Fort Orange Council, Inc. v. French

• Decision Date: 02 October 1956
• Docket Number: No. 1125,1125
• Citation: 119 Vt. 378,125 A.2d 835
• Parties: FORT ORANGE COUNCIL, Inc., Boy Scouts of America, v. Herbert FRENCH et al., Town of Stratton, Town of Stratton School District.
• Court: Vermont Supreme Court

Page 835

125 A.2d 835

119 Vt. 378

FORT ORANGE COUNCIL, Inc., Boy Scouts of America, v. Herbert FRENCH et al., Town of Stratton, Town of Stratton

School District.

No. 1125.

Supreme Court of Vermont.

Oct. 2, 1956.

Waldo C. Holden, Bennington, for plaintiff.

John A. Lowery, Bellows Falls (A. Luke Crispe, Brattleboro, on the brief), for defendant.

Before JEFFORDS, C. J., CLEARY, ADAMS and HULBURD, JJ., and BARNEY, Superior Judge.

HULBURD, Justice.

The plaintiff is Fort Orange Council, Inc., Boy Scouts of America, a New York corporation. It brought its petition in chancery for a declaratory judgment to determine the taxability of its real and personal property situated in the town of Stratton, Vermont. The defendants are the listers and tax collector of the town of Stratton, the town of Stratton, and its alter ego, the town of Stratton School District.

A hearing was had before the chancellor who made findings of fact and amended findings of fact and thereafter signed a declaratory decree holding the property in question to be exempt from taxation. To this decree the defendants have excepted. They do not challenge the chancellor's findings. Their only exception is to the decree. But one question is raised here: is the decree warranted by the pleadings and supported by the findings of fact? Baker v. Koslowski, 117 Vt. 124, 85 A.2d 500. The defendants claim that when the law is applied to the facts found the decree can not be justified. This leads, first, to an examination of the facts found, and, secondly, to a consideration of the applicable statutes. The facts that are before us follow:

The plaintiff, Fort Orange Council, Inc., Boy Scouts of America, is a non-profit corporation without capital stock and with no income or dividends accruing to any person. It is found to be a corporation created for charitable purposes. It was organized under the laws of New York, with its principal office in Albany of that State. By its certificate of incorporation on file with the Secretary of State for the State of New York, it declares the purpose of its incorporation to be as follows:

'The particular objects for which this corporation is formed are to develop character and usefulness of its members and to improve the mental, social and physical condition of young men; to promote ability of the boys to do things for themselves and others; to train them in scoutcraft and to teach them patriotism, courage, self reliance and kindred virtues.'

On April 1, 1948 the plaintiff purchased some 1,600 acres of land in the town of Stratton, Vermont. The subject matter of this litigation is a parcel consisting of 400 acres referred to as Lot 3 in the Seventh Range. On this tract the plaintiff operates a Boy Scout Camp for the conduct of an organized training program designed to carry out the express purposes of the corporation as stated in its certificate of incorporation. This project encompasses a total investment of $100,000 including land, roads, trails, buildings,--including administration building, health lodge, equipment and storage facilities and some seven camp sites. On Lot 3 there is also a water front development for swimming and boating and several troop camp sites. The land in question is used exclusively for the purposes recited in the plaintiff's certificate of incorporation previously quoted. However, such use is not exclusive to the members of the Fort Orange Council, Inc., Boy Scouts of America but is available to and used by Boy Scouts from any other section of the country, who care to take advantage of the project. During the summer of 1955 about one thousand Boy Scouts made use of the facilities, coming mainly from Albany, Rensselaer and Columbia Counties in new York State, but there were Scouts from other areas, including one troop from Arkansas and one from Vermont.

The sources of revenue for the operation of the Boy Scout Camp at Stratton exclusive of campers' fees is derived from Community Chest of Albany, Community Chest of Hudson, the Hawley fund so-called, a trust fund designed for the advancement of Scouting and various minor miscellaneous contributions. In addition some revenue is derived from sales of commodities at the camp canteen. Boy Scouts in attendance at the camp are charged a minimum weekly fee of $3 per camper where no sustenance is provided. A minimum weekly fee of $20 is assessed for a provisional site where board is provided. Camp sites are available to Boy Scout troops including tent, bedding, equipment and use of the general camp facilities with a minimum charge per troop of $35 per week. Fifty campers can be accommodated at such site. During the last four years no profit has been derived from this source of revenue.

The camp is operated in the summer and during weekends throughout the year in furtherance of the program as established on a nationwide basis of the Boy Scouts of America. Boy Scouts using the camp facilities devote 75% of their time in pursuit of an established training and education program under trained Boy Scout leaders. Approximately 25% of the time is devoted to recreational activities conducted on a supervised basis under the same leadership. Of those attending approximately 80% received instruction and earned advancement in scouting grade through the various established ranks as set forth in the national Boy Scout program. The training program, carried out at the camp, has the primary objective of developing character and citizenship. Incident to this program training is afforded the participants in aquatics, marksmanship, woodcraft and allied subjects. The secondary objective in the training program and in the facilities made available by way of the Scratton Camp is the development of personal health of the campers and the provision for organized recreation.

At no time has the plaintiff's real estate in the Town of Stratton been exempted from taxation by a vote of the town.

The plaintiff has paid town taxes to the defendants for the year 1953 in the amount of $542.32 and school taxes for the year 1953 in the amount of $240.71. These taxes were paid by the plaintiff under protest. The plaintiff paid on or about September 1 for the year 1954 under protest town taxes to the defendants in the amount of $568.80 and a school tax in the amount of $234.68.

Plaintiff has received a tax bill for 1955 taxes on the subject property from the Town of Stratton and the Town of Stratton School District in the amount of $797.47.

Based on these findings, the chancellor entered a decree in favor of the plaintiff enjoining the defendant town and town school district from collecting taxes from the plaintiff upon Lot 3 Seventh Range in the Town of Stratton for the year 1955. The chancellor further ordered the Town of Stratton to refund to the plaintiff the sum of $568.80 paid by the plaintiff under protest as taxes for the year 1954. Likewise the Town of Stratton School District was ordered to refund to the plaintiff the sum of $234.68 which had similarly been paid by the plaintiff under protest. And lastly, the chancellor ordered the listers of the Town of Stratton to correct the Grand list of the Town for the years 1954 and 1955 by designating the property of the plaintiff known as Lot 3 in the Seventh Range as exempt for the years, 1954 and 19...