Ardire v. Tracy

674 N.E.2d 1155, 77 Ohio St. 3d 409, 1997 Ohio LEXIS 291
Ohio Supreme Court·Decided February 12, 1997·No. No. 95-1535·Published·Cited by 17 cases

Opinion

Douglas, J.

The sole issue that has been properly presented for our consideration is whether appellants were entitled to a resident income tax credit under R.C. 5747.05(B) on that portion of their adjusted gross income which was subjected to Michigan’s Single Business Tax (“SBT”), Mich.Comp.Laws Ann. 208.1 et seq. Resolution of this issue hinges on the question whether the SBT is either a tax on income or a tax measured by income. For the reasons that follow, we find that the decision of the BTA upholding the Tax Commissioner’s denial of the resident income tax credit for that portion of appellants’ adjusted gross income which was subject to the SBT was neither unlawful nor unreasonable and, accordingly, we affirm the decision of the BTA.

R.C. 5747.02 levies an annual- tax on every individual residing in or earning or receiving income in Ohio. The annual tax in the case of an individual is measured by adjusted gross income less certain exemptions. R.C. 5747.05 allows certain tax credits against adjusted gross income, including a resident income tax credit for those portions of the adjusted gross income of a resident taxpayer that in another state or in the District of Columbia are subjected to a tax on income or a tax measured by income. As it existed in 1988, R.C. 5747.05 provided, in part:

“The following credits shall be allowed against the income tax imposed by section 5747.02 of the Revised Code:

U $ $ $

[411] “(B)(1) The amount of tax otherwise due under section 5747.02 of the Revised Code on such portion of the adjusted gross income of a resident taxpayer that in another state or in the District of Columbia is subjected to a tax on income or measured by income[.]” (Emphasis added.) Am.Sub.H.B. No. 171, 142 Ohio Laws, Part II, 2170, 2380.2

The parties agree that the SBT is not a tax on income. Indeed, the fact that the SBT is not a tax on income is a well-established principle of Michigan law. In Trinova Corp. v. Dept. of Treasury (1989), 433 Mich. 141, 149-150, 445 N.W.2d 428, 431-432, affirmed (1991), 498 U.S. 358, 111 S.Ct. 818, 112 L.Ed.2d 884, the Michigan Supreme Court described some of the components of the SBT and specifically determined that the SBT is a value-added tax and not a tax on income:

“The single business tax is a form of value added tax, although it is not a pure value added tax. * * * ‘Value added is defined as the increase in the value of goods and services brought about by whatever a business does to them between the time of purchase and the time of sale.’ [Haughey, The Economic Logic of the Single Business Tax (1976), 22 Wayne L.Rev. 1017, 1018.] In short, a value added tax is a tax upon business activity. The act [the Michigan Single Business Tax Act] employs a value added measure of business activity, but its intended effect is to impose a tax upon the privilege of conducting business activity within Michigan. It is not a tax upon income. MCL [Mich.Comp.Laws] 208.31(4); MSA [Mich.Stat.Ann.] 7.558(31)(4).

« * * *

“The computation of the tax involves several steps beginning with the calculation of the taxpayer’s tax base. Under the act, ‘tax base’ is defined as business income (or loss) before apportionment subject to certain adjustments. MCL 208.9; MSA 7.558(9). ‘Business income’ is essentially federal taxable income. MCL 208.3(3); MSA 7.558(3)(3). Common adjustments to business income [412] include additions to reflect the business consumption of labor and capital. Those include adding back compensation, depreciation, dividends, and interest paid by the taxpayer to the extent deducted from federal taxable income. Common deductions from business income include dividends, interest, and royalties received by the taxpayer to the extent included in federal taxable income. This income is deducted for the purpose of value added computation because it does not result from capital expenditure by the taxpayer. Kasischke, Computation of the Michigan single business tax: Theory and mechanics, 22 Wayne L R 1069, 1081 (1976).” (Emphasis added in part; footnotes omitted in part.) See, also, Trinova Corp. v. Michigan Dept. of Treasury (1991), 498 U.S. 358, 362-368, 111 S.Ct. 818, 823-826, 112 L.Ed.2d 884, 896-901 (recognizing that the SBT is a value-added tax as opposed to a tax on income); Mobil Oil Corp. v. Dept. of Treasury (1985), 422 Mich. 473, 496-497, 373 N.W.2d 730, 741, and fn. 14 (finding that the SBT is a consumption-type value-added tax); Caterpillar, Inc. v. Dept. of Treasury (1992), 440 Mich. 400, 408, 488 N.W.2d 182, 185 (same principle); Gillette Co. v. Dept. of Treasury (1993), 198 Mich.App. 303, 308-309, 497 N.W.2d 595, 597-598 (holding that the SBT is a consumption-type value-added tax and not a tax on income); Town & Country Dodge, Inc. v. Dept. of Treasury (1986), 152 Mich.App. 748, 753-754, 394 N.W.2d 472, 475 (recognizing that the SBT is a tax imposed upon business activity rather than upon the income which results from that activity); and Wismer & Becker Contracting Engineers v. Dept. of Treasury (1985), 146 Mich.App. 690, 696, 382 N.W.2d 505, 507 (“The single business tax is a tax upon the privilege of doing business and not upon income.”).

In Trinova, 498 U.S. 358, 111 S.Ct. 818, 112 L.Ed.2d 884, the United States Supreme Court described some of the general differences between a value-added tax (a “VAT”) and a corporate income tax:

“A VAT differs in important respects from a corporate income tax. A corporate income tax is based on the philosophy of ability to pay, as it consists of some portion of the profit remaining after a company has provided for its workers, suppliers, and other creditors. A VAT, on the other hand, is a much broader measure of a firm’s total business activity. Even if a business entity is unprofitable, under normal circumstances it adds value to its products and, as a consequence, will owe some VAT. Because value added is a measure of actual business activity, a VAT correlates more closely to the volume of governmental services received by the taxpayer than does an income tax. Further, because value added does not fluctuate as widely as net income, a VAT provides a more stable source of revenue than the corporate income tax.” Id. at 363-364, 111 S.Ct. at 824, 112 L.Ed.2d at 898.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Ardire v. Tracy, 674 N.E.2d 1155, 77 Ohio St. 3d 409, 1997 Ohio LEXIS 291 (Ohio 1997).

674 N.E.2d 1155 (Ardire v. Tracy) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Giddens v. Testa (Slip Opinion)
2016 Ohio 8412 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2016)
Renacci v. Testa (Slip Opinion)
2016 Ohio 3394 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2016)
Enyart v. Taylor
2013 Ohio 4893 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
Lovell v. Levin
877 N.E.2d 667 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2007)
Knust v. Wilkins
856 N.E.2d 243 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2006)
INOVA Diagnostics, Inc. v. Strayhorn
166 S.W.3d 394 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2005)
Tetlak v. Bratenahl
2001 Ohio 129 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2001)
Tetlak v. Village of Bratenahl
748 N.E.2d 51 (Ohio Supreme Court, 2001)
Dupee v. Tracy
1999 Ohio 382 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1999)
First Chicago NBD Corp. v. Department of State Revenue
708 N.E.2d 631 (Indiana Tax Court, 1999)
Ardire v. Tracy
1997 Ohio 5 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1997)