Request By:
Mr. Roger Wm. Perry
Marshall County Attorney
Courthouse
Benton, Kentucky 42025
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You say that under KRS 75.040 the trustees of an established fire protection district are authorized to levy a tax on the property in that district, and that fiscal court does not levy the tax.
In the county judge/executive's order book recognizing the creation of such districts under KRS 75.010, he stated that each district shall be responsible for levying and collecting the district tax.
In May, the fiscal court declined to collect such district taxes. You ask whether their action was legal.
Actually KRS 75.010 authorizes the county judge/executive to enter an order in the county judge/executive's order book establishing such fire protection district, provided the conditions mentioned in the statute are met. That statute gives him no authority to declare that such district shall be responsible for levying and collecting its own tax. Thus any such statement is a gratuity, regardless of what the statutes provide as to what unit of government shall levy and collect the fire protection tax.
The question as to who levies and collects such district tax is answered by KRS 75.040. That statute reads:
"(1) Upon the creation of a fire protection district or a volunteer fire department as provided in KRS 75.010 to 75.031 the trustees of such district are hereby authorized to establish and operate a fire department in such district and to levy a tax upon the property in said district, including that property within cities in a fire protection district or a volunteer fire department district, as provided by KRS 75.010(2) provided that said property is subject to county tax, and not exceeding ten cents (10 ) per one hundred dollars ($100) of valuation as assessed for county taxes, for the purpose of defraying the expenses of such establishment, maintenance and operation of said fire department or to make contracts for fire protection for such districts as provided in KRS 75.050. The rate set in this subsection shall apply, notwithstanding the provisions of KRS 132.023.
"(2) The property valuation administrator of the county or counties involved, with the cooperation of the board of trustees, shall note on the tax rolls the taxpayers and valuation of the property subject to such assessment. The county clerk shall compute the tax on the regular state and county tax bills in such manner as may be directed by regulation of the department of revenue.
"(3) Such taxes shall be subject to the same delinquency date, discounts, penalties and interest as are applied to the collection of ad valorem taxes and shall be collected by the sheriff of the county or counties involved and accounted for to the treasurer of the district. The sheriff shall be entitled to a fee of one percent (1%) of the amount collected by him."
It is our opinion, under the literal wording of subsection (1) of the above quoted statute, that the trustees of such fire protection district are required to levy the district tax. Under KRS 75.040(2), the county clerk is required to compute the district tax on the regular state and county tax bills in such manner as may be directed by regulation of the Department of Revenue. By subsection (3) of the statute, the sheriff of the affected county is required to collect such district tax and account for same to the treasurer of the district.
Judge Cullen, in Department of Revenue v. Greyhound Corporation, Ky., 321 S.W.2d 60 (1959) 61, wrote that "we conceive it to be our duty to accord the words of a statute their literal meaning unless to do so would lead to an absurd or wholly unreasonable conclusion." In this situation the controlling statute is clear and explicit, and our interpretation does not lead to an absurd or unreasonable conclusion. We realize that adding various district taxes to the regular state and county tax bills may create an additional administrative burden, but we are not in a position to question legislative policy. In 16 Am.Jur.2d, Constitutional Law, § 227, page 476, it is written that "It has also been said that the essential of the legislative function is the determination of the legislative policy and its formulation and promulgation as a defined and binding rule of conduct."