county, and shall report the result of such examination and investigation to the territorial board of equalization, and file the same in the office of said territorial board of equalization, and the facts therein contained may be used for the purpose of finally ascertaining and determining the value of the property, subject to taxation, within such county.

Sec. 5. The said territorial board of equalization from the data herein before provided for shall finally determine and fix the value of all property both real and personal in every county in the Territory of New Mexico and shall prepare an abstract, alphabetically arranged by counties, showing the taxable value of every county in the territory, and certify the same to the territorial auditor, whose duty it shall be to file the same in his office.

Sec. 6. The territorial treasurer and the territorial auditor, shall between the first and third Mondays of February of each year, commencing with the year 1904, determine the amount of revenue directed to be raised by the legislative assembly for territorial purposes for the ensuing fiscal year, and whenever the said legislature has not directed a specific sum or amount to be raised for a designated purpose, or for the maintenance of a designated territorial institution, then it shall be the duty of said territorial treasurer and territorial auditor to ascertain and determine the product of said levy, taking and assuming for such purpose, that one (1) mill on the dollar levied upon the taxable property of the territory will produce twenty-eight thousand dollars ($28,000.00). And when said amount of revenue, so directed to be raised, as herein provided has been ascertained and determined, the result thereof shall be compiled and reduced to writing and filed in the office of the territorial auditor.

Sec. 7. Hereafter the legislative assemblies of the Territory of New Mexico, when providing revenue for territorial purposes shall make fixed and specific appropriations for the salary fund for the different charitable institutions, for the different educational institutions, for the different penal institutions, for the purpose of paying interest on the territorial debt, for the maintenance of the capitol, for miscellaneous purposes, for deficiencies in the territorial revenues, and for any other purposes for which a territorial appropriation has been made.

Sec. 8. The territorial auditor shall between the first and second Mondays of April of each year, commencing with the year A. D. 1904, apportion the amount of revenue directed to be raised, by the legislative assemblies, among the different counties of the territory in the ratio and proportion which the taxable value of each county, bears to the taxable value of the entire

Territory of New Mexico, and said auditor shall by an order, a copy of which shall remain in his office on file, direct the board of county commissioners of every county in the Territory of New Mexico, to levy a tax upon all taxable property, in their respective counties, sufficient to raise the amount of revenue required by said order to be by that county raised and shall fix a minimum levy for each county for such purpose. The said auditor in apportioning the amount of revenue, to be raised by the different counties of the territory, shall refer to and use the data, supplied to and furnished him, by the territorial board of equalization, in the abstract provided for in section 6 of this act, and shall refer to and use no other data, in making said apportionment.

Sec. 9. The boards of county commissioners of the several counties of the Territory of New Mexico, shall annually, commencing with the year A. D. 1904, at the time they make levies and assess taxes for general county and other purposes, make a levy upon all the property subject to taxation in their respective counties, sufficient to raise the amount of revenue which they were respectively directed by the territorial auditor to raise, and when the same has been collected, it shall be paid into the territorial treasury, as now provided by law. The several boards of county commissioners, in making levies for the purpose aforesaid, shall allow fifteen per cent. for delinquencies in and costs of collection of taxes, and whenever it has been customary in any of the counties of this territory, that the delinquencies in the collection of taxes, has been greater than fifteen per cent., then such greater amount shall be allowed. If at any time there is a surplus of revenue raised for territorial purposes in any of the counties of this territory, such surplus shall remain in said fund and shall not be diverted therefrom and the following year such surplus shall be deducted by said board of commissioners of the county, producing such surplus, from the sum to be raised for territorial purposes. If any county of the territory shall default in the raising of the revenue, or any part thereof, directed to be raised by the territorial auditor, and shall remain in default for a period of thirty days, after the end of the fiscal year for which it was directed to raise such revenue, then it shall be the duty of the territorial auditor, to at once cause a new levy to be made, upon the taxable property of such defaulting county, sufficient to make up the amount of taxes, and such levy made by the territorial auditor as herein provided shall be collected and paid over to the territorial treasurer as other taxes are collected and paid over: Provided, that no person who has paid his taxes under the first levy made shall be required to again pay taxes

for territorial purposes for the fiscal year during which default was made. And such county commissioners are hereby authorized, whenever the treasurer may be in default, to employ special counsel to appear in behalf of the county, for the protection of county interests.

Sec. 10. Nothing in this act shall be construed to in any wise amend or modify section 2635 of the Compiled Laws of 1897; but the said territorial board of equalization, when it, under the provisions of section 2635 of said Compiled Laws determines and fixes the value upon the property belonging to railroads, telegraph, telephone and sleeping-car companies doing business in the Territory of New Mexico, shall determine the value of such property as the same exists and is found in the different counties in this territory, and the value of such property shall be credited to the county wherein it exists and is found.

Sec. 11. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

CHAPTER 89.

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE REFUNDING OF CERTAIN COUNTY INDEBTEDNESS. C. B. No. 107; Approved March 18, 1903.

CONTENTS.

Sec. 1. Commission created to refund indebtedness incurred in aid of railroad construction.

Sec. 2. Commission empowered to issue refunding bonds.

Sec. 3.

Refunding bonds.

