The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1925-04-14
MUST
REFUND
TO COMPANIES
Only State Board of Equali'
ZatiOn May Assess Tele-
phone Property

Taxes collected by. counties over
the state from telephone companies
in 1924 will have to be refunded
according to T. H. H. 1horesen, tax
commissioner, who has sent letters
to county assessors advising them
not to assess PROPERTY of Telephone
companies this year.
Many telephone companies thai
paid both county and state taxes last
year have already asked for a refund
and others are expected to demand
the refund in the near future.
!. Many counties in the state have
in the past assessed the property OF
telephone companies while the law
provides that the property may be
assessed only by the board of equal
izatiOn.
Mr.. Thoresen's letter to the county
tax assessors follows:
The question has arisen as to
whether real estate owned by a tele.
phone company and used exclusively
for the purpose of carrying on 4
telephone business is subject to 10.
cal assessment or whether such pro
perty must be included in the as.
SCSSWcut VI -tciepHOHe pIopcIty u
made by the state board of equaliza.
tiOn.
Section 179 of the Constitution
perty, including franchises, Of tkle-
phone. companies or corporations
''operating in this state and used di-
rectiy or indirectly in the carrying
Of messages, shall be assessed by
En 90. ..t.> ,r nf nnno1iyot.rN in, q
manner prescribed by such state
vided by law" The state tax COM
structiOns to assessors issued in
fact that the statutes in regard to
phone companies were conflicting
state board of equalization to assess
the personal property of telephone
companies. Section 2l44 requires
assess ut its actual value the fran
chise and all property within the
state, of telephone companies.
''As a matter Of practice, for many
years the assessment Of the state
UOaAO VI c4uoAIAdtAOu uoS COVcAcu VIZ
ly the value of the personal proper
real estate Of telephone companies
used in connection with the opera
tion Of their business has been as
chapter 800, Laws Of 1928, re-
quires the state board of equaliza-
tion to assess "all property, real or
vn~Snnn1 hn0n~rsrn, 10 <n1o
phone companies and used exclusive
ly in the operation and maintenance
Of its lines or routes in this state.
property shall be assessed by the
otherwise. CHAPTER 306, Laws Of
Assuming that real estate of te1e-
phone companies was properly sub
Ject to local assessors. prior to tho
would govern the assessment Of 1924
quently real estate of telephone COM
operation of telephone business was
the year 1924 and is not subject to
4VSoA r0SSSoSuSCut 4VA VIC ySoI 4VSOs
Section 2261, c. L. 1918, requires
that the total value Of the property
of telephone company as assessed
by the state board of equalization,
shall be apportioned among the sew
eral counties in which the, company
does business, in the proportion that
the number of miles over which such
company operates in each county, re-
spectively, bears to the entire num-
ber Of miles over which such COM
pany operates in the state. Conse-
quently, the value Of the real estate
of telephone company, and the
value of the personal property of a
telephone. company must be distribut-
ed on q mileage basis, the same as is
done in the case of railroad COM
pany.
81 am calling this matter to your
attention in order that you may is
sue instructions to the assessors of
your county that real estate Of q
telephone company used in connec-
tion with the operation of its tele-
phone business is not subject to To-
cal assessment, and that the value
of such property will be included in
the assessment as made by the state
board Of equalization"
There are many beaches, often
times Of very small AREA, whose
sand has the peculiar property of
giving out distinct musical tone
when stepped upon.