The Washington times., 1901-07-09
LEGISLATION NOT NEEDED.
Porto Rican Duties May Be Re-
funded Without Act of Congress.
Comptroller of the Treasury An
nOunces this Opinion i'm the Lns-
ceilcs Cnse-AppeIIants Sought
Return of Sugar Duties Paid by
Them.

ceiIes Cnse-AppeIIants Sought II
Return of Sugar Duties Paid by
Them.
The Comptroller of the Treasury has
decided that under the provisions of the
law enacted June 10, 1890, the duties ille-
| gally collected on sugars from Porto Rico
| between the adoption of the Treaty of
Paris and the passage of the Foraker act
may be refunded without awaiting spe-
cial sislation by Congress.
The recent decision of the Supreme
Court held that these duties were wrong
ly collected. but it was held by the Comp
troller a short time ago that the duties
collected in Porto Rico on goods from
the United States could not be refunded
, until Congress should make an appropria
ton for the purpose.
The last decision was reached in the
case of Lascelles & Co.. of New York,
! who applied TO the Secretary for refund
of duties on Porto Rican sugar paid to
the collector of customs of New York.
In his opinion Comptroller Tracewell
| says:
The Customs Administrative act SUI
| pra, is, according to it's title, an act to
simplify the laws in relation 10 the col
| lection of the revenues. Section q there
| of. the section of the act which makes
|
| " That whenever it shall be shown to
! the satisfaction of the Secretary of the
| Treasury that. in any case of unascer-
| tanned or estimated duties, or payments
made upon appeal. more money has been
/ paid to or deposited with a collector of
! customs than, as had been ascertatned by
! final liquidation thereof. the law requtr-
! ed 10 be paid Or-deposited, the secretary
! of the Treasury shall direct the Ire asur-
| or TO refund and pay the same out OF any
| money in the Treasury not otherwise ap-
ny flf fnFI
| for are hereby appropriated. and this APP
preparation shall be deemed permanent,
1 indefinite appropriation and the Secre-
/ tary of the Treasury Is hereby author-
J lied TO correct manifest clerical errors in
| any entry or liquidation for or against
] the United States, at any time within
/ one year from the date of such entry
| but not afterward: Provided, That the
( Secretary of the Treasury shall in his an
nual report 10 Congress gIve detailed
statement of the various sums of money
refunded under the provisions of this
act, or of any other act OF Congress re
! lating to the revenue together with
; copies of these rulings under which re
I payments were made
This section authorizes you TO refund
duties: (a) Unascertained, or CD estlmat-
ed or (a-b) payments made on appeal,
where % paid. or (2) deposited in excess
of amount ascertained by final liquida-
ton
correct manifest clerical errors; (a) In an
entry, or tb) in liquidation, within one
y am of opinion that the duties sought
to be refunded cannot properly be said
to come within the purVieW of this latter
act. however literally we may construe
it's provisions.
you may refund unascertained or estimat-
ed duties on imports or upon payments
made on appeal Evidently the appeal
referred to IS the appeal provided from
the Board OF General Appraisers, but we
have already seen that the Board OF APP
praIseTs could not consider or determine
the question whether an article was an
import; hence there cannot possibly be an
appeal to the courts from matter which
could not be considered.
THE duties exacted in tlis case cannot
be said TO be unascertained or estimated,
as these two matters evidently refer 10
amounts depending upon clasShcatlon or
value. Neither can we say the duty ex-
acted in this case as an import duty was
a duty paid or deposited in excess OF
amount ascertained by final liquidation,
for the final liquidation referred TO IS the
liquidation provided by the cognate sec
tions II and u q this act, and necessarily
refers to liquidation made in consequence
of an appeal TO the Board of Appraisers !
as provided by the act. and over matter I
of which said board had jurisdiction.
Your power 10 refund depends upon the
fact as TO whether he act of 1870, supra, |
is in force IL repealed by the act of June !
10 1899, supra. Fod do not have such pow
er. if not. then you do nave the power /
under the restrictions herein set forth.
In recent decision rendered by me on |
a question Of your power to refund duties |
collected by army officers in Porto Rico |
during the same period OF time as IA tins (
case on goods imported into Porto Rico |
from the United States, / said that this |
act OF 1919 was obsolete. 1t is not mate |
rial to said decision whether this was a I
correct statement or otherwise, for the !
said decision turned upon the fact that |
the duties in that case were not eNdcted |
by a collector of customs of The United ,
States within regularly constituted Gus
TOMS district OF the EnitCG States. nor 7
under the color Of any tariff act of the /
United States. but were collected under |
a military order, and the moneys so col |
iected never went into the Treasury OF !
the United States. The facts in that case |
are clearly distinguishable from those IN /
this case. As said in that case, Congress |
never had il in mind when legislaung /
on the question OF refundment that the /
condition Of affairs shown in that case |
might arise; their les!siatloIl vas con-
fined to duties collected by collectors OF /
customs in regular customs districts, ana |
concerning moneys that went INTO the /
United States Treasury.
Il adhere TO the decision therein made, |
regardless of the fact whether SAID act |
Of 1915 is or is not In force ana operatlEe.
'-On a careful reconsideration OF wheth- |
or this act was repealed by implication Dy I
the Customs Administrative act of June |
10, 1890, supra. l am led to conclude that
it was not repealed for the reasons Follow
ing:
= This act, by section % thereof. in spe-
cific terms repeats sections 293l, Z952 5Oll,
30lZ. 30l2lz. and 3Ol3 and various other sec
tions of the Revised Statutes. and other
acts of Congress relating to the tarin
laws passed subsequent TO the revision OF
the statutes and omits from the repeating
section the act Of 1873.
- BY the terms OF said section %, su-
pra ii is provided that all other acts in
consistent with the provisions of this act
are hereby repealed.
g. The act Of 1875 was restrictive as 70
other laws, but is not Inconsistent with
the sections OF said act of June 10, 1890
supra. as IL relates to refundments. II
relates to class Of refundments not en-
braccd in said aforementioned section.
Il. That by the act Of June 10, 1880 you
are required to report to Congress
statement of all moneys refunded under
that or any other act Of Congress. If the
act of 1875 is not in force, then this Ian
guage is senselcss, as there would be no
act of Congress authorizing a refund eX-
cept the said Customs Administrative act
Of June 10. 1890.
''j. The Treasury Department has con-
tinuously held since the passage Of the
act Of June 10. 1880, that the act Of 1875
was in force and effect, and have been
continuously making refuudments there
under