Chap. 101.—An ACT authorizing the board of supervisors of Floyd county to
levy a tax on dogs and to enforce collection of said tax, with certain penal-
ties in case of failure to pay same.

Approved February 13, 1901.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That the board
of supervisors of the county of Floyd be, and they are, hereby authorized
to levy a tax on all dogs in said county, such tax to be fifty cents on each
male and one dollar on each female dog over four months of age; but
said board of supervisors may, in their diseretion, increase said tax on
each male not to execed one dollar, and on each female not to exceed
two dollars.
2. It shall be the duty of the commissioner of the revenue of said
county to take annually, at the time of listing the taxable property in
sard county, a list of all dogs therein, showing whether the same are
male or female, with the name of the owner, or the person in whose
possession said dogs are found. Said assessors shall ascertain every doy
usually staying on each of the several lots or tracts of land in the said
county, and shall list said dogs as staying upon the said lot or tract of
land, whether the owner or tenant be ascertained or not; and the said
assessors shall examine the respective owners or tenants of said lots or
tracts of Jand, on oath, as to the number and ownership, or at
having possession, of every dog staying on his said lot or tract of land.

3. ‘The said board of supervisors are authorized to devote the pro-
weet of the tax above mentioned to the payment of claims for sheep
killed by dogs, and to turn over any surplus, after the payment of said
claiins, to the district school or road fund, in proportion to the amount
of tax collected on dogs in the respective districts.

It shall be the duty of any justice of the peace of said county, whenever
any owner of sheep, or agent, shall make complaint, on oath, before
him that his or her sheep have been killed or severely wounded by dogs
other than his or her own, to issue a summons to three frecholders in the
neighborhood, any two of whom may act, who, being legally sworn, shall
go forthwith on the premises where such sheep may be, and examine
into the facts and justice of the complaint, and appraise the amount of
damages sustained by the owner, so that the damage shall not execed
the appraised value of the sheep killed or wounded, and return a certi-
ficeate of the same, under their hands, to the said owner or agent, and
a like certificate to the clerk of the county court, who shall present it to
the board of supervisors at their next mecting.

4. The treasurer of the said county shall collect the tax above men-
tioned as other taxes are now collected by law, and he and his sureties
shall be accountable for the same as for other funds now cominitted to him
by law; and he shall make an annual settlement of the same with the
board of supervisors of his said county: and said treasurer shall disburse
the said funds arising from the said tax according to orders from the
said board of supervisors, and any balance due after the annual disburse-
ments shall likewise be paid over by him according to their order.

5. In case the tax due on any dog be not paid by the owner or person
having possession of said dog, or by the person owning the land on
which the said dog commonly stavs, then it shall be the duty of the
oflicer collecting the said tax to forthwith report all such dogs to some
justice of the peace in the magisterial district in which the person owning
the dog resides, or in which the dog commonly stays, of the said county.
who shall forthwith cause the owner of the said dog, or the person in
possession of the same, or on whose land the dog may be found, as the
case may be, to be summoned before the said justice. to show cause why
the said dog or dogs (giving a description of the same as near as may
he) should not be killed for failure in payment of tax due upon the said
dog or dogs. Tf the tax due upon the said dog he not paid then the said
justice shall cause the said dog to be killed by the sheriff or any constable
of the said county.

6. In reporting the dogs on which no tax has been paid, the officer
collecting said tax shall report to the justice all dogs staying on any lot
or tract of land.

7. The owner or tenant of any lot or tract of land so summoned before
a justice, as hereinbefore provided, shall give the number of the dogs
on his Jand that have no owner or owners, and for which no certificate
of a commissioner of the revenue has been given, and all such dogs shall
be forthwith ordered by the justice to be killed by an officer designated
by the said justice.

8. The board of supervisors of said county may allow such fee out
of the fund herein provided for as they may deem proper to any oflicer
performing any of the acts directed by this act.

9. Any officer or person failing to comply with the provisions of this
act shall be fined ten dollars, to be recovered before any justice of the
county in which said act is to be performed, one-half to go to the in-
former.

10. This act shall not affect sections four hundred and ninety-nine,
five hundred, twenty-one hundred and ninety-two, and twenty-one hun-
dred and ninety-three of the code of Virginia.

11. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are hereby
repealed.