Mich. 524 (145 N. W. 98), in which Act No. 5, Pub. Acts 1913, was under consideration, this court held that the legality of said amendment (to section 7, chap. 11, of the Detroit charter), increasing its bond limit from 2 to 4 per cent., could not be questioned. The amendment of said section so recently adopted increasing the limit to 4 per cent. indicates an intent and purpose, on the part and so far as within the power of the electorate of the city, that the section should remain in force. If each issue within that limit could only be by a vote of the electorate, why and for whom should they fix a general limit?

As before stated, the course prescribed by section. 7, chap. 11, of the charter, was followed in authorizing and issuing these bonds, but it is urged that, with this limit fixed by a popular vote amending the section in question, bonds not exceeding the limit cannot be lawfully authorized and issued in compliance with the provisions of said section unless each issue is approved by a three-fifths vote of the electors at a general or special election, in compliance with subdivision "e" of section 5 of the home rule act of 1909, as amended by Act No. 203, Pub. Acts 1911. As amended said subdivision provides:

*

"No city shall have power * * to authorize any issue of bonds except special assessment bonds, refunding bonds, and emergency bonds as defined by this act and bonds that it is annually authorized to issue, unless approved by three-fifths of the electors voting thereon at any general or special election."

As originally enacted, the subdivision does not contain this restriction. Without it the authority of the common council and board of estimates to exercise the powers conferred and previously exercised under said section 7, chap. 11, of the charter, cannot be seriously questioned.

By Act No. 203, Pub. Acts 1911, section 2 of the home rule act was amended to read:

"Each city now existing shall continue with all its present rights and powers except as herein otherwise provided."

It is urged the provision for a three-fifths vote in subdivision "e" of section 5 should stand, although this act was apparently held unconstitutional in the Gallup Case, because there section 2 was not necessarily involved, and the decision, so far as that section is concerned, is not controlling. An examination of the record and briefs in the Gallup Case discloses that both the validity of the original act and the constitutionality of the amendment were in issue and passed upon by the trial court. Counsel for complainant elaborately briefed both issues in this court, urging objections against the constitutionality of the amendment, the sufficiency of which opposing counsel conceded here, for which reason the question was not reviewed at length. It was held, however, that the city, in revising its charter, might ignore the provisions of the amendatory act, because it was unconstitutional, and the decision of the trial court that it was void in its entirety was sustained. Whether essential or not to the disposition of that case, we see no sufficient reason to reverse such conclusion.

Section 20, art. 8, of the Constitution, was amended in close sequence, and in the light of those decisions construing it as then prohibiting piecemeal amendments of old charters because of an indicated intent to prohibit a confusing lack of uniformity in city charters, which might otherwise result. This amendment has eliminated those reasons from consideration and emphasized the intent to confer upon cities a large degree of autonomous power in strictly local matters. In Detroit, authority in the council to issue bonds for

187 Mich.-7.

certain purposes, according to the provisions of section 7, chap. 11, of its charter, existed at the time and long before the adoption of the Constitution of 1909. By that Constitution, which first provided for the home rule law and now by express terms authorizes piecemeal amendment of old charters, Detroit continued with all its former charter rights and powers, whatever they were, until otherwise provided by law. The amendment to section 7, raising its bond limit from 2 to 4 per cent., introduced no new feature which in any particular contravened the Constitution or any general law of the State.

Objection is further made to the proposed issue of $350,000 10-year public lighting bonds, for the reason that, with those now outstanding, they exceed the limit authorized by the charter. The charter authorizes the common council to establish a public lighting plant, "the cost of which shall not exceed $800,000." It is also provided in that connection that funds for that purpose may be raised by tax or by bonds, in the discretion of the council, "payable at such time and in such amount and at such rate as the council may determine" and the board of estimates may approve. "Such amount" as the council may determine should be read and construed in connection with what precedes and which makes plain that the cost of said plant, whether paid for by taxation or bonds, shall not exceed $800,000. This necessary construction was manifestly adopted by the city authorities when the $800,000 so authorized had been expended. Desiring an additional $150,000 for that purpose, a local act of the legislature was deemed necessary and secured (Act No. 468, Local Acts 1905) which authorized a bond issue for that amount.

The authority of the common council of Detroit is, however, conferred and limited by its charter. Section 7 of chapter 11 empowers the council only to issue

bonds for "the public sewer fund for construction of trunk public sewers, and the public building fund and a fund for the purchase or construction of public utilities," and provides that "bonds issued by authority of this section shall be respectively denominated 'public sewer bonds,' 'public building bonds,' and 'public utility bonds.'" Section 1, chap. 11, of the charter (Act No. 326, Local Acts 1883), thus defines the public building fund:

"Public building fund, for purchasing any real estate for the erection thereon of any public buildings, and to defray the expenses of erecting, repairing, and preserving such public buildings as the common council is authorized to erect and maintain, and are not herein otherwise provided for, which fund shall, from time to time, be divided into special building funds, to defray the expenses of erecting, repairing, and preserving the particular building or buildings for which such special building fund may be constituted or raised."

It is to be noted that in the original authorization by the council of bonds aggregating $2,863,000 there were included $383,000 for a garbage reduction plant and $695,000 for hospital site and buildings. The bonds proposed to be sold and in issue here aggregate $1,228,000, and no mention of garbage plant or hospital site and buildings is made, but they include $270,000 30-year public building bonds and $408,000 10-year public building bonds. It is urged against these that under the name of "public building bonds" was necessarily included and manifestly intended to be issued a part of the hospital and garbage plant bonds; that buildings for which public building bonds may be authorized and sold by the common council are public buildings, within the meaning of the charter, which does not include garbage plants or hospitals. Not only is a garbage fund and a hospital fund "otherwise provided for" in the charter, which at least raises a doubt as to the intent to include those subjects in the section

relating to a public building fund, but the legislative interpretation of the council's authority in that connection makes plain that it does not, as subsequently shown.

It is to be borne in mind that the provisions referred to are a part of the city charter granted by the legislature to Detroit before the Constitution of 1909 gave cities the power, through the legislature, to adopt, revise, and amend their charters, and, as just pointed out, said charter remains in force until the city sees fit to change it. Before the common council could issue bonds to erect and equip a hospital for contagious diseases, it was found necessary to obtain authority to do so from the same power which granted the charter (Act No. 404, Local Acts 1905), and in like manner an amendment of the city charter was obtained (Act No. 670, Local Acts 1905) to authorize the common council to issue bonds to the extent of $100,000 to provide a garbage and refuse plant. While it is now within the power of the city to amend its charter and authorize the council to issue further bonds for that purpose, we do not discover that it has done so, and, until it does, that authority does not rest in the council.

The "public building bonds" proposed to be sold, and involved here, total $678,000. Exclusive of garbage reduction plant and hospital site and buildings, $625,000 public building bonds were originally authorized. It is to be assumed that the proceeds of any bonds sold will be applied as legally authorized.

It follows from the foregoing that the writ of mandamus granted by the circuit court cannot be sustained in its entirety.

Distinct determinations of the circuit court as to different proposed issues of bonds are involved and presented for review in this proceeding. The legal and illegal matters are independent of each other and