The Ronan pioneer. [volume] (Ronan, Mont.) 1910-1970, 1916-11-24
LAND IS NOT TAXABLE
BUT EQUITY IS TAXABLE

Below we PRINT letuef from
Assistant U. S. Attorney Frank ).
Woody to Mr.. Sam Higham relating
to the tax question on lands under the
Flathead reclamation project. Many
inquiries are made regarding this
matter and the Pioneer has been un-
able to answer them. We can not
say that the letter below has made
the matter clear, but it may help some
to figure out where they stand. The
letter is dated Butte, Montana, Nov.
2, 1916, and reads:
Dear Sir:-As l have handled the
Flathead reclamation homestead cases
almost entirely, and as Mr.. Wheeler is
out of town and will not return for
some days, l am taking the liberty Of
answering your letter of the 31st ult.
Judge Bourquin in rendering his
decision in these cases held, in effect
that until the entryman has done
every thing necessary to be done by
him to entitle him to a patent, that is
made not only his proofs under the
homestead law and payment for the
lands, but also the proofs of additional
reclamation required by the reclama-
tion act and payment of all amounts
due to the government up to the time
of making such reclamation proofs on
account of the construction and main
tenance of the reclamation system, the
lands belonged to the government and
could not be taxed, and ordered an in
junction to issue restraining the
county officers from either taxing the
lands or selling them at tax sales for
delinquent taxes.
He further held, however, that an
entryman's equity in the land is sep
arate and distinct from the land it.
self, or the title to the land, and that
such equity can be taxed.
Just what constitutes an entryman's
equity in the land is rather difficult to
determine. The improvements would
not be an equity as, the improvements
being affixed to the soil, they are a
part and parcel of the land, and to
attempt to tax them would be taxing
the land, just what the court decided
they could not do. My own idea is
that the equity is the interest the en-
tryman has in the land, and that is
The amount of money he has paid to
the government as the purchase price
for the land alone at the present timc.
If, after the cost of constructing the
reclamation system is apportioned ana
an entryman pays installments, from
time to time, without making the proof
of additional reclamation required by
the reclamation act, his equity might
increase in value, from time to time,
by adding to the purchase price paid
for the land the amount paid in in
stallments, so that each year tte
equity would increase in value the
amount of the installment paid.
! l do not believe that the decision
rendered invalidates and wipes out
all back taxes. Undoubtedly it does
remove all tax liens from the lands
which may have been created by at
tempting to assess the lands, but it
is probable that the county officers can
assess the equities of the entrymen
for past years, where they have not
raid the taxes which have been as
.sessed against the lands.
If the counties go ahead and assess
the entrymen's equities [ I'm some
what at loss ~ nderstana how they
can enforce the payment of the taxes
thereon. They may, of course, adj
vertise and sell the equities, but the
mere selling of the equities would
give no purchaser the right O:
possession of the lands, neither do
believe that the counties could give
any purchaser tax deed if no re-
/ demption was had from such sales.
The only effect assessment of the
equities might have, so far as can
see, would be that there would appear
on the assessment books unpaid
taxes against the equities, and pur-
chasers of the lands from the entry
men, or persons loaning money and
taking mortgages on the lands for
security, might insist on these taxes
being paid before purchasing or TAX
ing mortgages.
l have made no examination of the
present assessment records of these
counties to acertain the value which
has been placed on these equities, altho'
l understand, that, in conformity
with Judge Bourquin's decision, the
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