State Ex Rel. Thompson v. Jones

41 S.W.2d 393, 328 Mo. 267, 1931 Mo. LEXIS 424
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedJune 30, 1931
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 41 S.W.2d 393 (State Ex Rel. Thompson v. Jones) 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
State Ex Rel. Thompson v. Jones, 41 S.W.2d 393, 328 Mo. 267, 1931 Mo. LEXIS 424 (Mo. 1931).

Opinion

*271 ATWOOD, C. J.

This is an original proceeding in mandamus by the State Auditor, the State Board of Equalization and the State Tax Commission of Missouri to compel the Clerk of the County Court of Morgan County to compute and extend taxes for the year 1929 on certain personal property omitted by the county assessor from the assessment books of said county, and thereafter placed on said books and the valuation thereof fixed by said State Tax Commission and approved by said State Board of Equalization before the tax books had been delivered to the county collector.

Eespondent waived issuance of the alternative writ and pleaded to the petition as though it were the alternative writ, to which pleading we shall hereinafter make appropriate reference. Eelators thereupon filed motion for judgment on the pleadings.

Eespondent’s position is generally indicated in his statement of the case from which we quote as follow's:

“In the year 1929, the Texas-Empire Pipe Line Company was building a pipe line across the State of Missouri. On the first day of June, 1929, the pipe line was not completed across the State so that oil could be pumped through it, and the State Tax Commission held that the same was not assessable by them under Section 13002, Revised Statutes 1919 (Sec. 10012, R. S. 1929), but should be assessed by the various county assessing officers under the laws relating to the assessment of individual property owners. [Article 2, Chapter 119, Revised Statutes 1919; Article 2, Chapter 59, Revised Statutes 1929.] The company turned in no tax list in Morgan County for the year 1929, and the assessor found and assessed no property of the company in Morgan County for said year.
“The State Tax Commission, purporting to act under authority conferred upon it by Sections 12847 to 12849, Revised Statutes 1919 (Secs. 9853, 9854 and 9855, R. S. 1929), held a meeting at the county-court room in the courthouse in Versailles, Morgan County, Missouri, on the 14th day of July, 1930, at which time and place, one H. S. Bales appeared as agent' for the State Tax Commission, and found that the Texas-Empire Pipe Line Company had in Morgan County, on the 1st day of June, 1929, ‘fifteen carloads of- material for the construction of an oil pipe line’ of the actual value of twenty-five *272 thousand dollars. He further found that such property had not been returned by the company, or assessed by the county assessor or board of equalization, and had been omitted from the tax rolls of said county. He fixed the valuation of said property and distributed the same among’ three school districts in said county, but did not place it in any road district. The entry of this property upon the assessment books appears on page 23 of the abstract. At said time and place he also wrote in said assessment book his certificate of these proceedings.
“It is to be noted that in entering the property upon the assessment books, the agent of the State Tax Commission did not enter the property as assessors are required to do, but wrote the name of the company and following it and over several lines wrote: ‘fifteen carloads of material for the construction of an oil pipe line. ’ Then in the column provided for valuation he placed $5,000 in school district number one, $12,500 in school district number ten, and $7,500 in school district number nine. The assessment does not show the nature, kind or quantity of property in any district, but is made to apply to all the districts in a lump. The assessment does not show w'hat road districts the property was located in. In the certificate of the agent, which is required to be made, the agent did not find in what school district the property was located, or in what road districts it was located. The certificate simply states that he found the property within the county. The certificate of the agent, presented to the State Tax Commission, and by it approved, does not conform with the certificate spread upon the records of Morgan County. In the certificate presented to the Tax Commission, the agent merely certified that he found $25,000 Worth of personal property in the county, which ivas placed upon the assessment rolls by proper description and the sum of $25,000 placed in the proper column therefor. This proceeding was later ratified by the State Tax Commission and thereafter approved by the State Board of Equalization. All of these proceedings were then certified to the respondent, the Clerk of the County Court of Morgan County. The respondent did not extend taxes upon this purported assessment made by the agent of the State Tax Commission. Respondent delivered the tax books to the Collector of the Revenue for Morgan County, Missouri, as required by law, and took the collector’s receipt therefor before the action was instituted.”

It is the position of relators that the State Tax Commission was authorized to make the assessment in question by Sections 12847 and 12848, Revised Statutes 1919, now Sections 9854 and 9855, Revised Statutes 1929, and that it was made in accordance therewith. *273 Relevant portions of Section 9854, Revised Statutes 1929, prescribing the duties and powers of the State Tax Commission, are as follows:

“It shall be the duty of the commission, and the commissioners shall have power and authority, subject to the right of the state board of equalization, finally to adjust and equalize the values of real and personal property among the several counties of the state, as follows:

“(1) To have and exercise general supervision over all the assessing officers of this state, over county boards of equalization and appeal in the performance of their duties, and to take such measures as will secure the enforcement of the provisions of this article, and all the properties of this state liable to assessment for taxation shall be placed upon the assessment rolls and assessed in accordance with the letter and plain provisions of the law. . . .

“(6) The commission shall have the exclusive power of original assessment of railroads, railroad cars, rolling stock, street railroads, bridges, telegraph, telephone, express companies, and other similar public utility corporations, companies and firms now possessed and exercised by the state board of equalization. Said commission shall also have all powers of original assessment of real and personal property now possessed by any assessing officer, subject only to the rights given by the Constitution to the state board of equalization.

“(7) To cause to be placed upon the assessment rolls omitted property which may be discovered to have, for any reason, escaped assessment and taxation, and to correct any errors that may be found on the assessment rolls and to cause the proper entry to be made thereon.

“(8) To raise or lower the assessed valuation of any real or personal property, including the power to raise or lower the assessed valuation of the real or personal property of any individual, co-partnership, company, association or corporation: Provided, that before any such assessment is so raised, notice of the intention of the commission to raise such assessed valuation and of the time and place at which a hearing thereon will be held, shall be given to such individual, copartnership, company, association or corporation as provided in section 9855.”

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Bluebook (online)
41 S.W.2d 393, 328 Mo. 267, 1931 Mo. LEXIS 424, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-thompson-v-jones-mo-1931.