Anthony Crane Rental, LP v. Fruge

• Court: Louisiana Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: KIMBALL, Justice.
• Citation: Anthony Crane Rental, LP v. Fruge, 859 So.2d 631 (La. 2003)
• Decision Date: 21 October 2003
• Docket Number: No. 2003-C-0115.,2003-C-0115.
• Parties: ANTHONY CRANE RENTAL, L.P. v. Rufus FRUGE, Jr., Director of Calcasieu Parish Sales & Use Tax Dept.

859 So.2d 631

ANTHONY CRANE RENTAL, L.P. v. Rufus FRUGE, Jr., Director of Calcasieu Parish Sales & Use Tax Dept.

No. 2003-C-0115.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

October 21, 2003.

Rehearing Denied December 12, 2003.

Toni L. Petrofes, Russell J. Stutes, Jr., John M. Veron, Jr., John C. Guillet, Scofield, Gerard, Veron, Singletary & Pohorelsky, Lake Charles, Counsel for Applicant.

David R. Cassidy, David R. Kelly, Breazeale, Sachse & Wilson, Baton Rouge, Counsel for Respondent.

Robert F. Mulhearn, Jr., and Robert R. Rainer, Baton Rouge, Counsel for amici curiae Ascension Parish Sales and Use Tax Collection, Caddo Parish Sales and Use Tax Collection, Livingston Parish Sales and Use Tax Collection, St. Mary Parish Sales and Use Tax Collection, West Baton Rouge Sales and Use Tax Collection.

James M. Wooderson, Lafayette, Counsel for amicus curiae Lafayette Parish School Board.

Lea Anne Batson, Baton Rouge, Counsel for amicus curiae City of Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish.

Andrew A. Lemmon, New Orleans, Roy M. Lilly, Jr., Minden, Johnette L. Martin, Houma, Counsel for amici curiae St. Charles Parish School Board, and St. John the Baptist Parish School Board, Plaquemines Parish Government.

Margaret H. Kern, Covington, Counsel for amicus curiae Rodney Strain, Jr.

John A. Gallagher, Jr., Baton Rouge, Counsel for amicus curiae Louisiana Municipal Association.

KIMBALL, Justice.

In this case, we are asked to reconsider our holding in Elevating Boats v. St. Bernard Parish, 00-3518 (La.9/5/01), 795 So.2d 1153, that a local taxing authority's combined interest, penalties and attorney fees assessment against delinquent taxes cannot exceed the 15% interest penalty provision of La. R.S. 33:2746. For the reasons that follow, after considering the language in La. R.S. 33:2841 and La. R.S. 33:2746 and the legislative history of the statutes, we hold that local taxing authorities are authorized to impose, through proper elections, 15% interest, 25% penalties and 10% attorney fees on delinquent taxes. Any holding in Elevating Boats to the contrary is hereby overruled.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Anthony Crane Rental, L.P. (ACR), is a Pennsylvania limited partnership that operates a crane rental business with an office in Westlake, Louisiana, in Calcasieu Parish. Through this office, ACR leases cranes, purchased outside of Louisiana, to companies in the State. ACR was audited by the Calcasieu Parish School System Sales and Use Tax Department (the Department) for the period covering January 1, 1995 through June 30, 1998, and was assessed sales and use taxes for the cranes. ACR protested the assessment, but was denied relief. ACR then paid, under protest, the Department's final assessment of February 25, 2000, and filed a Petition for Refund to recover the amounts, essentially arguing that the cranes were excluded from taxation, that certain statutes relating to taxation were unconstitutional, that if it were liable for the taxes the Department failed to apply a mandated credit, and that the interest charged by the Department was excessive. The Department answered and requested attorney fees as provided by law. Cross motions for summary judgment were filed by both parties.

After a hearing in April 2001, the trial court denied ACR's motion for summary judgment and granted the Department's motion for summary judgment ordering that ACR pay taxes, interest, penalties and attorney fees of 10% up to a maximum of $60,000.00. The original judgment assessed interest at the rate of 15% per annum, penalties in the amount of 25% of the outstanding tax, and attorney fees under Calcasieu Parish School Board Sales Tax Ordinance section 6.09.¹ ACR filed a Motion for New Trial, which was granted only on the issue of attorney fees, interest and penalties. The trial court ruled that the combined interest and penalties charged by the Department could not exceed 15%, citing Elevating Boats, a case in which this court held that a Parish's combined interest, penalties and attorney fees cannot exceed the 15% interest penalty permitted by La. R.S. 33:2746 when collecting delinquent sales and use taxes. However, the trial court allowed the stipulation of 10% attorney fees the parties entered into prior to judgment to stand. Both parties appealed.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed the district court judgment in part, reversed in part and remanded the case for further proceedings. See Anthony Crane Rental, L.P. v. Fruge, 02-0635 (La. App. 3 Cir. 12/11/02), 833 So.2d 1070. Specifically, the court of appeal affirmed the trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant, Rufus Fruge, Jr., Director of Calcasieu Parish Sales and Use Tax Department, finding that ACR, was subject to its sales and use tax and was not entitled to a credit. However, the court of appeal reversed the trial court's judgment regarding penalties, holding that the combined interest, penalties and attorney fees award was not to exceed the 15% interest penalty permitted by La. R.S. 33:2746. Thus, the court of appeal held that the trial court, under Elevating Boats, should have abated the attorney fee award to bring the combined interest, penalties and attorney fees award to 15%. Accordingly, the court of appeal remanded the case to the trial court for a determination of the exact amount owed in penalties.

