The times., 1899-04-06

CONDUIlS TAXABLE
As Real PROPERTY
An Important Decision In
volving Heavy Interests.
Telephone and Electric Lighting
Companies Chiefly Concerned.
A New INTERPRETATION af tho District
A New Interpretation of the District
Tax Laws-0pinion Approved
by Commissioners.

According to an opinion rendered yes
terday by S. T. Thomas, Attorney for the
District, telephone and electric lighting
conduits are liable TO taxation. The attor-
ney holds that these conduits are real
property, as they are appurtenant to the
buildings of the respective oom9an.es which
own them, and therefore come within the
provisions of real property mentioned in
the tax laws of the District. The opinion
received the unanimous approval of the
District Commissioners, and steps viii
probably be taken within the near future
to ascertain the value of the conduits and
the rate at which they will be assessed
The opinion is regarded in the Office of
the Board OF Assistant Assessors and of
Equalization and Review as being very
important, in view OF other questions which
1t probably involves. 1t was upon tine ini-
tiative taken by James A. Bates, Chairman
of this board, that the subject was consid-
cred by the Commissioners and referred
to their legal advisor. The board ascer-
t9ined thai There are apRroximately seven
phone conduits in the city distributed
among the various companies, as follows:
The United States Electric Light COMPANY
49, 40 miles; the Chesapeake and Potomac
Telephone Company 15.11 miles; the Poto-
mac Electric Power Company, 1864 miles.
and the Postal Telegraph and Cable Com
pany, 2.77 miles.
The Board of Assistant Assessors found
that these companies did not pay taxes on
their conduits, and enquired whether It had
authority to assess the Improvements. The
question was referred to Attorney Thomas
and In his opinion TO the Commissioners
he said:
our tax laws, being acts of Congress approved
March 8, 1877; April }. 1873. and March 3. 1883.
impose tax Of sl.5a on each 500 Of The assessed
value thereof on all real and personal property
in the District OF Columbia, except agricultural
land plblie property, and five classes OF property
expressly exempted, not including telephone and
electric lighting companies.
Telephone and electric lighting companies are
not specified in the above mentioned acts OF
Congress, and whether they come within the des.
cription Of real and personal property therein
enumerated Is question OF law TO be deter
mined GU the construction OF the statutes them
selves.
That telephone and electric lighting oonduits
are property there can he no doubt. The only
question Is, what kind Gj propery-rcal or per
sonal2 In the case Of the People vs. The Com
missioner Of Taxes (s2 New York, 4j9). which
involved the question whether under statute
Of New York. which provided That all lands
and all personal estate within this State whether
owned by individuals corporations, shall be
superstructureS Of the New York Elevated Railway
Company were included in the words LANDS and
real estate defined in the statute and ii was
held that they taxable as real estate In
the appeal of the Des Moines Water Company
(Is Iowa, 52D it was held by the Supreme
Court of Iowa that wafer mains laid in the public
highway were liable 20 taxation as real estate.
For purposes OF taxation there is. in my judg-
ment, no difference in principle between tele-
phone and electric lighting conduits and the
superstructure Of an elevated railway and water
mains. These conduits being appurtenant to the
buildings of the telephone and Lighting companies
they would seem 10 be properly taxable as real
estate.
My opinion IS that telephone and lighting con-
duits in the District Of Columbia come within
the description Of real property mentioned in the
statutes above refered 10, and are liable to taxa
tion as such
1t will be quite a task for the District
to determine the value OF the conduits
concerned in the decision of the attorney
and a month will probably be required for
the work. IL may be stated In this connec-
tion that gas mains in the city are taxed.