Lihue Plantation Co. v. Farley

• Citation: 13 Haw. 283
• Parties: LIHUE PLANTATION COMPANY v. J. K. FARLEY, TAX ASSESSOR.
• Decision Date: 24 January 1901
• Court: Hawaii Supreme Court

13 Haw. 283

LIHUE PLANTATION COMPANY

v.J. K. FARLEY, TAX ASSESSOR.

Supreme Court of the Territory of Hawai‘i.

Submitted January 2, 1901.

Decided January 24, 1901.

APPEAL FROM TAX APPEAL COURT, ISLAND OF KAUAI.

Syllabus by the Court

A valuation of $2,800,000. placed on the Lihue Plantation Co.'s sugar plantation by the Tax Appeal Court is sustained and the appeals of both the company and the assessor are dismissed.

Kinney, Ballou & McClanahan, and M. F. Prosser, for the company.

Holmes & Stanley for the assessor.

FREAR, C.J., GALBRAITH AND PERRY, JJ.

OPINION OF THE COURT BY FREAR, C.J.

This is an appeal from the assessment, as of January 1, 1900, of the Lihue Plantation Company's sugar plantation situated in the District of Lihue, Island of Kauai.

The company returned its property at $2,060,000. The assessor placed it at $3,500,000. The Tax Appeal Court put it at $2,800,000. The company admitted that it should be $2,500,000. and appealed as to the amount above that. The assessor appealed generally.

The assessment, not appealed from, as of the first of the year before, was $2,500.00. During that year the company acquired 2,660 acres of land under lease at $10,000 a year, and cleared some of it, and made some other improvements or additions on its plantation, and the output was 2,951 tons, and the net profits $32,405.38 more than during the previous year.

In 1897, on appeal, the Supreme Court placed the value of the plantation at $1,300,000., as of the 1st of January of that year. Tax Assessment Appeals, 11 Haw. 245. Then the company's land consisted of 18,579 acres fee simple, and 17,000 acres leasehold; in 1900, it consisted of 19,770 acres fee simple, and 20,115 acres leasehold, of which 4,434 acres were fenced forest land exempt from taxation.

The yield per acre is large-about seven tons-and the supply of water from streams abundant. The yield would be somewhat larger but for the cane-borer which prevails in that district.

The output increased from 5,548 tons in 1892 to 8,803 in 1896, and was 11,284 in 1897, 13,294 in 1898, and 16,245 in 1899.

The dividends in 1892 were $42,000. From 1893 to 1896 they averaged $169,750. The gross receipts, running expenses, net profits and dividends for the years 1896 to 1899 were as follows:

+-----------------------------------------------------+
                ¦    ¦Receipts.   ¦Expenses.  ¦Profits.   ¦Dividends. ¦
                +----+------------+-----------+-----------+-----------¦
                ¦1896¦$ 588,231.71¦$354,683.83¦$233,547.88¦$280,000.00¦
                +----+------------+-----------+-----------+-----------¦
                ¦1897¦749,721.52  ¦456,981.48 ¦292,740.04 ¦140,000.00 ¦
                +----+------------+-----------+-----------+-----------¦
                ¦1898¦930,665.54  ¦556,377.48 ¦374,288.06 ¦280,000.00 ¦
                +----+------------+-----------+-----------+-----------¦
                ¦1899¦1,039,012.05¦634,319.13 ¦406,693.44 ¦420,000.00 ¦
                +-----------------------------------------------------+
                

It is exceedingly difficult to value property of this kind- especially when, as in this instance, no sales of stock in the company have taken place for some years. Many things besides such facts as are set forth above are to be considered. Some of these bear on general...