The constitutional limit of municipal indebtedness does not mean that every public corporation has power to incur debts to that amount. Municipalities have no greater powers than the legislature confers upon them. There is no constitutional limit on the amount of taxes that the legislature can authorize municipalities to levy.[90] They may incur only such debts, not exceeding the constitutional limit, and levy such taxes as the general assembly authorizes them to do. Several municipal corporations, however, may be created under legislative authority for different purposes, embracing all or part of the same territory, and each of these overlapping municipalities may be given power to levy taxes and incur debts up to the constitutional limit. To restrain the increasing burden of taxes, the legislature in 1901 passed the so-called Juul law, designed to limit the aggregate taxes which might be levied upon any community in any one year to five per cent of the assessed valuation of property therein; but the constitutionality of this statute has been questioned and the amendments of and numerous exceptions to its provisions made by the legislature have left its operation, if not its continued existence, so doubtful that its repeal has been sought on divers occasions.[91] The county of Cook is permitted to levy taxes not exceeding seventy-five cents on every one hundred dollars, without popular vote, and to levy any additional taxes voted by the people. County bonds may be voted by the people in any such amount as not to cause the total debt of the county to exceed five per cent of the assessed value of the property therein. The assessed value for the year 1908 was $514,730,186, of which five per cent is $25,736,509. Up to that limit the county might become indebted by vote of the people. The present bonded debt is $9,360,000, and the floating debt averages about $1,600,000. Without aiming at nicety of detail, it may be said that the county has at present a borrowing capacity, in round figures, of $15,000,000. The operation of the Juul law, however, now reduces the tax available for the general expenses of Cook County to sixty-five cents on one hundred dollars; and the increasing demands upon the county would probably necessitate a modification of this law, so as specifically to exclude from its limitations the taxes necessary to care for additional bond issues and provide for future maintenance of county parks or boulevards.