Norfolk & Western Railway Co. v. Missouri State Tax Commission

426 S.W.2d 362, 1966 Mo. LEXIS 582
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedDecember 30, 1966
DocketNo. 51943
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 426 S.W.2d 362 (Norfolk & Western Railway Co. v. Missouri State Tax Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Norfolk & Western Railway Co. v. Missouri State Tax Commission, 426 S.W.2d 362, 1966 Mo. LEXIS 582 (Mo. 1966).

Opinion

HIGGINS, Commissioner.

Proceeding under Section 536.100 et seq., V.A.M.S., for judicial review of a final decision of the State Tax Commission of Missouri. The circuit court affirmed the decision, and the railroad’s appeal involves construction of the revenue laws of the state.

Appellants Wabash and Norfolk and Western entered into a lease effective October 16, 1964, whereby N & W leased all of the rolling stock and roadbed owned by Wabash in Missouri and elsewhere. As part of the payment due under the lease, N & W is to pay all taxes on the demised property. Also effective October 16, 1964, were a merger of the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad Company (Nickel Plate) with N & W and a lease of the rolling stock and roadbed of the Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway Company by N & W. Prior to the leases and merger Nickel Plate, P & WV, and N & W did not run into Missouri.

Appellants furnished statements required of all affected railroads by Section 151.020, V.A.M.S., “setting out in detail the total length of their road so far as completed, including branch or leased roads, the entire length in this state, and the length of double or sidetracks, with depots, water tanks and turntables, the length of such road, double or sidetracks in each county, [etc.,] * * *; the total number of engines and cars of every kind and description, including all palace or sleeping cars, passenger and freight cars, and all other movable property owned, used or leased by them on the first day of January in each year, and the actual cash value thereof.” On June 2, 1965, N & W was notified that its assessment for 1965 taxes on such properties was $31,298,939. The notice advised also that a hearing relative to the assessment would be held June 15, 1965, and “please be prepared to submit detailed information on leased equipment including copies of such leases and any other pertinent data.” The hearing was recessed until June 23, 1965, at which time appellants offered evidence on various matters including the depreciated value of property in the name of Wabash alone, studies concerning rolling stock actually in Missouri, the nature of appellants’ business including coal hauling in the eastern United States, and figures relating to locomotives and coal hoppers employed in the coal-hauling portion of appellants’ business. Appellants’ corporate status and the commission’s mode of computation were stipulated.

The commission entered its Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Decision:

“FINDINGS OF FACT

“The Petitioner, Norfolk and Western Railway Company, is incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia with its principal office and place of business in Roanoke, Virginia; The Wabash Railroad Company is incorporated under the laws of Ohio with its principal offices and places of business in Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Norfolk and Western Railway Company owns no track or roadbed within Missouri but leases all of the track, roadbed, rolling stock and all other property owned by the Wabash Railroad Company in this State, pursuant to a lease dated March 1, 1961, as amended October 1, 1964, effective as of October 16, 1964. Petitioner owns and leases an extensive railway system which it operates in States other than the State of Missouri.

“Pursuant to the information submitted by Petitioner to the Commission on Form 1, on May 15, 1965, the State Tax Com[364]*364mission of Missouri, on June 2, 1955, placed a total assessed valuation of $31,298,939 on Petitioner’s property in Missouri for taxes for the year 1965.

“Said Assessment included an assessed value for roadbed in the amount of $11,677,875; for buildings in the amount of $499,722; and for rolling stock in the amount of $19,981,757, less $860,415, which is deducted by the Commission as an economic factor, which factor is allowed all railroads in varying amounts.

“To arrive at assessed value of rolling stock taxable in the State of Missouri, the Commission determined the assessed value of the entire rolling stock of the Petitioner, wherever situated, for the year 1965, to be in the amount of $513,309,877. This was arrived at as in all other railroad assessments made by the State Tax Commission of Missouri, by taking the original cost of the equipment by the year of acquisition and allowing five percent depreciation per year but with a maximum depreciation of Seventy-five percent of original cost. Thereafter, in this case, as in the case of all railroad assessments for the year 1965, a factor of forty-seven percent was applied by the State Tax Commission resulting, in this case in the figure of $241,255,-643. The track formula was then determined and it was found that 8.2824 percent of all of the main and branch line tracks owned or leased everywhere by Petitioner, were leased, owned, or controlled by Norfolk and Western in Missouri. This percentage of the above value of the depreciated rolling stock was determined to be $19,981,757 and was by the Commission stated to be the value of the rolling stock properly taxable in Missouri. The figures used in this determination were furnished the Commission by Petitioner in Form 1, which was filed with the Commission.

“That from the total value of the fixed property, which includes the roadbed and buildings, assessed in Missouri at $12,177,-597 which property was owned by the Wabash Railroad Coampany and leased to Norfolk and Western, plus the above assessed value of the rolling stock and all other property, the sum of $860,415 was deducted by the Commission as an economic factor, which factor is allowed all railroads in varying amounts, and that as a result of the above method of assessment and computation, a total assessed valuation was made of $31,298,939.

“No assessment has been made against Wabash Railroad Company for the property leased to Petitioner.

“The Petitioner, on June 15, 1965, filed a request for adjustment and equalization of assessment and for a hearing with respect thereto, and such hearing was granted and such rehearing heard on June 23, 1965, at the Offices of The State Tax Commission of Missouri, 501 Jefferson Building, City of Jefferson, Cole County, Missouri, and the Commission then considered the assessment placed on said property by it as of January 1, 1965. The Railway and Commission agreed that the hearing held on June 23 constituted an exhaustion of administrative remedies of the Petitioner.

“At said hearing, the Petitioner introduced evidence consisting of testimony supplemented by exhibits for the purpose of showing assessed valuation placed by the Commission on the rolling stock of Petitioner was excessive and resulted in an unjustified discrimination against Petitioner in violation of the Constitutions, both of the United States and of the State of Missouri. The Petitioner did not challenge the amount of the assessment on its fixed properties.

“The State Tax Commission of Missouri has adopted uniform procedures and methods to determine the true value in money of the railroad property for assessment purposes within the State of Missouri. Such procedures and methods are designed to value all railroad property within the State of Missouri uniformly and equally with all other property within the State of Missouri. Such procedure and methods were used in assessing and valuing the pe[365]*365titioner’s property as of January 1, 1965. The evidence failed to disclose that the property of the Petitioner was ever placed on sale in the open market.

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426 S.W.2d 362, 1966 Mo. LEXIS 582, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/norfolk-western-railway-co-v-missouri-state-tax-commission-mo-1966.