in which the owner resides, if in the county, and one at the voting place of the district where the property is located, and where such sale shall be made, at public auction, and the property sold shall be present, if practicable; but at any time previous to the sale the owner or claimant of such property may release the same by the payment of the taxes and charges for which the same is liable to be sold. In case Collector's sale. any levy shall be made as aforesaid, the Collector shall be entitled to the same fees and charges as are allowed Sheriffs upon executions. Fees. SEC. 41. If the property levied upon shall be sold for more than the amount of taxes, costs and collection fees, the surplus Surplus proshall be returned to the person in whose possession the said ceeds of sale. property was when the levy was made, or to the owner of the property. from county. SEC. 42. In case any person upon whom any tax may be assessed in any county for personal estate shall have removed Levy and sale in out of such county after the assessment, it shall be lawful for case of removal the Collector of the county, by his warrant, to authorize the Sheriff of the county where such person shall reside, to levy and collect such tax of goods and chattels, lands and tenements, of the person so assessed, in any county within the State to which such person shall have removed, or in which he shall reside, and such Sheriff may proceed thereon as upon execution from the Circuit Court. An assessment of taxes shall be a lien upon the property assessed from the date of the assessment; Assessments to and the Tax Collectors of the several counties shall have power be lien on prop to attach, for taxes thereon, any personal property which has erty. been assessed, at any time before payment, if he has reason to believe that such property is being, or has been, removed or dis 1887 ments. posed of so as to prevent or endanger the payment of taxes thereon, in the same manner and under the same rules of law governing attachments for debt, dues or demands in other cases. SEC. 43. When any Collector discovers that any land has Double assess been assessed more than once the same year, he shall collect only the tax justly due thereon, and shall make return of the balance as a double assessment, and shall be credited therefor by the County Commissioners and the Comptroller. He shall also report to the County Commissioners the errors, double assessments and insolvencies for which he is to be credited under different heads, giving in every case the names of the parties on whose account the credit is to be allowed. Report of errors and double assess ments. Railroads, return and tax ation of. SEC. 44. The President and Secretary, or Superintendent or Manager of any railroad company, or Receiver of any railroad, whose track or road-bed, or any part thereof, is in this State, shall annually, on or before the first Monday in March, return to the Comptroller of the State, under their oaths, the total length of such railroad; the total length and value of such roads or lines, including rights-of-way, road-bed, side track and main track, in this State; and the total length and value thereof in each county, city or incorporated town in this State, as of the first day of January; they shall also make return of the number and value of all their locomotive engines, passenger, freight, platform, construction and other cars and appurtenances; and should any railroad company or its officers fail to make the returns required by this act on or before the first Monday in March, or should the Comptroller have reason to believe that any return so made does not give a complete and correct value of such railroad and property, the Comptroller, with the assistance and advice of the Attorney-General and Treasurer of the State, shall have power to assess the same from the best information they can obtain, and the value of the locomotive engines, passenger, freight, platform, construction and other cars and appurtenances shall be apportioned by the Comptroller, pro rata, to each mile of main track, and the Comptroller shall notify the Assessor of each county through which such railroad runs of the number of miles of track and the value thereof, and the proportionate value of personal property taxable in their respective counties, and he shall also apportionate the same among the cities and incorporated towns into which said road runs; and upon the value thus ascertained and apportioned taxes shall be assessed the same as upon the property of individuals. That every telegraph line in this State, and its Telegraph lines properties, rights and franchises of every kind in this State, shall be returned and assesssed in the same manner as is provided by this act for the assessment of railroads, and in case of return of, &c. failure to pay the tax so assessed, the entire line of telegraph in this State, with all its properties, rights and franchises, or any property belonging to the same company, person or persons, may be sold in the same manner as is provided for the sale of a railroad or any of its properties upon which any tax shall be due and not paid. 1887 for taxes. SEC. 45. If the taxes on any railroad, or any part thereof, in this State shall not be paid on or before the 31st day of Jan- Sale of railroad uary in any year, the Tax