182 N.Y. 460 | NY | 1905
The First National Bank of Ossining, N.Y., sued out a writ of certiorari to review the proceedings of the *462 board of town assessors, upon the assessment of its shares of capital stock for the purposes of taxation for the year 1904. Its complaint is that the assessors, in determining the value of the stock, included the value of the bank's real estate and refused its application to make any deduction thereof. The bank has failed, in the courts below, to obtain the relief to which it deemed itself entitled and now appeals to this court; claiming, in substance, that under the provisions of section 24 of article 2 of the Tax Law the real estate should have been "eliminated from consideration as part of the capital stock, surplus and undivided profits of the bank."
That the bank was aggrieved, within the meaning of section
As to the principal question in this case, the relator argues that chapter 550 of the Laws of 1901, which amended section 24 of article 2 of the Tax Law of 1896, should be construed as intending that the real estate shall be excluded in ascertaining the value of the shares of bank stock and suggests, in favor of such a construction, that, if the law is not so construed, the result is double taxation.
I think that the board of assessors proceeded correctly. The Tax Law, as amended with respect to banks, in 1901, devised a new plan for the assessment and taxation of shares of stocks of banks and banking associations. It is apparent *463
from the language of the enactment, among other things, that their real estate remained, as before, subject to taxation as a part of the corporate property; although entering into the valuation of the shares when assessed against the shareholders. As section
The tax to be collected under this section of the Tax Law is upon the shares of stock held by stockholders. It is not upon the property owned by the bank and the distinction in the scheme of taxation is evident. What is intended to be reached, for the purposes of taxation, is the personal property held and owned by persons in shares of the capital stock of banks. The value of that species of property is required by the law to be ascertained by adding together the amount of the capital stock, surplus and undivided profits of the bank and that, necessarily, must include the value of every corporate possession.
I think that the assessing officers were correct in their proceedings and that the assessment should be upheld. The *465 order of the Special Term quashed the writ of certiorari and dismissed the proceedings; but, as there was no ground for the dismissal of the writ, except that the determination of the board of assessors was correct, the order should be amended so as to read that it affirms the proceedings of the board of assessors and dismisses the writ of certiorari. As so amended, the order should be affirmed, with costs.
CULLEN, Ch. J., BARTLETT, HAIGHT, VANN and WERNER, JJ., concur; O'BRIEN, J., absent.
Ordered accordingly.