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Actions against collectors.-Trespass will lie against a collector who levies on property under a warrant showing the tax to be illegal. Bank of Utica v. City of Utica, 4 Paige, 399 (1834). And a tax officer seizing property and selling it under a warrant by a sale which was not public or properly held renders him a trespasser ab initio, and he can give no title. Shimer v. Mosher, 39 Hun, 153 (1886).

But a bare levy under several processes, some valid and some invalid, upon the personal property of the person against whom they are issued, does not constitute the officer a trespasser. Woolsey v. Morris, 96 N. Y. 311 (1884).

Payment of taxes by railroad and certain other corporations.— Any railroad, telegraph, telephone, electric light or gas company, including a company engaged in the business of supplying natural gas, may, within thirty days after receipt of notice by the county treasurer from the clerk of the board of supervisors, pay its tax, with one per centum fees, to the county treasurer, who shall credit the same with such fees, to the collector of the tax district, unless otherwise required by law. If not so paid the county treasurer shall notify the collector of the tax district where it is due, and he shall then proceed to collect under his warrant. Until such notice from the treasurer, the collector shall not force payment of such taxes, but may receive the same, with the fees allowed by law, at any time. (Sec. 73, Tax Law, as am'd by ch. 221, L. 1912.)

Source: In substance the same as sections 2, 3, chap. 506, L. 1870, except that it was extended to the telephone, telegraph, and electric light companies by chap. 659, L. 1886, and to gas and natural gas companies by chap. 221, L. 1912.

Enforcement of tax against telegraph, telephone and electric light lines. Collection of tax against a telegraph, telephone or electric light line may be enforced by sale of the instruments and batteries connected with such line, and in case there is not sufficient personal property, together with such instruments and batteries, to pay such tax and the percentage due the collector, he shall return a statement thereof to the county treasurer as other unpaid taxes are returned, and the county treasurer shall proceed to sell such part of the line in the tax district where the tax was levied as may be necessary to satisfy the unpaid taxes and percentage, in the manner now provided by law for the sale of lands on execution, and upon such sale shall execute to

the purchaser a conveyance of such part of said line, and the purchaser shall thereupon become the owner thereof. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent collection of such taxes by any procedure now provided by law. (Sec. 74, Tax Law.)

Source: In substance the same as chap. 659, L. 1886, secs. 3, 6.

Fees of collector.—On all taxes paid within thirty days from the date of notice that he has received the roll, the collector shall be entitled to receive, if the aggregate amount shall not exceed two thousand dollars, two per centum, and otherwise one per centum, in addition thereto. On all taxes collected after the expiration of such period of thirty days, the collector shall be entitled to receive five per centum in addition thereto. The collector shall be entitled to receive from the county treasurer two per centum as fees for all taxes returned to the county treasurer as unpaid. (Sec. 81, Tax Law, as am'd by ch. 240, L. 1909.)

Source: In substance the same as secs. 29, 30, chap. 180, L. 1845, as amended.

The purpose of the amendment of 1909 (ch. 240) was to correct a clerical error in this section, the word "treasurer" in the last paragraph reading "treasury" in the Consolidated. Laws, as first passed.

Return by collector of unpaid taxes.-Every collector who makes and delivers to the county treasurer an account of unpaid taxes, upon the tax roll annexed to his warrant, which he shall not have been able to collect, verified by his affidavit that the sums mentioned therein remain unpaid, and that he has not upon diligent inquiry been able to discover any personal property out of which the same could be collected by levy and sale, shall be credited by the county treasurer with the amount of such account. In making such return of unpaid taxes, the collector shall add thereto five per centum of the amount thereof. In case such tax is uncollected upon lands assessed to a resident, he shall also state the reason why the same was not collected. Any collector who has heretofore failed in making such return of unpaid taxes, may make such return, whether his term of office has expired or not, verified by his affidavit, to the county treasurer any time within eight years after such failure and before the lands against which said taxes are assessed are advertised for sale pursuant to this chapter, and in case any collector shall heretofore or hereafter fail to add said five per centum the county treasurer shall add the afore

said five per centum of the amount of said uncollected tax as aforesaid. Such return shall be endorsed upon or attached to said roll, and shall be in the form to be prescribed by the state board of tax commissioners. Such tax and percentage may be paid to the county treasurer at any time before a return is made to the comptroller. The county treasurer in counties in which lands are sold by him for the non-payment of taxes, is hereby authorized to incur and pay for such expenses as he may deem necessary for the examination of collector's returns and descriptions of property to be sold pursuant to this chapter, and the procurement of proper collector's returns and the examinations and procurement of matters and facts as he may deem necessary to make a valid tax sale hereunder, but such expense shall not exceed the amount of the five per centum added as aforesaid. (Sec. 82, Tax Law.)

Source: The first sentence covers sec. 10, ch. XIII, title 3, pt. 1, R. S., the remainder being added by the Tax Law of 1896. The section was amended by ch. 517, L. 1901, and appears in the same section of the Consolidated Laws, without change.

