The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-09-27
IT, u 90 3
STATE MUST
PAY MONEY
Large Amount Of Taxes
Illegally Collected.
1T MAY REACH $4,000
Attorney General Says It VIII Have
to Be Refunded.
Supreme Court Has Held That statute
Levying Tax ON solvent Credits
Was Repealed by MORT
gage Tax Act.

According to an opinion rendered
by Attorney General Massey Wilson
to State Auditor J. NJ Carmiachel
yesterday, the ONCE OF the state Audi
tor is under compulsj.n 10 pay back
upon application. taxes Illegally col
lected. which may amount to as much
i as $4,000
All persons in the stare of Alabams
who. according 10 the opinion. have
paid taxes on solvent credits since
October /, 1908, have paid money &c
the State Illegally, as a statute levy
ing privilege tax for recording mort
| cages In the last Legislature had the
effect OF repeating the former tax. The
opinion OF the Attorney General Is
based upon recent decision of I he
Supreme Court to that effect +.
AS result. It Is anticipated by
members of the Audftor's Department
that during the next few months
hundreds of applications will be re-
ceived from people in various parts
of the Slater seeking 10 have refunded
to them money which was Illegally
collected, having, In effect, been paid
In duplicate by the privilege tax on
recording mortgages.
Opinion of Attorney General.
The opinion OF the Attorney Gen.
erai on the point in question follows:
Montgomery, Sept. "a, 1905.
Hon. J. NJ. Carmichael, State Auditor.
Capitol:
Dear Sir-Answering your favor OF
the 18th, beg to say:
In recent decision the Supreme
Court held that subsection of sec
tion ss11 of the code taxing solvent
credits, was repealed by the statute
levying a privilege tax for recording
mortgages General Acts 1908, D. 227),
and that solvent credits are not now
taxable Barnes " Maragne, Ms.)
~ - -.
March 4, 1908. The statute is not made
retroactive. 1t does not, therefore, re-
lieve solvent credits from taxation for
the tax year beginning October /, 1907,
and ending September 80, 1903; but It
does exempt solvent credits from tax
atiofE from and after the tax year be-
ginning October /, 1908, and ending
September 3d. 1904. (Etooper v. The
State. 141 Alabama. Ill. 11S.)
The Act, approved september -.
1908, General Acts, 1908. p. 27S)
makes provision Tor refunding to any
person owning property subject to tax
alton in this State money which has
been enormously paid for taxes. I'm
der the provisions Of the act men,
toned, person owning property sub
ject TO taxation In this state. who has
paid taxes on solvent credits for the
tax years 10000 or 1eO4-O5 may have
the same refunded 20 him upon COM
plying with the provisions of the stat
ute referred to-.
very respectfully, I
Massey Wilson, -
attorney General"
Brought Up by Livingston.
Inquiry. which brought to light the
Illegal collection of taxes, was set on
foot by State Auditor Carmichael re-
Gently. upon the receipt of a letter
from the Probate Judge of Autauga
County G. s. Livingston. containing
a claim from W. T. Northington of
that County for taxes paid under the
solvent credit statute during the years
1908. 1904 and 1905. the claim of Mr.
Northington amounted to S399.75.
While no calculation has yet been
made of the amount of taxes collect
ed since the statute providing priv
ilege tax for recording mortgages
went into effect, II is roughly estimat-
ed that the total amount will reach
probably in the neighborhood of s40.
900. A large portion of this will be
found to have been paid in in small
amounts, and II is probable claims
will not be put in for IL.
There is Possibility that a meas
ure will be framed and presented to
the next session of the Legislature to
place a time limit upon the period in
which applications for refunding OF
the money may be maze.