lected under said Chapter 5377, Acts of 1905; and the said William V. Knott has since said designation and election as Treasurer of said Board received and kept all such money, and now holds same by virtue of such designation and election;

IT IS NOW, THEREFORE, ORDERED, By the Board of Drainage Commissioners of the State of Florida, that, in view of the aforesaid opinion of the Attorney General of Florida, the said William V. Knott, as Treasurer of said Board of Drainage Commissioners, is hereby authorized and directed to transfer and pay over to the State Treas urer of the State of Florida any and all money heretofore or hereafter received by him as Treasurer of said Board.

Following is a copy of the communication from the Attorney General, referred to in the foregoing resolution and order of the Board of Drainage Commissioners:

STATE OF FLORIDA,

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL,
Tallahassee, January 14, 1907.

Hon. A. C. Croom, Comptroller, Tallahassee, Fla.
Dear Sir: I am in receipt of your letter of recent date
asking if, in my opinion, bills accruing from the enforce-
ment of the provisions of Chapter 5377 of the Acts of 1905,
where suits were brought to restrain the collection of the
tax levied by virtue of the statute, may be paid from the
appropriation for "expenses of collection of revenue," and
if all and each and every expense attendant upon the levy
and collection of this tax should be paid from the appro-
priation above named. You also request me to advise you
if the vouchers for such payment should have the approv-
al of the Board of Drainage Commissioners, and whether
by the signature and attestation of the chairman or by
the signature of each individual member of the Board.

Chapter 5377 of the Laws of 1905 is an Act in Relation to the Drainage and Reclamation of the Swamp and Overflowed Lands in Florida. It creates a Board of Drainage Commissioners, vests it with certain powers and prescribes certain duties. Among other things, it directs the Board of Drainage Commissioners to lay out drainage

districts in the State of Florida, and to levy on the alluvial or swamp and overflowed taxable lands within such drainage districts a tax not exceeding ten cents per acre per annum to be fixed annually by the Board of Drainage Commissioners.

The Act provides that the amount so levied "shall be collected by the various Tax Collectors of the counties wherein such levies have been made as other taxes are collected in accordance with law."

That the fund provided for by that act is a public fund and created for a public purpose, is in my judgment unquestionable. It has been held by the courts, that the Legislature has the power to compel local improvements which in its judgment will promote the health of the people and advance the public good. The reclamation of vast bodies of swamp and overflowed lands, such as exist in this State, is generally regarded as a public improvement of great magnitude and of the utmost importance to the country. Several States have treated the reclamation of swamp and overflowed lands as a public question, and have enacted laws providing for the raising of revenue for that purpose. Chapter 5377 is a general act of the Legislature providing for the raising of a fund to be expended in the work of draining the swamp and overflowed lands of this State, and I therefore think that the money collected under this act constitutes a public fund within the meaning of the constitutional provision, which requires the Treasurer to receive and keep all funds, bonds and other securities, etc., Section 24 of Article IV, of the Constitution.

The fund intended to be raised by the Chapter to which reference is above made is raised by the exercise of the taxing power of the State, and the fund so created is intended to be devoted to the accomplishment of a certain work, which is of general and public utility; I, therefore, regard the expense incident to the collection of the tax as a proper charge against the appropriation for the expenses of collecting revenue.

As to the matter of auditing and approving the bills which may be rendered for the expense incurred in collecting the tax provided for by the above named Act, I think that the statutes make it the duty of the Comptroller of the State to examine, audit and settle all such accounts, claims and demands against the State.

I think that the Board of Drainage Commissioners have

no power, nor does the act seek to make it the duty of the Board, to audit and approve bills which may be rendered for expenses incurred in the collection of the aforementioned tax, further than the expense incident to the preparation of the lists of the alluvial or swamp and overflowed taxable lands which may lie within the drainage districts which may be established. Yours very truly,

(Signed)

W. H. ELLIS, Attorney General.

The moneys above recited, aggregating the sum of four thousand three hundred and eighty dollars and fifty-seven cents ($4,380.57), were paid into the Treasury of the State of Florida to the credit of the "Drainage Tax Fund," January 24, 1907, under the foregoing resolution and order of the Board of Drainage Commissioners of Florida, adopted January 22, 1907, a separate Treasury receipt being taken for the amount received from each County which receipts are numbered as follow: For anount from Lee County, Receipt No. 429; St. Lucie County, Receipt No. 430; DeSoto County, Receipt No. 431; Dade County, Receipt No. 432; Osceola County, Receipt No. 433-all dated January 24, 1907.

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