Cameron Iron Works, Inc. v. United States

130 F. Supp. 624, 131 Ct. Cl. 668, 47 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1027, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 21
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedMay 3, 1955
DocketNo. 695-53
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 130 F. Supp. 624 (Cameron Iron Works, Inc. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cameron Iron Works, Inc. v. United States, 130 F. Supp. 624, 131 Ct. Cl. 668, 47 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1027, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 21 (cc 1955).

Opinion

Lttleton, Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

The plaintiff sues to recover $1,461.32, with interest thereon. This sum represents interest alleged to have been erroneously collected under section 292 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code on an income tax deficiency arising out of the operation of section 722 of the Code. The facts' have been stipulated by the parties and may be summarized as follows:

The plaintiff’s income and excess profits tax returns for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1944, disclosed a liability for income taxes in the amount of $84,263.02 and for excess profits taxes in the amount of $865,248.99. The plaintiff claimed its right under section 710 (a) (5) of the Code (26 U. S. C. 710 (a) (5)), to defer $153,046.65 of its excess profits tax, and duly paid the balance of its excess profits tax and income tax.

On November 14,1945, the plaintiff filed a claim for relief under section 722 of the Code and while this claim was pending the Commissioner of Internal Revenue proposed a deficiency of $180,563.46 in excess profits tax and a deficiency in income tax of $944.53 for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1944. This asserted deficiency in excess profits tax included the $153,046.65 sum which had been deferred.

Thereafter, the plaintiff filed a petition with the Tax Court for a redetermination of the deficiencies and while the petition was pending a settlement of its claim for relief under section 722 was reached with the Internal Revenue Service by the partial allowance of the claim. As a result of this settlement, it was stipulated in the Tax Court proceeding that there was a deficiency in excess profits tax due in the [670]*670amount of $142,217.13, and a deficiency in income tax in the amount of $23,079.19, of which $22,084.66 was attributable to the allowance of relief under section 722. The Tax Court entered its' judgment in accordance therewith.

The Commissioner assessed interest of $8,365.41 on the above-mentioned amount of $23,079.19 from September 15, 1944, the date the return was due, to October 20, 1950, the date of assessment of the deficiency, which interest was paid on February 7,1951. On June 30,1952, the plaintiff filed a claim for refund of interest in the amount of $2,867.37. This claim was rejected on February 17,1953, and suit was instituted in this court on December 31, 1953.

The plaintiff now claims interest in the amount of $1,461.32. This sum represents interest on $11,255.14, which is the amount by which the sum of unpaid excess profits taxes ($142,217.13) plus the deficiency in income taxes attributable to section 722 relief ($22,084.66) exceeds the amount of the excess profits tax deferred ($153,046.65), computed from the due date of the return, September 15, 1944, to one year after the date of the filing of the claim for section 722 relief, November 14,1946.

The pertinent part of section 292 (b) provides:

(b) Deficiency resulting from relief under section 722. * * * If any part of a deficiency for a taxable year beginning after December 31,1941, is determined by the Commissioner to be attributable to the final determination of an application for relief or benefit under section 722 for any taxable year (excluding any portion of a deficiency of excess profits taxes constituting a deficiency by reason of deferment of tax under section 710 (a) (5), and excluding, in case the taxpayer has availed itself of the benefits of section 710 (a) (5), such portion of a deficiency under Chapter 1 as may be determined by the Commissioner to exceed any refund or credit of excess profits tax arising from the operation of section 722), no interest shall be assessed or paid with respect to such part of the deficiency for any period prior to one year after the filing of such application, or September 16, 1945, whichever is the later.

Section 710 (a) (5) provides:

Deferment of payment in case of abnormality. If the adjusted excess profits net income (computed with[671]*671out reference to section 722) for the taxable year of a taxpayer which claims on its return, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Commissioner with the approval of the Secretary, the benefits of section 722, is in excess of 50 per centum of its normal tax net income for such year, computed without the credit provided in section 26 (e) (relating to adjusted excess profits net income), the amount of tax payable at the time prescribed for payment may be reduced by an amount equal to 33 per centum of the amount of the reduction in the tax so claimed. For the purposes of section 271, if the tax payable is the tax so reduced, the tax so reduced shall be considered the amount shown on the return.

Section 292 (a) requires the assessment and payment of interest on all deficiencies from the original date prescribed for payment of the tax to the date the deficiency is assessed, unless a waiver is filed. Section 292 (b), which is an exception to the general rule, provides that no interest is to be assessed or paid on deficiencies attributable to the application of section 722. However, there are two exclusions from this exception. The first exclusion provides that interest shall be assessed and paid on any portion of an excess profits tax deficiency constituting a deficiency by reason of deferment of excess profits tax under section 710 (a) (5). This exclusion is applicable when the amount of tax deferred is in excess of the amount of the section 722 relief. This exclusion requires the payment of interest on any excess profits tax deficiency that is attributable to the deferment of tax under section 710 (a) (5). The taxpayer is required under the general rule provided in section 292 (a), to pay interest on all excess profits tax deficiencies not attributable to section 722 relief. Thus in the usual case the taxpayer is required to pay interest on all excess profits tax deficiencies from the date prescribed for payment until the assessment date unless a waiver is filed. S. Rep. No. 1631, 77th Cong., 2d Sess., p. 205; Jones v. Johnson, et al., 176 F. 2d 693; Squire v. Puget Sound Pulp & Timber Co., 181 F. 2d 745; Katz Co. v. United States, 193 F. 2d 510.

The second exclusion from the exception as to payment of interest provides that interest shall be assessed and paid on any income tax deficiency that exceeds any refund or credit of excess profits tax arising from the operation of section 722.

[672]*672The Senate Committee on Finance inserted these two exclusions in the 1943 Revenue Act.1 In its report2 this Committee stated:

* * *Since, under the bill, taxpayers which have paid their taxes in full, without the application of section 722, will receive any refunds with interest only for the periods provided, taxpayers who have availed themselves of the deferment provided by section 710 (a) (5) should be required to pay interest on the amount by which they have underpaid.

We do not know the amount of the excess profits tax deficiency not attributable to the deferment of excess profits tax under section 710 (a) (5), nor do we know the amount of the excess profits tax deficiency attributable to the deferment or the amount of the section 722 relief.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
130 F. Supp. 624, 131 Ct. Cl. 668, 47 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 1027, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 21, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cameron-iron-works-inc-v-united-states-cc-1955.