53 Ind. App. 185 | Ind. Ct. App. | 1913
— Appellee brought this action in the Vanderburgh Circuit Court to enjoin appellants as auditor and treasurer of the county from assessing and collecting certain taxes on its surplus fund and on the cash in the bank on March 1, 1911. A demurrer to the complaint was filed and overruled and the appellants, declining to plead further, judgment was rendered in favor of appellee perpetually enjoining the assessment and collection of such taxes.
The complaint discloses, in substance, that the plaintiff is and has been for many years a savings bank incorporated
The objections to the sufficiency of the complaint are based solely upon the ground that one or both of these items were subject to taxation. We are thus called upon to determine whether the bank could be taxed upon either of such items. If it could the demurrer should have been sustained; but if it could not the demurrer was properly overruled.
Appellee was organized and is being operated as a savings bank under the act of May 12, 1869, and the amendments thereto. The act as amended is §§3348-3401 Burns 1908, §§2703-2757 R. S. 1881, Acts 1901 p. 155, Acts 1903 p. 211,
Appellant asks us to apply this rule as between the taxing officers on the one hand and the bank and its depositors on the other, and to hold that the cash deposited is the absolute property of the bank for taxation purposes and that as such it should be taxed to the bank. It is undoubtedly the law that money on deposit is taxable to the depositor. That such was the intention of the legislature is made clear by §10202 Burns 1908, Acts 1891 p. 199, which provides a form of schedule for personal property for purposes of taxation. The schedule of chattels has for its first item, * ‘Money on hand or on deposit. ’ ’ This indicates that money on deposit is to be treated for taxation purposes as the property of the depositor the same as money on hand. The same schedule also indicates that for the purpose of taxation the deposit of money is not regarded as creating a debt due the depositor from the bank. If it were so regarded, it would be required that such deposits be set out in the former part of the schedule headed, “Personal Property — Credits.” In this part of the schedule the taxpayer is required to set out all forms of indebtedness due him from others and from the aggregate amount of such credits he is permitted to deduct his bona fide indebtedness. From this schedule, it is apparent, we think, that the legislature treated deposits in banks, for taxation purposes, as chattels of the depositors and not as credits due them. In Nebraska it has been ex
In view of the conclusion we have reached, the other questions discussed by counsel need not be considered. The trial court did not err in overruling the demurrer to the complaint.
Judgment is affirmed.
■ Note. — Reported in. 101 N. E. 325. See, also, under (1) 37 Cyc. 828; (2) 37 Cyc. 783; (3) 37 Cyc. 715; (4) 37 Cyc. 773; (5) 37 Cyc. 767, 773; (6, 7) 37 Cyc. 880; (8) 31 Cyc. 333; (9) 37 Cyc. 828. As to classification of property for the purpose of taxation, see 62 Am. St. 175. As to such transactions with a bank as are deemed to be deposits, see note to Long v. Straws (Ind.), 57 Am. Rep. 97. The question of state taxation of capital of national banks is'treated in 3 L. R. A. (N. S.) 584.