| Show SHEEP CASE DECIDED judge norrell decides that the summit ordinance Is constitutional the sheep men have lost in the first round of 0 their battle in the courts against the law empowering counties to impose a license on the business of grazing sheep judge norrell rendered a decision on the dinst upon the demurrer to the complaint in the case of summit county against sanford san ford gustavson the suit was brought by tile the county to recover claimed to be due from gustavson for grazing and herding 2000 head of sheep in summit county the action was brought under an ordinance passed by the county requiring sheep owners who intended grazing their flocks in that county to take out a license and pay a certain specified sum for the purpose to this com paint the defendants demurred upon the ground that it did not state a cause of action Sheep men inen all over the state are interested in chiq suit as they complain that the law per permitting mitti ng counties to pass these ordinances and thereby compel them to pay a I 1 large sum annually for the grazing of their sheep works a great hardship haid ship upon them judge norrell however overrules the demurrer and in so doing holds against the defendant upon every point raised by liim in on the argument in passing upon the case his ln s honor says there are several questions as I 1 view the matter to be considered liere here first did the legislature have the I 1 power under the constitution to authorize the counties to impose a license tax upon all and every kind ol of business not prohibited by law and transacted and carried on in such counties and to fix the rates of license tax upon tile same and to provide tor for the collection thereof by suit or otherwise second is the raising grazing herding or pasturing of sheep I 1 in any county such a business as is contemplated by subdivision 26 of section 21 of the county government act do th third 1 rd 1 is s such bucl 1 a I 1 tax a tax upon the property sheep or is it a tax upon the business of grazing herding and pasturing sheep is as alleged in the complaint fourth is it double taxation in a carefully written opinion judge norrell holds ag against ainest the defendant on each of these points and in conclusion says ane constitution of utah being bein silent upon the question of double taxation the legislature would have the power to impose double taxation but in this case the im position imposition of the tax in question would not be double taxation v even if the constitution forbade double taxation it is true as stated by counsel in his bis argument that the power to tax includes the power to destroy but whatever may be the courts views as to the policy of such a law or whatever doubts the court may have as to such expediency can have no weight upon this legal proposition the law must be construed as it is and not in accordance with any ones doubts as to its expediency 1 I hold that there has teen icon no contravention of any constitutional tut ional provision that the statute is valid and the county ordinance herewith is also valid the demurrer will be overruled |
