The Wilmington, Columbia, and Augusta R.R. Co. v. The Bd. of Comm'rs of Brunswick Cnty.
| Decision Date | 31 January 1875 |
| Citation | 72 N.C. 10 |
| Parties | THE WILMINGTON, COLUMBIA and AUGUSTA RAILROAD CO. v. THE BOARD of COMMISSIONERS of BRUNSWICK COUNTY. |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
The right to value the tangible real and personal property of a Railroad corporation, as distinguished from its franchise, is vested by the Constitution in the Township Boards of Trustees.
Such franchise is capable of valuation, apart from the property which the corporation may happen to own; and a valuation of the franchise, does not necessarily or properly include a valuation of the corporate property.
The payment of a tax upon the franchise of a corporation, valued improperly and upon erroneous principles, is no defense against a tax legally levied by the county authorities under the general law.
PETITION, for relief from certain taxes, presented to defendants, and heard upon appeal by his Honor, Judge Russell, at Chambers, in BRUNSWICK county, the 19th day of May, 1874.
The plaintiff filed the following petition:
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¦“STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, ¦)¦
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¦County of Brunswick. ¦)¦
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To the Board of Commissioners of Brunswick County:
The Wilmington, Columbia and Augusta Railroad Company, a corporation duly created and existing by and under the laws of the State aforesaid, respectfully complains:
That the property of the said corporation has been improperly valued, and that it is charged with an excessive tax. That the franchise of the said corporation has been duly given in and duly assessed for taxation for the current year, according to the provision of the 10th section of the act ratified the 28th day of February, A. D. 1873, and entitled “An act to provide for the collection of taxes by the State, and the several notices of the State, on property, polls and income;” (known as the “Machinery Act,”) and the tax thereon has been paid. And notwithstanding the same, your Board has laid and assessed a large additional State and county tax on the road-bed, superstructure and land of this complainant, placing on the them all a lumping tax, of$ , which this complainant is advised is illegal.
Wherefore this complainant prays that the said last mentioned tax on its road-bed, superstructure and land be altogether remitted and set aside.”
Upon the hearing of the foregoing petition, the Board of Commissioners found as a fact, that the tax upon the franchise of the said railroad, the plaintiff, had been paid; that the tax complained of, is upon 35 35-100 miles of road-bed, superstructure and lands in Brunswick county, which were not listed for taxation by the complainant, being a separate and independent tax from that levied upon the franchise; it being considered by the Board, that the two classes of property are entirely distinct in their character, and each equally subject to taxation. The Board further found, that the property was properly valued, &c.
The Board refused to grant the prayer of the petition and order the Company to pay cost, &c. From this order the Company appealed.
His Honor reversed the order made by the Board, and the Commissioners appealed to this Court.
M. and A. T. & J. London, for appellants .
Strange and Smith & Strong, contra .
By the Constitution, ART. V. SEC. 3., all the real and personal property in the State, is required to be taxed uniformly according to its value. There are certain exceptions not material for the present purpose. The township trustees are required to assess the value of the taxable property in their respective townships, subject to the revision of the county commissioners. ART. VII, SEC. 6. Under these clauses of the Constitution, and under acts of the Legislature made for carrying them into effect, the commissioners of Brunswick county have valued the land of the Wilmington, Columbia, &c., R. R. Co. over which the railroad passes, together with the superstructure of wooden cross ties, rails, station houses, &c., at $315,000, and have levied upon it a State and county tax upon that valuation. The part of the road which lies in the county of Brunswick is a little over 35 miles in length, and it appears that the Company owns sixty feet on each side of the central line of the road, giving an area of about 500 acres.
The General Assembly is also authorized by the Constitution, ART. V. SEC. 3, to tax franchises, and incomes, provided that no income shall be taxed when the property from which the income is derived, is taxed. Under this clause, the General Assembly enacted (Act 1872-'73, chap. 115, sec. 10,) that the value of the franchise and rolling stock of every railroad corporation should be given into...
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