Grafton County v. Town of Haverhill

• Court: New Hampshire Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: WALLACE, J.
• Citation: Grafton County v. Town of Haverhill, 40 A. 399, 68 N.H. 120 (N.H. 1894)
• Decision Date: 27 July 1894
• Parties: GRAFTON COUNTY v. TOWN OF HAVERHILL.

40 A. 399

68 N.H. 120

GRAFTON COUNTY

v. TOWN OF HAVERHILL.

Supreme Court of New Hampshire. Grafton.

July 27, 1894.

Petition by Grafton county to abate taxes assessed by the town of Haverhill. Granted in part.

Bingham, Mitchell & Batchellor, for plaintiff.

S. B. Page, for defendant.

WALLACE, J. This is a petition for the abatement of taxes assessed in April, 1893, by the town of Haverhill on the Grafton county farm, court house, and jail. The town of Haverhill claims that this public property is taxable because in the Public Statutes real estate of the counties is omitted from the list of property specifically exempted from taxation. The county of Grafton claims this property is exempt from taxation on general principles. This is that kind of property which is always presumptively exempted from the operation of general tax laws, because it is reasonable to suppose they were not within the intent of the legislature in enacting them. Such is the case with the property belonging to the state and its minor subdivisions, such as counties and municipalities, which are held by them for public purposes. The power to tax such property doubtless exists, if the state shall see fit to exercise it; but that would render necessary new taxes to meet the demand of this tax, and thus the public would be taxing itself in order to raise money to pay over to itself. It cannot be supposed that the legislature would ever purposely and unnecessarily lay such a burden upon public property held by the state or any of its minor subdivisions, and it is therefore reasonable to consider that, however general may be the enumeration of taxable property, public property held by the state and counties and municipalities for public and governmental uses was Intended to be exempted, unless the right or duty to tax it was provided for in the most express and positive terms, or by necessary implication. Cooley, Tax'n, 172; Blackw. Tax Titles, 410. The property of the state is exempt from taxation, because, as the sovereign power, it derives its revenues from taxation, that it may discharge the duties and pay the expenses of carrying on the government. Public money derived from taxation is used to build state houses, court houses, prisons, and jails for public use; and these are the instrumentalities by which the state performs its functions. As a tax on such property is perfectly useless, and to a certain extent diminishes the capacity of the state, it is clear such property is not subject to taxation in any form, unless made so by express, positive enactments to that effect. Such property is exempt from taxation on general principles of public policy, except in cases of express provisions to the contrary. Although the property of the county of Grafton is not, strictly speaking, the property of the state, yet the authority by which the county holds it is derived from the statute (Pub. St. c. 24, § 2) which imposes upon it the duty to provide a suitable court house, jail, house of correction, and other necessary county buildings. Where thus provided, such public property, although owned by the counties, is held for the uses and purposes of the state, and is essential to the administration of the executive and Judicial duties of the government, and is not to be deemed subject to taxation in any form, unless the intent of the legislature to render it so clearly and unequivocally appears, or arises by necessary implication from the statute. If this tax is to stand, it would be a lien on this public property, and one of the means by which it could be collected would be a sale. We do not think it was the intent of the legislature to subject such public property to such a remedy, when its enforcement might operate to deprive the counties of the very instrumentalities by which they were able to perform the duties imposed upon them, and might...