Stewart v. Commissioner

35 B.T.A. 406, 1937 BTA LEXIS 882
CourtUnited States Board of Tax Appeals
DecidedFebruary 5, 1937
DocketDocket No. 68781.
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 35 B.T.A. 406 (Stewart v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Board of Tax Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stewart v. Commissioner, 35 B.T.A. 406, 1937 BTA LEXIS 882 (bta 1937).

Opinion

[408]*408OPINION.

Leech :

There appears to be no dispute with respect to the income received or the amounts of the several deductions. The only questions raised are as to what portions of the income and deductions constitute separate income and separate deductions of the petitioner, and what portions, if any, are community income and deductions.

[409]*409Petitioner contends that by reason of the execution by her husband of a conveyance of all of his interest in the community property and the community income thereafter to be received, all of the income from her separate property was her separate income. With this we do not agree. We think that, under the decisions of the Texas courts, a husband may convey to his wife, by gift or otherwise, as her separate property, community property, but such property must then be in existence. Frame v. Frame, 36 S. W. (2d) 152; Kahn v. Kahn, 58 S. W. 825; Heaton v. State, 87 S. W. (2d) 256; Sorenson v. City National Bank, 49 S. W. (2d) 718; Owen v. Willis, 20 S. W. (2d) 338; Polk v. Mead, 3 S. W. (2d) 112; Cauble v. Beaver-Electra Refining Co., 274 S. W. 120; Armstrong v. Turbeville, 216 S. W. 1101. The income here in dispute was received in 1930. Thus, in determining petitioner’s gross income for the purpose of Federal income tax computation, that income must be treated as community income under the rule that an assignment of future income does not relieve the assignor from the burden of the income tax thereon. Lucas v. Earl, 281 U. S. 111; Turbeville v. Commissioner, 84 Fed. (2d) 307; Rose v. Commissioner, 65 Fed. (2d) 616.

Since, under the general rule in Texas, income from the separate property of a spouse is the income of the community (Anna Davis Terry, 26 B. T. A. 1418; affd., 69 Fed. (2d) 969), the interest, rents, and dividends received by petitioner constitute community income taxable to petitioner and her husband in equal amounts. The record is not clear as to the source of the “other income” reported by petitioner in the sum of $23,881.06. This has been treated in part as community and the balance as separate income. In view of the record, we sustain the respondent upon his allocation.

However, oil and gas royalties are an exception to the general rule just stated. Under the laws of Texas, an oil and gas lease constitutes a sale of those minerals in place. True, for Federal income tax purposes, those royalties are ordinary income from the property leased. Burnet v. Harmel, 287 U. S. 103. But, in Texas, such royalties are not income from the property, per se, but are the separate property, in another form, of the spouse owning the lands from which the royalties arise, and thus are not community income. Commissioner v. Wilson, 76 Fed. (2d) 766; David Hannah, 31 B. T. A. 971; Rosalie Hampton, 31 B. T. A. 853; J. T. Sneed, Jr., 30 B. T. A. 1121. It follows that the oil and gas royalties received by petitioner from her separate property, less the depletion of $19,529.13, are taxable in their entirety to petitioner.

This brings us to the question of the deductions which respondent has treated as allowable in equal parts to petitioner and her husband, with the exception of one item of $2,000 which he now alleges is a capital expense. Petitioner urges that even though it be held that [410]*410certain of the income received by her from her separate estate constitutes community income, taxable one-half to her, she is entitled to the deduction of the total amount of her deductible expenses actually paid by her from her funds, and that the expenditures included in the deductions taken were so paid. It is argued that her husband, not having paid any portion of this expense, is not entitled to the benefit of the deduction of any part thereof from that portion of the community income taxed to him. This argument overlooks the fact that the portion of community income taxable to the husband is not gross but net taxable income, after the deduction of the expenses incidental to its production. Before the execution by petitioner’s husband of his conveyance of all his interest in petitioner’s separate estate, his tax liability with respect to the income from petitioner’s separate estate was a sum not in excess of one-half of the net income. Obviously, the execution of that instrument did not increase his tax liability on that income. We must bear in mind that the community is entitled not to the gross income from the separate property of husband and wife, but to the net income remaining after payment of expenses incidental to its production. The inclusion of gross income from separate property in the community, without deducting the expenses of producing it, would deplete the separate property or, in other words, would result in an inclusion in the community of a portion of the separate property, since the gross income therefrom would necessarily constitute, in part, a liquidation of capital. As Corpus Juris states the principle, citing Sharp v. Zeller, 110 La. 61; 34 So. 129:

Where separate property is encumbered, the revenue therefrom may be applied to the discharge of the encumbrance, leaving only the excess to fall into the community [31 C. J. 32, Sec. 1116.]

In accordance with this principle, the respondent has consistently computed the income of the spouses by including in the net income of each, one-half of the net community income, thus giving each, equally, the benefit of the deductions properly attributable to such income. As far as we have been able to find, no question has been raised heretofore as to this treatment. The usual method pursued was to have each spouse report all of the community income, and the deductions therefrom, and then include in his or her individual income, one-half of the net amount so computed. The rule consistently applied is stated by O. D. 909, 4 C. B. 254, as follows:

In returns in wbicb community income is divided between husband and wife domiciled in States where such income is divisible for income tax purposes, both husband and wife should report in detail the gross income from such community property. The deductions properly chargeable against such income should be equally divided between husband and wife.

[411]*411We approve that rule and hold that the deductions, constituting expenses, depreciation, interest and taxes pertaining to petitioner’s separate property, the income from which falls into the community and is taxable in equal parts to petitioner and her husband, are to be ■equally divided between the two. The gross income of the community shall be taxed equally, between the two spouses and each granted the benefit of one-half of the deductions.

It is conceded that the contested contributions made by petitioner in 1930 were of charitable character as defined by the applicable revenue act. Eespondent contends, however, that they constitute a community deduction because made from a bank account in which community income was deposited. But, the funds in such bank account belonged to the petitioner and not to the community. The contributions were made by the petitioner out of her funds, and she is, therefore, entitled to deduct them in full.

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Stewart v. Commissioner
35 B.T.A. 406 (Board of Tax Appeals, 1937)

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Bluebook (online)
35 B.T.A. 406, 1937 BTA LEXIS 882, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stewart-v-commissioner-bta-1937.