DirecTV, Inc. v. Town of New Hampton
164 A.3d 371
| N.H. | 2017Background
- DirecTV purchased a 21-acre property in New Hampton with a 46,000 sq. ft. former mill building and converted part of it into a satellite uplink facility (about one-third satellite operations, two-thirds warehouse).
- DirecTV installed six large satellite antennas (three 13-meter transmit dishes and three 9-meter monitoring dishes) on concrete pads, bolted and wired to the building; antennas can be disassembled and removed in days and were configured to DirecTV’s license/frequencies.
- Dozens of UPS batteries on steel racks provide emergency power to DirecTV equipment; batteries are readily removable and could be reused at other DirecTV facilities.
- DirecTV sought tax abatements for 2007–2009 after the Town assessed the antennas and batteries as fixtures (taxable real estate); the trial court agreed they were fixtures and then determined valuation; DirecTV appealed.
- The New Hampshire Supreme Court reviewed whether the antennas and batteries are fixtures (i.e., personalty converted to realty) under the multi-factor test from New England Telephone and whether batteries were exempt; it reversed the fixture determination and vacated valuation for further proceedings.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether antennas are fixtures (taxable real estate) | Antennas are not fixtures: they are portable, specially configured for DirecTV, removable, and intended as personalty | Antennas are fixtures because they are affixed, essential to use of the building as an uplink facility, and intended to remain while the facility operated | Antennas are personal property, not fixtures — removable, not specially adapted to the realty, and intended as personal equipment (reversed) |
| Whether batteries are fixtures | Batteries are personalty used in a UPS, stored on racks, removable and transferable to other facilities | Batteries are fixtures because they provide essential power to the facility’s operations | Batteries are personal property, not fixtures — not affixed, removable, and specific to business equipment (reversed) |
| Whether batteries qualify for statutory exemption as emergency power sources | Batteries are exempt under RSA 72:8 as emergency power equipment | Town disputed exemption applicability if batteries are taxable real estate | Court did not reach statutory exemption issue after concluding batteries are not real estate |
| Whether valuation/assessment was improper and constitutional claims about disparate taxation | DirecTV argued valuation and disparate treatment rendered taxation unconstitutional and disproportionate | Town maintained assessment and valuation were proper | Court vacated valuation determination and remanded for further proceedings given reversal on fixture issue; constitutional claims not addressed on merits |
Key Cases Cited
- N.E. Tel. & Tel. Co. v. City of Franklin, 141 N.H. 449 (N.H. 1996) (articulates multi-factor fixture test focusing on annexation, intent, adaptation to the realty, and use)
- Crown Paper Co. v. City of Berlin, 142 N.H. 563 (N.H. 1997) (rare circumstances where factory machinery may be realty if intimately intertwined with specially designed use of the land)
- King Ridge, Inc. v. Town of Sutton, 115 N.H. 294 (N.H. 1975) (ski lifts taxable as realty where exclusive use was intimately intertwined with land)
- Appeal of Town of Pelham, 143 N.H. 536 (N.H. 1999) (trailers held not fixtures where readily removable and useful elsewhere)
- Kaheawa Wind Power, LLC v. County of Maui, 347 P.3d 632 (Haw. Ct. App. 2014) (wind turbines not fixtures under similar analysis)
- In the Matter of Doherty and Doherty, 168 N.H. 694 (N.H. 2016) (remand principles following change in legal determination)