Atlantic Steel Castings Co. v. United States

143 F. Supp. 161, 50 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 97, 1956 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2924
District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania·Decided July 31, 1956·No. Civ. A. No. 14132·Published

Opinion

KRAFT, District Judge.

In this action for refund of internal revenue taxes the pleadings and a lengthy factual stipulation comprise the record from which is made the following

Findings of Fact

1. Plaintiff is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business at Chester, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Defendant is the United States of America.

2. Plaintiff is and during the year 1940 was engaged in the business of producing steel castings.

3. During 1940 plaintiff sold and delivered to Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company certain steel castings for use by Sun in ship construction under Sun’s contracts with the United States Maritime Commission.

[162]*1624. Plaintiff included the proceeds of these sales as income for the taxable year 1940 in its income and defense, declared value excess profits and defense, and excess profits tax return and in determination of its tax for that year.

5. On May 15, 1941, pursuant to an extension of time granted, plaintiff filed for the taxable year 1940, with Walter J. Rothensies, the then Collector of Internal Revenue for the First District of Pennsylvania, its corporation income and defense, declared value excess profits and defense, and excess profits tax return, reporting $17,927.38 due as income and defense tax and $5,596.43 due as excess profits tax, which plaintiff thereafter paid. Plaintiff reported no declared value excess profits and defense tax due.

6. Thereafter there was assessed against the plaintiff for 1940 additional corporation income and defense tax of $9,807.36, plus interest; additional excess profits tax of $10,125.22, plus interest; declared excess profits and defense tax of $1,099.63, plus interest. Plaintiff paid the additional tax assessed with interest between June 22 and August 8, 1942.

7. Walter J. Rothensies ceased to hold office as Collector of Internal Revenue on January 31, 1945.

8. Between March 9 and June 21, 1945, plaintiff received for 1940 refunds of corporation income and defense tax in the amount of $278, plus interest; excess profits tax of $342.32, plus interest; declared value excess profits and defense tax of $82.14, plus interest.

9. On May 20,1947, the United States Maritime Commission notified plaintiff that it was required to repay to the Commission $6,433.87 of the profits on the 1940 sales of the plaintiff on the ground that its 1940 profits were, to that extent, excessive and subject to repayment under § 505(b) of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936.

10. On June 11, 1947 plaintiff applied to the Internal Revenue Bureau, pursuant to Section 3806 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939, for a computation of tax credits to be allowed plaintiff against the amount it was required to repay to the Maritime Commission. Plaintiff and defendant have agreed that, except for Section 3806, the statute of limitations barred any refund or credit to plaintiff for 1940.

11. On July 7,1947, the Internal Revenue Bureau notified plaintiff and the Maritime Commission that plaintiff was entitled to the following tax credits for 1940: corporation income and defense tax $1,442.22; excess profits tax $1,567.-15; declared value excess profits and defense tax $424.63; total $3,434.

12. Subsequently plaintiff paid the Maritime Commission $2,999.87 which was the amount of the required repayment less the tax credit determined by the Internal Revenue Bureau.

13. The Internal Revenue Bureau computed the plaintiff's 1940 tax credit of $3,434 by reducing the plaintiff’s 1940 income by the amount of the required repayment to the Maritime Commission and by applying Section 710 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939, subtracting from the previously determined aggregate tax of $43,852.57 the recomputed aggregate tax of $40,418.57.

14. The Bureau of Internal Revenue did not apply Section 726 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939 in computing the 1940 tax credit allowable to plaintiff.

15. On January 24, 1948, plaintiff filed with the then Collector of Internal Revenue claims for refund of 1940 corporation income and defense tax in the sum of $27.90; excess profits tax in the sum of $4,866.72; declared value excess profits and defense tax in the sum of $8.23 or a total of $4,902.85, on the ground that the credits allowable to plaintiff were greater than those allowed by the Internal Revenue Bureau’s computation.

16. On July 18, 1950, the Bureau of Internal Revenue advised plaintiff that its claims for refund would be disallowed in due course. On August 20, 1950, the Commissioner of Internal Revenue notified plaintiff of the disallowance of its [163]*163claim for excess profits tax refund for 1940. The Commissioner took no further action upon plaintiff’s claim for refund of 1940 corporation income and defense, and declared value excess profits and defense tax.

17. The United States Maritime Commission did not, prior to 1949, certify to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue that the plaintiff had completed within the taxable year 1940 any contracts or subcontracts which were subject to the provisions of Section 505(b) of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936.

18. On August 30, 1949, upon plaintiff’s request of August 22, 1949, the United States Maritime Commission certified, in writing, that the plaintiff had completed within the taxable year 1940 subcontracts which were subject to the provisions of Section 505(b) of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936. This written certification was delivered by the plaintiff to the Internal Revenue Bureau on October 5, 1949.

Discussion

The sole question for determination is whether the Internal Revenue Bureau should have determined under § 726 1 *of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939 the credit allowable to plaintiff by § 3806 2 of the same code. When the plaintiff filed its 1940 tax return on May 15, 1941, the United States Maritime Commission had not certified to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue that plaintiff had completed, during 1940, any subcontracts which were subject to provisions of § 505(b) of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, 46 U.S.C.A. § 1155(b); nor had the plaintiff requested such certification. Section 726(a) makes such a certification by the Maritime Commission to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue a condition precedent to the imposition of the tax computable under § 726(b). Plaintiff made no request of the Maritime Commission for the required certificate until August 22, 1949 and did not deliver the certificate to the Internal Revenue Bureau until October 5, 1949. This total non-compliance with the condition precedent prescribed by § 726(a) precluded determination of plaintiff’s 1940 tax under § 726(b) in June 1947 when plaintiff applied for computation of tax credits allowable under § 3806.

Plaintiff and defendant agree that, except for the provisions of § 3806, plaintiff’s right to tax refund or credit for 1940 is barred. Congress, recognizing that repayment of excessive profits would effect, in essence, a second cumulative excess profits tax, provided a means of mitigation.

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Atlantic Steel Castings Co. v. United States, 143 F. Supp. 161, 50 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 97, 1956 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2924 (E.D. Pa. 1956).

143 F. Supp. 161 (Atlantic Steel Castings Co. v. United States) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

§ 3806
26 U.S.C. § 3806(a)(1)
§ 1155
46 U.S.C. § 1155(b)