Forrest City Production Credit Ass'n v. United States

300 F. Supp. 609, 24 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5679, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12827
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Arkansas
DecidedJune 2, 1969
DocketCiv. A. No. H 67 C-41
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 300 F. Supp. 609 (Forrest City Production Credit Ass'n v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Forrest City Production Credit Ass'n v. United States, 300 F. Supp. 609, 24 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5679, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12827 (E.D. Ark. 1969).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

HARRIS, District Judge.

The instant case is a civil action for recovery of federal income taxes in the amount of $16,307.09, plus interest, for the calendar year 1961, arising as the result of the disallowance of a change in plaintiff’s annual accounting period.

This case was submitted upon stipulation of facts and briefs of the parties. This memorandum opinion incorporates the Court’s findings of fact and conclusions of law.

The stipulation of facts is as follows: The Forrest City Production Credit Association, hereinafter referred to as [610]*610the plaintiff, was organized in 1933 under Section 2 of the Farm Credit Act of 1933, c. 98, 48 Stat. 257 (12 U.S.C.1964 ed., Sec. 1134).

Until the last of its stock owned by the United States was retired on or about December 31, 1960, the plaintiff was an “exempt organization” within the meaning of Section 501(c) (1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended.

For all years of its existence through December 31,1960, the books and records of plaintiff were kept on a calendar year basis; that is, from January 1 through December 31.

Plaintiff was required by Section 6033 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 to file, and did file on a calendar year basis, annual returns for information purposes only. Through December 31, 1960, plaintiff had never paid nor was required to pay any income tax.

On September 14, 1961, the board of directors of the plaintiff adopted a fiscal year ending September 30, and amended its- bylaws accordingly. From September 30, 1961, forward, plaintiff’s books were kept and its reports prepared on the basis of a fiscal year ending September 30. Plaintiff filed its first return of taxable income for the period January 1, 1961, through September 30, 1961. On December 13, 1962, plaintiff filed its return of taxable income for the fiscal year ending September 30,1962.

At no time prior to adopting on its first return of taxable income a fiscal year ended September 30 as its annual accounting period, did plaintiff file an application with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue requesting approval to do so. (End of Stip.)

As pointed out in the excellent briefs filed by the parties in this proceeding, the questions for determination by the Court are (1) was the plaintiff, Forrest City Production Credit Association, a taxpayer during the years up to and including December 31,1960, at which time it was no longer an exempt business, and (2) was there a change in the plaintiff’s “annual accounting period” requiring approval of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue.

Upon auditing plaintiff’s return filed for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1961, the District Director of Internal Revenue determined that the plaintiff had changed to a fiscal year period of reporting without permission of the Commissioner; that permission was required; and accordingly recomputed plaintiff’s income on a calendar year basis for 1961, which resulted in the deficiency in taxes sought to be recovered in this action.

Stated briefly, plaintiff argues that from its inception through December 31, 1960, it was an organization exempt from taxation under the Farm Credit Act of 1933, c. 98, 48 Stat. 257,1 and [611]*611that its exemption from taxation did not stem from Section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954,2 or its predecessor;3 that until January 1, 1961, it was not a taxpayer; that it became a taxpayer only after retirement of all stock owned by the United States on or about December 31,1960; that consequently its tax return for the period of January 1, 1961, through September 30, 1961, was the first return of a new taxpayer; and that as a new taxpayer it was entitled to adopt any taxable year it chose without obtaining approval of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue.

The Government maintains that it matters not whether plaintiff’s exemption from taxation arose from Section 501(a) or the Farm Credit Act of 1933; that in either event plaintiff was a “taxpayer” prior to January 1, 1961; that plaintiff changed its annual accounting period from a calendar year to a fiscal year basis; that sueh change was not permitted without the express approval of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue; and that no such approval was sought or obtained.

As to the first question on the plaintiff’s status as a taxpayer, it should be pointed out that in order to complete plaintiff’s changeover from a calendar year basis to a fiscal year, plaintiff filed a tax return for the short period January 1, 1961, through September 30, 1961, and then thereafter filed its returns for the fiscal years ending September 30. Although Treasury Regulations on Income Tax, Section 1.442-1 (c),4 provide [612]*612that under certain circumstances a taxpayer may change its annual accounting period without prior approval of the Commissioner, one of the requirements is that if the association was an exempt organization either in the year immediately preceding the short period or in the short period “it must have the same special status for both the short period and such taxable year.”5 *In the instant case it is admitted that for the period January 1, 1960, through December 31, 1960, plaintiff was an exempt organization, but that plaintiff lost its exemption as of January 1, 1961. Accordingly, the Court finds that Section 1.442- 1 (c) does not apply so as to allow plaintiff to change its annual accounting period without approval of the Commissioner. There is no merit to plaintiff’s contention that through December 31, 1960, it was never a “taxpayer”; that, therefore, as of January 1, 1961, when it lost its exemption, it became a new taxpayer; that the return filed for the period January 1, 1961, through September 30, 1961, was the first return of a new taxpayer; and that, therefore, it came within the provisions of Section 1.442- 1 (a).

In the opinion of the Court the plaintiff is not a “new taxpayer” within the meaning of Treasury Regulations on Income Tax, Section 1.442-1 (a), which provides that “a new taxpayer who adopts an annual accounting period * * * need not secure the permission of the Commissioner * * Nor is it a “new taxpayer” within the meaning of Treasury Regulations on Income Tax, Section 1.441-1 (b) (3),6 wherein it is stated that “a new taxpayer in his first return may adopt any taxable year * * without prior approval.”

Contrary to plaintiff’s position is Rev. Rul. 67-173, 1967-1 Cum.Bull. 101, wherein a corporation (designated as “X”) exempt from tax under Section 401(a) lost its exemption and thereafter desired to change its annual accounting period from a calendar year to a fiscal year basis without obtaining approval of the Commissioner. It was held that corporation “X” was not a “new taxpayer” even though it was required for the first time to file a Form 1120 return of taxable income. The Court is not bound by the ruling and neither is this decision in any way dependent thereon although it is analogous to the instant situation.

Morever, Section 501(a) exempts qualifying organizations from income taxes only.7 The fact that plaintiff may have derived its exemption under Section 501 (a) does not mean that it was not a “taxpayer” as defined in the Code.

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Related

Dougherty v. Commissioner
60 T.C. No. 97 (U.S. Tax Court, 1973)

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Bluebook (online)
300 F. Supp. 609, 24 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5679, 1969 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12827, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/forrest-city-production-credit-assn-v-united-states-ared-1969.