Under this section (§ 4736, C. L. 1915), providing that highway proceedings are subject to review by certiorari, if taxpayers fail to use the writ of certiorari to review proceedings because of defective advertising for bids within the prescribed time, such proceedings cannot be questioned afterwards in any suit at law or in equity.-McDermott v. Kent Co. Road Com'rs, 199 / 613.

cured.

of legality.

prima facie evidence.

Records, etc..

Omissions

not to affect

validity.

(450) § 4737. SEC. 67. No tax assessed under this act Irregularities upon any property or sale therefor, shall be held invalid by any court of this state on account of any irregularity in any assessment, or on account of any tax roll not having been made, or proceeding had within the time required by law, or on account of the property having been assessed without the name of the owner, or in the name of any person other than the owner, or on acocunt of any other irregularity, informality, omission, or want of any matter or form or substance in any proceeding that does not prejudice the property rights of the person whose property is taxed; and all pro- Presumption ceedings in assessing and levying taxes, and in the sale and conveyance therefor, shall be presumed by all the courts of this state to be legal until the contrary is affirmatively shown. All records, statements and certificates herein provided for, shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein set forth. The absence of any record of any proceeding or proceedings, or the omission of any mention in any record of any vote or proceeding, or mention of any matter in any statement or certificate that should appear therein under the provisions of this act, shall not affect the validity of any proceeding, tax, or title thereon, providing the fact that such vote or proceeding was had or tax authorized is shown by any other record, statement or certificate made evidence by the terms of this act or any other law of this state. No tax or sale of property for any tax, shall be rendered or held invalid by showing that any record, statement, affidavit, certificate, paper or return cannot be found in the proper office. Unless the contrary is af- Presumption firmatively shown, the presumption shall be that such record ness. was made, and that such certificate, statement, affidavit, paper, or return, was duly made and filed. Where any statement, certificate or record is required to be made or signed by the county road commissioners, such statement, certificate or record may be made and signed by the members of said commission, or a majority of them, and it shall not be necessary that other members be present when each signs the same. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to authorize any showing impeaching the validity of any deed executed by the auditor general under the provisions of this act, but such Tax deeds deed shall be held absolute and conclusive as provided in general tax laws of the state.

of correct

Records, etc., how signed.

Construction of provisions.

not affected.

of actions.

(451) § 4738. SEC. 68. No suit shall be instituted to re- Limitation cover any tax or money paid, or for property therefor, or for damages on account thereof, unless brought within thirty days from the time of payment of such money to, or for the sale of such property by, the collecting officers; and if such under protest. tax be paid under protest, the reasons therefor shall be speci

Payment

Proviso,

suits against county.

Injunctions restricted.

Collection not to be enJoined, etc.

Delinquent taxes, how sued for.

Who party to suit.

fied, and the same procedure observed as is, and may be required by the general tax law: Provided, That suits specified in this section shall be brought against the county at large.

(452) § 4739. SEC. 69. After any taxes shall have been assessed for the improvement of any highway under this act, no injunction shall issue to restrain the spreading of the same upon the tax roll, nor to restrain the collection thereof, nor shall the same be in any manner stayed, except as provided in provisions for certiorari unless the amount of such assessment shall be first paid to the county treasurer to be ap plied upon such taxes in case the court in which the suit upon which such injunction is tried, shall so order.

(453) § 4740. SEC. 70. The collection of no tax levied, or ordered to be levied for the payment of the improvement or construction of any highway laid out under this act shall be perpetually enjoined, or declared absolutely void in consequence of any error or informality appearing in the record of the proceedings under which any highway shall have been constructed or improved, nor on account of any irregularity or informality in the condemnation of the right of way, nor for want of any record thereof, but the court in which any action may be brought to recover any tax or assessment paid, or to declare void the highway proceedings, or to enjoin any tax or assessment levied or ordered to be levied for the pay ment of the labor and expenses of the improvement thereof, shall, if there be manifest error in the proceedings, allow the county road commissioners, or the state highway commis sioner, to begin their proceedings anew at the stage prior to which the error occurred.

Am. 1917, Act 125.

(454) § 4741. SEC. 71. Any taxes that may have been assessed and returned delinquent to the county treasurer upon any lands and by virtue of the provisions of this act and remaining unpaid, may be sued for, by the county road commissioners of the county in which such delinquent lands are situated, or by the state highway commissioner, in an action of assumpsit before any court of competent jurisdiction; or the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, may file their bill in equity to enforce the lien of such tax against the real estate charged therewith, in the same manner as mortgages are foreclosed in chancery. court may order the sale of such delinquent lands at any time after six months from the filing of such bill in chancery.

Am. Id.

The

(455) 4742. SEC. 72. In § case any suit shall be brought to set aside any tax assessed under the provisions of this act, or in any way attacking the legality of the proceedings had under this act, the county road commissioners, or the

state highway commissioner, shall be made a party to such suit. The county in which such road district shall be situated, if operating under the county road system, shall likewise be made a party and process shall be served upon the clerk of such county.

Am. Id.

set aside.

(456) § 4743. SEC. 73. In case any tax assessed under When tax the provisions of this act shall be set aside, except for the reason that the petition for the improvement does not confer jurisdiction to act, the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, shall begin proceedings anew at the stage where they shall be correct.

Am. Id.