Collector of each county where any such taxes may be due, shall send a certificate of the amount thereof to the Comptroller, including in said certificate the amount of State and county taxes. The Comptroller shall have the power, on the receipt of the certificate or certificates from the Collectors as aforesaid, to issue a warrant directed to the Sheriff of any county where such defaulting railroad or part thereof may be located, commanding him to collect by levy and sale in the same manner as now provided by law for the sale of property under execution from the Circuit Court, of the shop, fixtures, rolling stock, or any part thereof, or of the entire road or such part thereof as may be located in this State, the full amount of taxes due thereon, including the costs and expenses of sale; and the proceeds of such sale, after deducting fees and costs, as provided by law, shall be forwarded by such Sheriff to the Comptroller, to be divided by him among the counties where such taxes may be due according to the assessment; and the surplus after such division, if any, shall be paid over to the authorities of such defaulting railroad. The fees of the Sheriff in the execution of the warrant provided for in this section shall Fees of sheriff. be the same as now provided by law in the case of executions from the Circuit Court, which fees, together with the costs, shall be included with the taxes in the amount to be collected from the defaulting railroad; Provided, further, That whenever any person or persons shall become the purchaser of any car, engine or other rolling stock of any such company or corporation at any such sale, such purchaser shall have the right to require of any such company or corporation, the transportation of any such car, engine or other rolling stock to any point along its line of road at a cost not to exceed eight cents per mile; Provided, further, That the Sheriff shall take corporal possession of the property levied on under this section, and, on selling Duties of sheriff the same or any part thereof, shall deliver it into the actual possession of the purchaser, upon his paying the amount bid therefor at such sale, and in case no person shall bid the amount of taxes due, including the costs and expenses of sale, the property shall be bid off by the Comptroller for the State, and shall be delivered to the Comptroller, and the Governor and Comptroller shall dispose of, sell and convey the same in 1887 return of. such manner as in their judgment may be to the interest of the State. The provisions of this section, in so far as they relate to the sales of railroads for unpaid taxes, shall apply to all taxes assessed heretofore or that may be hereafter assessed. SEC. 46. That the President, Secretary, Superintendent, ManRailroad lands, ager, or Agent of any railroad company, or Receiver of any railroad, owning land or any other real estate in any county in the State, shall make out and deliver to the Assessors, on or before the first Monday in March, in each year, of each county where the property is situated, a full and complete list of all lands and town lots by sections, townships and range, and by lot and block, of land or lots owned or held by them, the same as the property of individuals, and should any railroad company fail to make the return of their real property as required by this act, the Assessor shall ascertain and assess the same as in cases of individual property. taxes. Publishers' charges. SEC. 47. If the taxes upon any real estate shall not be paid Sale of land for before the first day of February of any year, the Collector shall advertise and sell in the manner following: He shall make out a statement of all such real estate, specifying the amount due on each parcel, together with the cost of advertising Advertisement. and expense of sale, in the same order in which the land was assessed, and such lists shall be published once in each week for four successive weeks in some newspaper published in the county, if there be a newspaper so published, and if there be no such newspaper published in the county, then by posting in three public places in the county, one of which shall be at the court house, and the newspaper publisher's charge for advertising shall be ten cents per line for the four insertions; and the Collector shall receive the same for posting at three public places, but in neither case shall there be any charge for the head notice. A copy of the advertisement shall be recorded in the County Clerk's office within ten days after said sale. When lands are advertised for taxes under the provisions of this act, the Collector shall be entitled to five per cent. commissions on the amount of each delinquent tax, where actual sale is made, and twenty-five cents for each certificate of sale, but no Collector shall charge or receive any fees or commissions on land sold for taxes except such as is provided for in this act. All such sales shall commence on the regular sale day prescribed by law, and may be continued from day to day. Such advertisement shall be substantially in the following form, to-wit: Collector's Commissions, &c. Sale day. NOTICE. day of Notice is hereby given that the following described lands will Form of adver- be sold at public auction on the in the county of tisement. at or so much thereof as will be ne |