Chapter CXLII. to fund certain Liabilities of the City of TFashingfon, existing June first, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, and to limit the Debt of and Taxation in the District of Columbia
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CHAP. CXLII.— An Act to fund certain Liabilities of the City of TFashingfon, existing June first, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, and to limit the Debt of and Taxation in the District of Columbia.May 8, 1872. *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,* ThatCertain floating debts and trust funds of the City of Washington to be funded.Limit.Bonds to be issued;denominations, interest, when, where, and how payable; the commissioners of the sinking-fund of the District of Columbia, duly appointed under the laws of the said District, be, and are hereby, authorized to fund the liabilities of the city of Washington, consisting of the floating debts and trust-funds found to be due on the first of June, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, not exceeding one million one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, by the auditing commission appointed to ascertain the amount of said liabilities, and reported by said commission to the legislative assembly under date of November eighth, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, and January third, eighteen hundred and seventy-two; and for that purpose the said commissioners are hereby directed to issue registered or coupon bonds of the said District of Columbia, in denominations of fifty dollars, or any multi-FORTY-SECOND CONGRESS.
Sess. II. Ch. 142. 1872.87ple of that sum, not to exceed the amount of said liabilities, bearing interest not to exceed six per centum per annum, payable semiannually in gold, and having a period to run not more than thirty years nor less than fifteen years;how may be sold. and the said commissioners are hereby authorized to negotiate the sale of the said bonds at their discretion, at a rate of discount not to exceed three per centum upon their par value, and with the proceeds thereof to pay the said liabilities of the city of Washington; and the principal and interest of said bonds shall be made payable in the city of Washington, or in the city of New York: *Provided,*Trust funds to be made good.
That such amount of the said bonds or their proceeds as is necessary shall be applied and strictly held to make good the trust-funds; on which there is a deficiency of two hundred and eighty-six thousand three hundred and seventeen dollars and fifty-eight cents: *Provided, further,*Holders of floating debt may convert the same. That the holders of any of the said floating debts shall have the privilege of converting the same, or any part thereof, at par, for an equal amount of the bonds proposed to be issued under this act.
Sec. 2. ThatTax to be levied, &c., annually, to pay interest and create a sinking fund. the legislative assembly of the District of Columbia is hereby empowered to cause to be levied upon and collected from all taxable property of the city of Washington, within its limits, a tax annually, which shall be sufficient to pay the interest upon the said bonds, and to create a sinking-fund sufficient to retire the said bonds at maturity, the said tax to be collected at the same time and in the same manner as general annual taxes are collected in the said District: *Provided,*Aggregate tax, except, &c., not to exceed, &c.
That the aggregate amount of taxes in any one year, excepting such additional assessments as may be made for improvements specially authorized by law, shall not exceed two per centum on the assessed cash valuation of property in said city. Sec. 3. ThatMoney collected to be paid to commissioners, and. how applied. the collector of the District of Columbia shall pay over to the said commissioners, upon their requisition being first certified by the auditor and the comptroller of said District, as is now provided by the laws of said District, all the moneys collected by virtue of this act, with which said moneys the said commissioners shall pay or cause to be paid the coupons or interest on said bonds issued by them under the provisions of this act; and the residue, collected as aforesaid as a sinking-fund, the said commissioners shall invest in the said bonds issued by them, or in any bonds of the District of Columbia or of the late corporations of the cities of Washington or Georgetown,Report of commissioners. and shall cause to be placed on record, in the office of the register of the said District of Columbia, a full and complete report of all their acts herein on or before the first day of January of each year, and shall also make a report of the same to the legislative assembly at the commencement of each regular session thereof.
Sec. 4. ThatTenor of the bonds, how executed and registered. the said bonds shall be issued in the name of the District of Columbia, and shall show that they are so issued in payment of the liabilities aforesaid of the city of Washington (found to be due at the time and in the manner provided in the first section of this act), and said bonds shall be signed by *et* majority of the commissioners aforesaid, and countersigned by the register and the comptroller of the said District; and a proper registry shall be kept in the office of the register of the said district of the number, denomination, date of issue, and to whom issued.
Sec. 5. ThatConflicting provisions of act of the assembly of the District declared void. so much of the act passed at the late extra session of the legislative assembly of the District of Columbia, entitled “An act providing for the payment of the debts of the late corporation of Washington,” approved January nineteenth, eighteen hundred and seventy-two, levying taxes on real and personal property in the city of Washington, to pay the debt and the interest on the debt of the late corporation of Washington, as conflicts with the provisions of this act, be, and the same is hereby, disapproved, cancelled, and declared void.
Sec. 6. ThatCertain acts of the assembly of the District declared void. the act of the legislative assembly of the District of Columbia, approved August nineteenth, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, entitled “An act authorizing the District of Columbia to create a debt for special88FORTY-SECOND CONGRESS. Sess. II. Ch. 142, 143, 144. 1872. improvements and repairs in said District by the issuing of four millions of bonds and levying a tax for the payment of the interest as it shall annually accrue thereon, and submitting the act with the question of the issuing of four millions of improvement bonds to a vote of the people at a general election in said District; ” and also the act of the legislative assembly, approved August nineteenth, eighteen hundred and seventy-one, entitled “An act levying a tax for the payment of the interest as it shall annually accrue ou four million dollars of bonds authorized to be issued by the District of Columbia to create a debt for special improvements and repairs in said District, by the issuing of four millions of bonds and levying a tax for the payment of the interest as it shall annually accrue thereon, and submitting the act, with the question of the issuing of four millions of improvement bonds, to a vote of the people at a general election in the said District,”Certain bonds not to be issued.Certain act approved. be, and the same are hereby, disapproved and declared null and void, and the authorities of the District are hereby forbidden to issue any portion of the four millions of bonds named in said acts; and that the act of the said legislative assembly, approved July tenth, eighteen himdred and seventy-one, entitled “An act making appropriations for improvements and repairs in the District of Columbia, and providing for the payment thereof,” be, and the same is hereby, approved, ratified, and confirmed.
Sec. 7. ThatDebt of the District not to exceed, &c., unless, &c. the debt of the District of Columbia, including the debts of the late corporations, shall at no time exceed the sum of ten millions of dollars, unless an increase over the said amount shall have been previously authorized by act of Congress. Sec. 8. ThatRepealing clause. all laws and parts of laws inconsistent with this act are hereby repealed. Approved, May 8, 1872.