Sufficient and insufficient returns.-The affidavit in a return by a collector, which has no venue, is a nullity. A return that does not state that the account is a transcript of the assessmentroll, nor that the figures were taken from the assessment-roll, nor that sums claimed to be due were for the taxes assessed against the property, is insufficient. Thompson v. Burhans, 61 N. Y. 52 (1874); reversing 61 Barb. 260. But the addition by the collector of five per cent. to the gross amount of the tax returned, without a separate item indicating the charge, has been held to be no error. Colman v. Shattuck, 62 N. Y. 348 (1875); aff'g 2 Hun, 497.

The return by a collector of the 5th ward of the city of Rochester is not governed by section 82 of the General Tax Law, but by provisions of the charter of that city, since it has a complete system for the assessment and collection of taxes. In re Veith, 165 N. Y. 204.

Return when collection has been enjoined.-Any stay, lawfully granted by any court of record by injunction or other order or proceeding, of the collection of any tax existing at the expiration of the period

for the collection of the tax under any warrant or process in the hands of the collector or other officer for the collection thereof, or existing at the time of the expiration of the term of office of the collector or officer holding such warrant, shall operate as an extension of the time within which such collector or other officer may collect such tax until such stay is terminated and for the period of thirty days thereafter. As to all other taxes to be collected under any such warrant or process, the collector or officer holding the warrant or process shall make a return thereof within the time prescribed by law. (Sec. 83, Tax Law.)

Source: L. 1853, chap. 69, as amended by L. 1879, chap. 492. The provision in the present statute, as to time of stay, is, however, made uniform.

Payment of money collected.-Every collector shall, within one week after the time prescribed in his warrant for the payment of the moneys directed therein to be paid, pay to the officers and persons specified therein, the sums required in such warrant to be paid to them respectively. The officers and persons other than the county treasurer, to whom any such moneys shall be paid, shall deliver to the collector duplicate receipts therefor, one of which duplicates shall be filed by the collector with the county treasurer and shall entitle him to a credit in the books of the county treasurer for the amount therein stated to have been received, and no other evidence of such payment shall be received by the county treasurer. If any greater amount of taxes shall be levied in any town than the town charges thereof, and its proportionate share of the state taxes and county charges, the surplus shall be paid by the collector to the county treasurer, who shall place it to the credit of such town, and it shall go to the reduction of the tax upon the town for the succeeding year. (Sec. 84, Tax Law.)

Source: 1 R. S., chap. XIII, secs. 6, 7, without change of substance.

A town collector cannot pay debts of the county and credit the amount to his account. Matter of Boyce, 2 Cow. 444. When a tax is paid to the collector, the law presumes in behalf of the taxpayer that the collector turned it in to the officer to whom he is required by law to account for it. Bank of Commonwealth v. Mayor, &c., 43 N. Y. 184 (1870). Moneys collected for the poor and for highways should be paid by the collector to the commissioners of highways and overseers of the poor directly. The supervisor has no right to receive them. People v. Pennock, 60 N. Y. 421 (1875).

Extension of time for collection.-The county treasurer upon application of the supervisor of any town or common council of any city in his county, may extend the time for collection of taxes remaining unpaid to a day not later than May first, following, in case the collector shall pay over all moneys collected by him, and renew his bond in a penalty twice the amount of the taxes remaining uncollected approved by the proper officer upon filing the same, as the original bond is required to be filed, and delivering a certified copy thereof to such treasurer. Receivers of taxes who have filed a bond as required by statute shall not be required to renew their bonds.

This section shall not affect any special law relating to the extension of time for the collection of taxes, nor be construed to extend the time for the payment of the state tax by the county treasurer, as required by this chapter. (Sec. 85, Tax Law, as amended by ch. 332, L. 1910.) This amendment omits the words "and make his return of non-resident taxes" in the fifth line after the words "moneys collected by him."

Source: L. 1857, ch. 7, as amended by L. 1885, ch. 10, and ch. 32, without change of substance, to be read in connection with sec. 150 of the County Law, which reads as follows:

"Sec. 150. Extension of time for the collection of taxes.-The county treasurer may extend the time for the collection of taxes in any town or ward, but no extension shall be permitted until the collector of taxes of the town, city or ward in which such extension shall be asked shall pay over to the county treasurer all the taxes collected by him, and renew his undertaking as the supervisor of his town shall approve, and furnish evidence by his oath, and other competent testimony, if any, as such treasurer shall require, that he has been unable for cause stated, to collect all the taxes within the time required by his warrant; but such extension shall not in any case be made beyond the first day of April in any year, unless ninety per centum of such taxes shall have been collected and paid over to him."

The above provisions as to the extension of time for the colection of taxes do not apply to the city of New York, which, in this respect, is governed by the New York charter.

In cases of vacancy or failure to qualify.-Section 86 of the Tax Law provides for the appointment of a collector in the case of vacancy, refusal to serve, or disability.

Section 87 of the Tax Law provides that in case the collector does not file the required bond, or the bond is not approved, and

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