(2) ASSESSMENT
JURISDICTION.—The term 
‘‘assessment jurisdiction’’ means a geographical area 
used in determining the assessed value of property 
for ad valorem taxation. 
(3) COMMERCIAL
AND
INDUSTRIAL
PROP-
ERTY.—The term ‘‘commercial and industrial prop-
erty’’ means property (excluding oil pipeline prop-
erty, public utility property, and land used primarily 
for agricultural purposes or timber growth) devoted 
to commercial or industrial use and subject to a 
property tax levy. 
(4) OIL PIPELINE PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘oil 
pipeline property’’ means all property, real personal 
and intangible: 
(A) owned or used by an oil pipeline pro-
viding interstate transportation of oil, refined 
petroleum products or other hazardous liquids; 
(B) owned or used by an oil pipeline for 
storage of oil, refined petroleum products or 
other hazardous liquids, which is connected to 
any property described in subparagraph (B); or 
(C) subject to the jurisdiction of the Fed-
eral Energy Regulatory Commission. 
(5) PUBLIC
UTILITY
PROPERTY.—The term 
‘‘public utility property’’ means property (excluding 
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oil pipeline property) that is devoted to public serv-
ice and is owned or used by any entity that performs 
a public service and is regulated by any govern-
mental agency. 
(b) DISCRIMINATORY ACTS.—The acts specified in 
this subsection unreasonably burden and discriminate 
against interstate commerce. A State, subdivision of a 
State, authority acting for a State or subdivision of a 
State, or any other taxing authority (including a taxing 
jurisdiction and a taxing district) may not do any of the 
following such acts: 
(1) Assess oil pipeline property at a value that 
has a higher ratio to the true market value of the 
oil pipeline property than the ratio that the assessed 
value of other commercial and industrial property in 
the same assessment jurisdiction has to the true 
market value of the other commercial and industrial 
property, or levy or collect a tax on such an assess-
ment. 
(2) Levy or collect an ad valorem property tax 
on oil pipeline property at a tax rate that exceeds 
the tax rate applicable to commercial and industrial 
property in the same assessment jurisdiction. 
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(3) Impose any other tax that discriminates 
against oil pipeline property described in subsection 
(a)(4) of this section. 
SEC. 3. JURISDICTION OF COURTS; RELIEF. 
(a) GRANT OF JURISDICTION.—Notwithstanding sec-
tion 1341 of title 28, United States Code, and notions of 
comity, and without regard to the amount in controversy 
or citizenship of the parties, the district courts of the 
United States shall have jurisdiction, concurrent with 
other jurisdiction of the courts of the United States, of 
States, and of all other taxing authorities and taxing juris-
dictions, to prevent a violation of section 1. 
(b) RELIEF.—Except as otherwise provided in this 
subsection, relief may be granted under this Act only if 
the ratio of assessed value to true market value of oil pipe-
line property exceeds by at least 5 percent the ratio of 
assessed value to true market value of other commercial 
and industrial property in the same assessment jurisdic-
tion. If the ratio of the assessed value of other commercial 
and industrial property in the assessment jurisdiction to 
the true market value of all other commercial and indus-
trial property cannot be determined to the satisfaction of 
the court through the random-sampling method known as 
a sales assessment ratio study (to be carried out under 
statistical principles applicable to such a study), each of 
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the following shall be a violation of section 1 for which 
relief under this Act may be granted: 
(1) An assessment of the oil pipeline property 
at a value that has a higher ratio of assessed value 
to the true market value of the oil pipeline property 
than the ratio of the assessed value of all other 
property (excluding public utility property) subject 
to a property tax levy in the assessment jurisdiction 
has to the true market value of all other property 
(excluding public utility property). 
(2) The collection of an ad valorem property tax 
on the oil pipeline property at a tax rate that ex-
ceeds the tax rate applicable to all other taxable 
property (excluding public utility property) in the 
taxing jurisdiction. 
Æ 
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