Form. Rate of interest. Maturity..

Sec. 4. Territorial treasurer to transmit statement of amount of indebtedness refunded to county officers. Statement to be filed and recorded. Sec. 5. Tax levy by county commissioners to pay interest on bonds issued. Creation of sinking fund levy.

Sec. 6.
Sec. 7.

Deficiency in interest fund. Proviso.

Tax levy for interest and sinking fund. Duty of officers. Neglect or refusal.
Penalty.

Sec. 8. Failure of county commissioners to make levy. Duty of auditor. County commissioners to aid refunding commission.

Sec.

9.

Statement of rate of tax levy to be transmitted to county commissioners by auditor. To be placed on tax roll.

Sec. 10. Provision for payment of principal and interest of refunding bonds when county or part of county is incorporated into new county. Sec. 11. All refunded bonds, coupons and judgments to be returned to territorial treasurer. Upon final payment to be returned to the county.

Sec. 12. County to pay expense of refunding.

Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of New Mexico:

Section 1. That the governor, the secretary and the treasurer of the Territory of New Mexico be, and they are hereby

created a commission for the purpose of refunding the indebtedness incurred by any county of the Territory of New Mexico in aid of railroad construction, and are authorized and empowered to compromise and adjust all such indebtedness as was recognized and validated by the act of congress of the United States of 1897, together with the past due and unpaid coupons upon the bonds issued in aid of such railroad constuction, and the interest upon such coupons and any judg ment recovered for any such past due coupons and interest thereon and judgments obtained on said coupons, or any part thereof, whenever the owners of such indebtedness may consent and agree to such compromise and the refunding of such indebtedness.

Sec. 2. Whenever an arrangement and compromise of the indebtedness mentioned in section 1 of this act shall have been effected by and between the said commission and the owner or owners of such indebtedness, by which it is mutually agreed by and between the parties to surrender the existing indebtedness of the class specified in section 1, and to receive therefor and in lieu thereof bonds issued under this act for a sum not to exceed sixty (60) per cent. of the whole indebtedness surrendered, the said commission created by said section 1 shall be, and is hereby, authorized to issue refunding bonds in exchange for such indebtedness.

Sec. 3. The bonds to be issued in exchange for the indebtedness specified in section 1 of this act shall be in the usual form of coupon bonds, and shall be dated on the date of their issue, shall be in the denomination of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or multiples thereof, shall bear interest at the rate of three per cent. per annum, payable semi-annually on the tenth days of January and July of each year, shall be signed by the governor and the treasurer of the Territory of New Mexico and countersigned by the auditor thereof, and shall be payable in forty years from the date of their issue, and may be redeemed at the pleasure of the territory at any time after thirty years from their date, principal and interest to be payable at such bank in the City of New York, in the State of New York, as may be designated on the face of the bonds and coupons, and shall be known and styled as the Railroad Aid Refunding Bonds. It is hereby specifically provided that the principal and interest of each such bond shall be paid only as provided in this act, and no other county in the territory, by territorial levy or otherwise shall be taxed to pay any part of such principal and interest.

Sec. 4. Whenever any of the indebtedness hereinbefore referred to shall be refunded as provided for in this act, the territorial treasurer shall open and keep an account with the

county the bonds of which have been so refunded, and shall immediately make out and transmit to the proper officer or officers charged with the administration of the affairs of such county a statement under his official seal, showing the amount and character of the indebtedness of such county so refunded, with the amount of bonds issued therefor, when due, and when and where payable, with the rate of interest and amount of interest that will be required annually to be paid thereon, and such statement shall be filed in the proper office, and recorded in the official records of such county.

Sec. 5. In all cases where the said indebtedness has been so refunded, the board of county commissioners of the county owing such indebtedness shall, annually, at the time of assessing and levying taxes therein, cause to be made, assessed and levied, for each year, upon all the taxable property of such county, in addition to other authorized taxes, a sufficient sum to pay the interest upon the bonds issued and disposed of under the provisions of this act for the benefit of such county. And twenty years after such bonds shall have been issued the county commissioners or proper county officials may cause to be levied an additional amount, annually, sufficient to pay ten per cent. of the total amount of such bonds so issued, and shall make such levy thirty years after the issue of such bonds, and shall maintain such last mentioned levy until a sinking fund has been provided sufficient to pay the total amount of such bonded indebtedness; and such sinking fund levy shall be in addition to the annual interest levy provided for in this section; and all such taxes shall be assessed, levied and collected as other county taxes are assessed, levied and collected, but the proceeds of such levy shall be paid directly into the hands of the territorial treasurer by the officer or officers collecting the same.

Sec. 6. In event sufficient money shall not be realized each year from the collection of taxes under the levy provided in section 5 of this act to be made, with which to pay the interest on said bonds when due, the deficiency shall be paid out of any funds in the treasury of said county, and such deficiency shall be paid over by the proper officer or officers entrusted with such county funds upon demand therefor by the territorial treasurer: Provided, that all moneys collected in such county for the payment of such interest, remaining in such fund after such payment, shall be paid into such fund or funds of such county, to reimburse said fund or funds for any such amount so paid out as herein provided, for interest payments.

Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of the proper officers of such counties, respectively, to assess, levy and collect the taxes in