Los Angeles herald., 1908-11-03
ANNULMENT OF
TAX SALES ASKED
LOS ANGELES RAILWAY WILL
HAVE TO FIGHT
CITY COUNCIL TAKES CASE
UNDER AMUSEMENT
There Is No Disposition Shown by
Members of Government to
Grant Request for Cam
collation.

After giving the city a slap on the
wrist and ieeringly, with its tongue III
its cheek, crying. Tag, you're IT.! the
Los Angeles Railway company asked
the council to please get off about $751;
600 worth of real estate that had been
sold for taxes.
The insult and the request were In
The same breath, and the city attorney
told the council that legally the ran
way was within its rights. The morai
side of the question he refused 10 dls
cuss, but not SO Auditor Mushel anu
Assessor AIallard. Both had very much
10 say on the moral aspect of the case;
The affair dates back to the board
of equalization, year ago last june
Assessor Mallard had charged the Los
Angeles railway with s7,50O,O00 on
which 10 pay taxes. One-thlrd OF llls
was on the railways franchise to Pc
another third on its franchise to do'
aud another third on real property.
When the board of equalization met
The railways attorneys appeared ana
asked the S2,500,000 on the franchlse-t To-
he be reduced to $500, contending tEe
franchise-to-b could only be VaIued
at what il had cost to prepare eorpor-
alton papers. The council refused TO
grant this reduction, and the assessor
figures were not changed.
The railway had paid for years on a
franchise to be and a franchise to DO,
but about a year ago the supreme court
decided municipalities had no right 10
assess a franchise to be. In making
his last assessment, Mr.. Mallard care
fully complied with the law, not as
sessing one penny against franchises
10 be but the corporations were no
better off, as he assessed tine run
amount against the franchises to do.
When the time came for the com
pany to pay its taxes last year, tor
some reason that has not been eX-
plained it paid all on its franchise TO
do and its real property, and allowed
4axes on it's franchise to be, amount
ing to S31, 900, to go delinquent. When
the term of delinquency expired the
city sold to itself lots l, and of
Power Plant tract No. l, valued at
about $2S0,000.
council to cancel this tax sale on the
ground that at the time the assess
ment was made the companys prlncl-
nal place of business was In san
francisco, and therefore Los Angeles
had no right to assess its francnlse 70
be The railway had not made this
nlea before the board of equalization.
Had it done so, the assessor would
have stricken out the franchise to be,
and assessed the whole amount to the
franchise to do, and the railway would
not have escaped any portion of It's
taxes Also it had always pald on lts
franchise to be, in every previous year,
although there had been no change IN
its principal place of business.
This year, fearing the San Francisco
authorities would take advantage OF
their claiming that city as their prinei-
nal place of business and assess them
accordingly next year. the railway Of
ficials claimed the principal office OF
the Los Angeles railway was at Santa
Barbara, and to prove 1t attached a
special car to a train, had 1t taken to
Santa Barbara, held the directors
meeting in the car and had the car
attached to a south bound train and
returned to Los Angeles, all without
so much as getting out of their private
car. ,..
CITY Assessor NIallard and Auditor
Mushet both told the council in no
uncertain words this was all merely an
effort to evade the law and cheat the
city out of $31 900 taxes and about $4,000
penalties that have accrued to date.
The council took the matter under
advisement for a month, but has no IN
cIination to grant a request the tax
sales be Cancelled, preferring to make
the railway company fight for their
property in court, even if they are ad-
vised in advance the railway has the
legal technicalities on its side.