On the application of Director Fruge on behalf of Calcasieu Parish, we granted certiorari to reconsider our holding in Elevating Boats regarding La. R.S. 33:2746. See Anthony Crane Rental, L.P. v. Fruge, 03-0115 (La.3/28/03), 842 So.2d 1082.

LAW AND DISCUSSION

The function of statutory interpretation and the construction to be given to legislative acts rests with the judicial branch of the government. Touchard v. Williams, 617 So.2d 885 (La.1993). In Elevating Boats, this court addressed the conflict between St. Bernard Parish's local ordinance imposing a 25% penalty and 10% attorney fees and La. R.S. 33:2746, which provides for a 15% interest penalty for the nonpayment of tax. Based only on the language of the statute itself, we interpreted La. R.S. 33:2746 as setting a 15% cap on the combined interest, penalties and attorney fees that a local taxing authority can assess on the collection of delinquent taxes.

Under the general rules of statutory construction, courts begin with the premise that legislation is the solemn expression of legislative will and, therefore, the interpretation of a law involves, primarily, the search for the legislature's intent. La. Civ. C. art. 1; Falgout v. Dealers Truck Equipment Co., 98-3150, p. 2 (La.10/19/99), 748 So.2d 399, 401 (citing Fontenot v. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., 95-1425, p. 6 (La.7/2/96), 676 So.2d 557, 562). When a law is clear and unambiguous and its application does not lead to absurd consequences, the law shall be applied as written and no further interpretation may be made in search of the intent of the legislature. La. Civ. C. art. 9; Falgout, 98-3150 at p. 2, 748 So.2d at 401 (citing Breaux v. Hoffpauir, 95-2933, pp. 2-3 (La.5/21/96), 674 So.2d 234, 236).

Further, it is a well-recognized and long-established rule of statutory construction that statutory provisions should be construed along with the remainder of the statute, and all statutes on the same subject matter should be read together and interpreted as a whole to effect the legislative intent and should be construed in such a way as to reconcile, if possible, apparent inconsistencies or ambiguities so that each part is given effect. Comm-Care Corp. v. Bishop, 96-1711 (La.7/1/97), 696 So.2d 969. Courts should give effect to all parts of a statute and should not give a statute an interpretation that makes any part superfluous or meaningless, if that result can be avoided. In re Succession of Boyter, 99-0761, p. 9 (La.1/7/00), 756 So.2d 1122, 1129 (citing First Nat'l Bank of Boston v. Beckwith Mach. Co., 94-2065 (La.2/20/95), 650 So.2d 1148). It is presumed that the intention of the legislative branch is to achieve a consistent body of law. Boyter, 99-0761 at p. 9, 756 So.2d at 1130 (citing Stogner v. Stogner, 98-3044, p. 2 (La.7/7/99), 739 So.2d 762).

The starting point for the interpretation of any statute, then, is the language of the statute itself. Touchard v. Williams, 617 So.2d at 888. In this case, the two statutes at issue are La. R.S. 33:2841 regarding the collection of taxes and La. R.S. 33:2746 regarding the penalty for nonpayment of taxes.

La. R.S. 33:2841

The Department argues that in deciding Elevating Boats, wherein this court held that under La. R.S. 33:2746, a Parish's combined interest, penalties and attorney fees on delinquent taxes could not exceed 15%, this court failed to consider the provisions of La. R.S. 33:2841.

La. R.S. 33:2841 provides:

A political corporation may through the officer whose duty it is to receive and collect the taxes and moneys due the corporation, enforce the collection of any taxes due to it, within the time and in the manner provided for the collection of taxes due to the state.

Specifically, the Department argues that the phrase "within the time and in the manner provided for the collection of taxes due to the state" authorizes municipalities to collect local taxes using the same enforcement remedies available to the State of leveling 15% interest per year,² 25% penalties³ and 10% attorney fees⁴ on delinquent taxes. Accordingly, the Department contends that the voters of Calcasieu Parish, by the authority of La. R.S. 33:2841, enacted Calcasieu Parish School Board Ordinance § 6.09, which adopted the same remedies utilized by the State for the collection of interest, penalties and attorney fees.⁵ Conversely, ACR argues that the phrase "within the time and in the manner provided for the collection of taxes due to the state" applies only to the assessment and collection procedures utilized by the State, set forth in La. R.S. 47:1561, et seq and not the State's interest and penalty provisions,...