When proceedings re

(457) § 4744. SEC. 74. SEC. 74. Whenever the work of improving any highway has been wholly or partly completed, and commenced. payment for same has not been legally made, the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, shall proceed without unnecessary delay to start such proceedings anew, providing the petition for the improvement confers jurisdiction upon the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, at such a stage as may be correct; and the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, shall proceed to take the necessary steps under the provisions of this act, and shall reassess upon the lands benefited by the improvement, the original cost thereof, together with all expense of completing the proceedings, and continue so to do, until such improvement has been legally constructed: Provided, That on such recording and legally Proviso. completing the proceedings, it shall not be necessary to readvertise the letting or to make a new contract for the letting and constructing of the improvement, but the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, shall advertise a day of review for benefits in the manner provided in the first instance: Provided further, That any person Further who has paid taxes for benefits assessed against him for such improvement, shall be allowed the amount so paid; and the collecting officer shall accept the receipt theretofore issued as cash, and the same shall be applied upon such new assessment.

Am. Id.

(458) $ 4745. SEC. 75. Should any section or a part of a section of this act be held inoperative or invalid for any reason, such invalidity shall not be deemed to affect the other valid sections of this act, which shall be and remain in force. (459) SEC. 76. All proceedings heretofore taken under this act shall not be defeated or nullified because of any irreg. ularity therein if there has been a substantial compliance with the requirements of the said measure as hereby amended.

proviso.

Clerical errors.

Notice of.

Who to correct errors.

Lands omitted through

error.

Such proceedings heretofore commenced under said act shall not be invalidated either in whole or in part hereby, but may be completed under the provisions hereof.

Added 1917, Act 125.

(460) SEC. 77. After the county road commissioners shall have made their apportionment of benefits, and held a review of the same, whether an appeal has been taken there from or not, but in case of appeal, then after such appeal shall have been decided, and it shall appear that any parcel of land has been omitted by clerical error within the boundaries of the district finally established, or that parcels of land have been misdescribed, or the acreage stated to be more or less than it really is or that the amount appearing on the roll as assessed against any parcel of land is erroneous because of a clerical error, the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, may correct such errors in the manner herein provided.

Added Id.; Am. 1919, Act 107.

(461) SEC. 78. The county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, on discovering any of the afore said errors, may make their order reciting the particular errors, or that there appears to be error in the designated descriptions, and give notice of the review and correction thereof in any road district affected in the same manner as is required for the review of the apportionment of benefits in the first instance, except that the county at large or townships at large need not be notified. The meeting of the county road commissioners or of the state highway commissioner to review and correct such errors shall be held at some place in the road district to be affected.

Added 1917, Act 125.

(462) SEC. 79. At such meeting, the county road commissioners, or the state highway commissioner, shall correct Adjournment. the errors aforesaid. Such meeting may be adjourned from time to time, public announcement of such adjournment being made in each case. Where lands within the boundaries of the assessment district as established have been omitted by clerical mistake from the apportionment of benefits, or from the special assessment roll, they may be added thereto, and shall be assessed their proportionate share of the cost of the improvement. Where lands have been erroneously described, acreage, etc. they shall be correctly described as near as may be. Where the acreage of any parcel is erroneously stated to be more or less than it really is, such acreage shall be correctly stated as near as may be. Where the apportionment of benefits has already been determined by the state highway commissioner, or by the appellate boards, upon an acreage basis, the tax or apportionment upon any parcel where the acreage

Erroneous description,

was wrong in the first instance shall be increased or reduced as the case may be, proportionate to the increase or decrease of the acreage of that parcel. Where any parcel of land is charged on the roll with an assessment that is improper because of some clerical error, such assessment shall be corrected.

Added Id.; Am. 1919, Act 107.

Crediting

excessive

Imposing additional tax.

Adding to roll

of omitted

(463) SEC. 80. If a parcel of land shall have been erroneously assessed too high by reason of a mistake in the acreage taxation. of the parcel, and one or more years' tax shall have been paid thereon, the board of county road commissioners or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, in their next assessment roll after the hearing herein provided, shall credit such parcel with the excessive tax theretofore paid or charged to it, and thereafter shall place the same upon the assessment roll as equalized under this act. If a parcel of land theretofore has been assessed too low by reason of a mistake of the acreage of such parcel, the board of county road commissioners or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, in the aforesaid next roll, shall charge such parcel with the additional tax which said parcel did not pay or was not charged with on prior rolls by reason of the mistake aforesaid, and thereafter shall place such parcel upon the assessment roll as equalized under this act. If any parcel of land has been erroneously omitted from the apportionment of benefits of the tax roll, the board of county road commissioners or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, in their next assessment roll shall add such parcel to the roll and charge the same with all taxes theretofore omitted, as well as the tax it should regularly bear on that roll, and thereafter shall place the same upon the assessment roll as equalized under this act. It shall be assessed its just proportion of the cost of the same. Where the tax upon any parcel of improper tax. land as shown by the roll is improper because of some clerical error the same shall be corrected, and the county road commissioners or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, in their next assessment roll shall charge such parcel with the tax found to have been omitted, or credit said parcel with the amount of tax theretofore charged in excess of what it should have been; and thereafter they shall place said parcel upon the assessment roll as equalized under this act.

Am. Id.

(464) SEC. 81. The county road commissioners or the state highway commissioner, as the case may be, shall have no power to change the apportionment or tax upon any parcels of land except for the errors as in this act provided, or has been provided in said act number fifty-nine of the public acts of nineteen hundred fifteen.

Added 1917, Act 125.

land.

Correction of

Apportionment changed

for errors.