People Ex Rel. Moshier v. City of Springfield

It is settled that the creation of a debt which must be discharged by the imposition or levy of a tax is essentially the same as the direct imposition of a tax. (People v. Block, 276 Ill. 286; Morgan v. Schusselle, 228 id. 106; People v. Mayor, 51 id. 17.) I can not concur in the conclusion of the majority of the court that the indebtedness which the legislature has imposed upon cities for the payment of minimum salaries to firemen, without the consent of the corporate officers or the inhabitants of the municipalities, is not a debt for a corporate purpose. In my judgment the Firemen’s…