In re Wheeling Steel Corp. Assessment
| Decision Date | 27 November 1934 |
| Docket Number | 7970. |
| Citation | 177 S.E. 535,115 W.Va. 553 |
| Parties | In re WHEELING STEEL CORPORATION ASSESSMENT. |
| Court | West Virginia Supreme Court |
Rehearing Denied Jan. 8, 1935.
Syllabus by the Court.
1. The rule of "mobilia sequuntur personam merely means that the situs of personal property for purposes of taxation is the domicile of the owner unless there is a statute to the contrary, or * * * in case of intangible property, it has acquired a business situs in a state other than the one where the owner is domiciled." Cooley, Taxation (4th Ed.) § 440.
2. Under Code 1931, 11-3-12, as amended by the Legislature, Acts 1st Ex. Sess. 1933, c. 38, and Code 1931, 11-3-13, the intangible property of a foreign corporation with its chief place of business in this state, not shown to be primarily liable for taxation in some other jurisdiction, may be assessed for taxation in this state.
Appeal from Circuit Court, Ohio County.
Proceeding in the matter of assessment of the Wheeling Steel Corporation. From a judgment reducing the assessment, the state and county taxation units appeal.
Judgment reversed and cause remanded.
Homer A. Holt, Atty. Gen., and Ira J. Partlow, Asst. Atty. Gen for State of West Virginia, Ohio County, and Board of Education of Ohio County.
Schmidt Hugus & Lass and J. E. Bruce, all of Wheeling, for Wheeling Steel Corporation.
This proceeding involves the taxation of the intangible property of Wheeling Steel Corporation (hereinafter called the corporation), a foreign corporation which has its chief place of business in this state. The assessor of Ohio county made a total assessment against the corporation for intangibles of $4,963,950. That assessment was reduced by the Tax Commissioner to $4,491,323.67. The circuit court further reduced it to $496,095.33. The state and the county taxation units secured an appeal here.
The facts are agreed. The corporation was chartered in Delaware and is now qualified to do business in Ohio and Minnesota as well as West Virginia. The principal offices of the corporation are stated in its charter to be located in the city of Wilmington, Del., but the corporation performs no actual business in Wilmington and maintains there only such nominal office as the laws of Delaware require. The corporation's general business offices are located in Wheeling, where it owns a twelve-story office building. Approximately 43 per cent. of the building is occupied by the corporation for its office work. Its managing officers reside at Wheeling. It maintains sales offices in fourteen of the larger cities throughout the United States. On January 1, 1933, it owned coal properties in West Virginia and Ohio, and, through stock ownership, controlled coal properties in Pennsylvania and Kentucky. It owned iron ore properties in Minnesota. It owned four manufacturing plants in West Virginia and four in Ohio. It owned four steamboats, two motorships, and ninety-three barges used in transporting coal and steel on the Allegheny, Ohio, and Mississippi rivers. The agreed statement of facts shows the transaction of the following business at Wheeling:
"The petitioner's (the corporation's) general books and accounting records are kept at the Wheeling office. * * *
Sales contracts are negotiated and orders are taken by the various sales offices subject to acceptance or rejection at Wheeling.
The Portsmouth, Ohio, plant makes up and mails out invoices for all products shipped from that plant, together with bills of lading and shipping notices. All other plants prepare complete invoices with exception of information with reference to the price of material described therein. The latter invoices are then forwarded to Wheeling where they are completed and mailed to the customer. Bills of lading and shipping notices are, however, mailed to customers from the individual plants. All invoices are payable in Wheeling.
The majority of commercial accounts are paid by check issued in Wheeling. Payrolls are made up and payroll checks are prepared and signed at the various plants and are distributed to the employees by the respective plants. Such checks are paid with funds on deposit in banks in localities where the plants are situated. * * *
The capital stock is transferable in both New York City and Wheeling, but is registerable only at the office of the Registrar in New York City. Capital stock records are maintained in New York City and at the Wheeling Steel Corporation's Delaware office.
Dividends, when declared, are ordered to be paid and distributed at meetings held at Wheeling, although the checks are drawn and distributed by the Dividend Disbursing Agent located in New York City, and are paid with funds on deposit in banks in New York City."
The total assessed value of the real estate and tangible personal property owned by the corporation on January 1, 1933, was $31,977,600. The assessed value of its real estate and tangible personal property in West Virginia on January 1 1933, was $8,673,205, or 27.10 per cent. of the total. The total shipments from plants located outside of West Virginia in 1932 amounted to $13,787,742.25. The total shipments from West Virginia plants in 1932 amounted to $4,402,872.01, or 24.20 per cent. of the total shipments. The corporation had bank deposits in five states on January 1, 1933, amounting to $2,307,773.61, of which there was $849,161.91 cash in West Virginia banks. Of the West Virginia bank deposits, $121,684.91 was derived from the sale of goods manufactured in this state. The total amount of accounts and notes receivable on January 1, 1933, was estimated at the probable worth of $2,234,743.11. Of that sum $374,410.42 was due on account of goods manufactured in this state. The corporation pays to the state of Delaware only such taxes as are...
To continue reading
Request your trial