MARATHON ASHLAND PETRO. LLC v. Galveston Cent. Appraisal Dist.

236 S.W.3d 335
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 6, 2007
Docket01-06-00531-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 236 S.W.3d 335 (MARATHON ASHLAND PETRO. LLC v. Galveston Cent. Appraisal Dist.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
MARATHON ASHLAND PETRO. LLC v. Galveston Cent. Appraisal Dist., 236 S.W.3d 335 (Tex. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

236 S.W.3d 335 (2007)

MARATHON ASHLAND PETROLEUM L.L.C., Now Known as, Marathon Petroleum Company LLC, Appellant,
v.
GALVESTON CENTRAL APPRAISAL DISTRICT, Appellee.

No. 01-06-00531-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas, Houston (1st Dist.).

July 6, 2007.

*336 Rosemarie Kanusky, Edward Kliewer III, W. Wendell Hall, Fulbright & Jaworski LLP, San Antonio, TX, for Appellant.

Anthony P. Brown, McLeod, Alexander, Powel & Apffel, P.C., Galveston, TX, for Appellee.

Panel consists of Justices HANKS, BLAND, and DORFMAN.[*]

OPINION

JANE BLAND, Justice.

In this ad valorem tax case resolved on cross motions for summary judgment, Marathon Ashland Petroleum L.L.C. (Marathon)[1] appeals the trial court's judgment in favor of Galveston Central Appraisal District (GCAD). Marathon contends the trial court erred because GCAD's taxation of Marathon's petroleum products awaiting transportation to out-of-state customers violates the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. See U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 3. We conclude that the petroleum products GCAD seeks to tax had not entered the stream of interstate commerce on the date of assessment. Thus, the Commerce Clause does not shield these goods from the state property tax. We therefore affirm.

Background

Marathon owns an oil and gas refinery in Texas City, and it produces petroleum products for its customers. Upon completion of the refining process, Marathon segregates petroleum products destined exclusively for out-of-state customers from its processing units into refinery tanks it designates to hold solely those products it intends to later ship out-of-state. The refined products remain in the tanks for three to eight days before leaving the refinery.

Independent common carriers take the petroleum products from Marathon's tanks, either by barge or through one of two pipelines. The pipeline carriers require the products to meet certain regulatory requirements and specifications before they will transport them. Marathon tests the products in its tanks during the three to eight-day interval to ensure compliance with the regulatory requirements and specifications.

The pipelines connect to Marathon's tanks at a manifold containing two valves. Marathon controls one of the valves and the pipeline carriers control the other valve. Marathon must ensure that its valve is open at the time specified by the pipeline carriers so that the pipeline carriers can take the products. When the pipeline carriers are ready to take the products, they open their valve and the manifold pumps the products into the pipeline.

The nature of the petroleum refining business dictates that Marathon participate in a "nomination" process with various pipeline and barge companies to arrange for the transportation of its products. The nomination process requires Marathon to bid for space with the pipeline carriers. Once the pipeline carriers accept a nomination, they set a *337 date for the transportation of the product. Marathon often must nominate its products for transportation before refining begins. Marathon can change the final destination of nominated products, but this occurs rarely, and did not occur in this instance.

Marathon elected to have its inventory appraised as of September 1, 2003 for the 2004 tax year. See TEX. TAX CODE ANN. § 23.12(f) (Vernon 2001). GCAD valued Marathon's inventory at $41,437,170. Of this figure, $13,991,393 represents the value of petroleum products in Marathon's tanks then awaiting transportation to out-of-state customers. After the appraisal review board rejected Marathon's tax protest as to its out-of-state products, Marathon sued GCAD, asserting that the tax violates the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. GCAD and Marathon both moved for summary judgment. The trial court granted GCAD's summary judgment, denied Marathon's summary judgment, and concluded that the products in Marathon's tanks had not entered the stream of interstate commerce on September 1, 2003, and thus are not exempt from local ad valorem taxation. See id. § 11.12 (Vernon 2001) ("Property exempt from ad valorem taxation by federal law is exempt from taxation.").

Interstate Commerce

In its first and second issues, Marathon contends that the trial court erred in denying its summary judgment and granting summary judgment in favor of GCAD because the ad valorem taxation of Marathon's petroleum products awaiting transportation to out-of-state customers violates the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. See U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 3. GCAD responds that the Commerce Clause does not protect Marathon's petroleum products from ad valorem taxation because the products awaiting transportation to out-of-state customers have not entered the stream of interstate commerce.

A. Standard of Review

We review a trial court's summary judgment de novo. Valence Operating Co. v. Dorsett, 164 S.W.3d 656, 661 (Tex.2005); Provident Life Accident Ins. Co. v. Knott, 128 S.W.3d 211, 215 (Tex.2003). When reviewing a summary judgment, we take as true all evidence favorable to the nonmovant, and indulge every reasonable inference and resolve any doubts in the nonmovant's favor. Dorsett, 164 S.W.3d at 661; Knott, 128 S.W.3d at 215; Sci. Spectrum, Inc. v. Martinez, 941 S.W.2d 910, 911 (Tex.1997). Under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 166a(c), the party moving for summary judgment bears the burden of showing that no genuine issue of material fact exists and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. TEX.R. CIV. P. 166a(c); Knott, 128 S.W.3d at 215-16. When both parties move for summary judgment and the trial court grants one motion and denies the other, the reviewing court considers the summary judgment evidence presented by both sides, determines all questions presented, and if the reviewing court determines that the trial court erred, renders the judgment the trial court should have rendered. See Dorsett, 164 S.W.3d at 661; FM Props. Operating Co. v. City of Austin, 22 S.W.3d 868, 872 (Tex. 2000).

B. Dormant Commerce Clause

The Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution expressly grants Congress the power "[t]o regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." U.S. CONST. art. I, 8, cl. 3. The United States Supreme Court has held that the Commerce Clause prohibits certain *338 state regulation of interstate commercial activity. Okla. Tax Comm'n v. Jefferson Lines, Inc., 514 U.S. 175, 179-80, 115 S.Ct. 1331, 1335-36, 131 L.Ed.2d 261 (1995); Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, 504 U.S. 298, 309, 112 S.Ct. 1904, 1911, 119 L.Ed.2d 91 (1992). This implicit principle is known as the "dormant Commerce Clause." Okla. Tax Comm'n, 514 U.S. at 179, 115 S.Ct. at 1335.

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