171 N.Y. 256 | NY | 1902
The testatrix, a resident of the city of Rome, Oneida county, New York, died in that city September 18th, 1900, leaving a will bearing date June 27th in the same year, and which was probated November 20th following. By her will she bequeathed $500.00 to the Young Men's Christian Association of the city of Rome and $2,000.00 to the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Upon the appraisal of the estate for the purpose of ascertaining the amount of the transfer tax upon it, the appraiser held these two legacies exempt. His decision was sustained by the surrogate. The state comptroller thereupon appealed to the Appellate Division, which court affirmed the order entered upon said decision. The comptroller now appeals to this court, and the sole question presented is whether the legacies to these two corporations named are exempt from the tax provided for in section 220 of the Tax Law (L. 1896, ch. 908). That section is a part of article 10 of the Tax Law, which article relates to taxes on transfers of property and, so far as material here, provides in substance that a tax of five per cent shall be imposed upon the transfer of any property by will, of the value of five hundred dollars or over, to persons or corporations not exempt by law from taxation.
Prior to 1896, article 10 of the Tax Law was a separate statute known as the Transfer Tax Law. In that year it was incorporated into the Tax Law together with other statutes relating to taxation, the legislative intent being to codify all the statutes relating to that subject into one consolidated act. After such consolidation, section
In 1900, by chapter 382 of the laws of that year, the Tax Law was amended by adding section 243 to article 10 thereof. That section reads: "The exemptions enumerated in section four of the Tax Law, of which this article is a part, shall not be construed as being applicable in any manner to the provisions of this act." This law went into effect before the death of the testatrix. This new section, it will be observed, had the effect of taking from these corporations the benefit of the exemptions provided by section 4, and the legacies to them are now subject to tax (Matter of Huntington,
Section
It is true that both of the corporations at bar were created for purposes so closely allied to religion that they may be broadly classed as religious corporations. The objects of the Young Men's Christian Association are stated to be "the improvement of the spiritual, mental, social and physical condition of young men," while those of the Missionary Society are declared to be "Charitable and religious, designed to diffuse more generally the blessings of education and christianity, and to promote and support missionary schools and christian missions throughout the United States and territories, and also in foreign countries."
But it is also apparent that the legislature, in speaking of *261 religious corporations, has never intended to include within that term any of the numerous benevolent, charitable, philanthropic and missionary organizations created either under special laws or under the general statutes repealed by the Membership Corporations Law. The history of legislation relating to religious corporations, beginning with the first statute (Chap. 18, Laws 1784) and running through all the laws upon that subject, which finally culminated in the Religious Corporations Law (Chap. 42, G.L.) clearly shows that it has always been the legislative policy to draw a distinct line between religious corporations and such auxiliary organizations as missionary societies. The latter were incorporated and governed under special laws until 1848 in which year the general act (Chap. 319) was passed for the incorporation of charitable, scientific and missionary societies. The classification above referred to has been maintained in all of the statutes which have succeeded the act of 1848. In addition to all this, a study of the statutes of this state relating to taxation and exemptions, reveals the fact that organizations for the mental and moral improvement of men and women, as well as missionary societies, have always been referred to in juxtaposition with religious corporations, thus clearly indicating that the latter designation was not designed to include either of the former.
This is fairly illustrated by subdivision
The spirit of philanthropy and charity will not be fostered or strengthened, nor the state enriched, by a system of laws which permit an opulent sectarian church to gather into its coffers, tax free, the legacies of its donors, while the great humanitarian and practical charities of the age must first yield tribute to the state before they can take that which is given them to do their good works. It would almost seem as if the restoration of the ancient law of charitable uses by chapter 701, Laws 1893 (Allen v. Stevens,
The orders of the Appellate Division and the surrogate should be reversed, with costs, and the proceedings remitted to the Surrogate's Court with directions to proceed thereon.
PARKER, Ch. J., GRAY, O'BRIEN, BARTLETT, HAIGHT and CULLEN, JJ., concur.
Ordered accordingly. *263