The Daily Alaska empire., 1934-12-26
TEXT OF TAX. LETTER
 IN A. J. CASE.
City Attorney Faulkner $ Advice to Council
 Is Published

'VtoAA SAAA AoeiAido SOAC uAio AAAuSA est turning to other channels, Ju- neau citizens again were talking of Fridays decision by the City Council to maintain the existing tax exemption contract with the Alaska Juneau Gold Mining Com pany.
 In fact, interest in this decision has reached such a height that The Empire, today, is publishing the full text of City Attorney H. l.. Faulkners letter of advice to the Council on the subject.
 City Attorney Faulkner's letter follows:
 At the regular council meeting held December ', you asked me to prepare for you an opinion on the contract entered into between the City of Juneau and the Alaska Ju- neau Gold Mining Company on March 7th, 1913. by the terms of which the Alaska Juneau Com pany, in consideration of certain services to be furnished by it, had a portion of it's property within the corporate limits of the City of Juneau, exempted from taxation for a period of thirty years.
 The Councils attention was di- rected to this subject by a letter addressed to it by the Hon James Wickersham. The matter present. ed involves not only question of law but one of policy.
 "On March 2, 1913, the City of Juneau entered into contract with the Alaska Juneau Gold Mining Company. which contract was au- thorized by resolution of the City Council dated the same day. At that time the Alaska Juneau Com pany had apparently not erected it's milling plant. and it would appear from the terms of the contract and the resolution of the City Council that the erection of at least DOT tion of the plant within the cor porate limits of the city by the company depended upon the exc cution of the contract.
 By the terms of the contract portion of the millsite property of the company situated within the corporate limits of Juneau, togeth- CT with all buildings, machinery and improvements of every char acter placed thereon, were to be exempt from the payment of city taxes for period of thirty years, and, as consideration therefor, the company agreed to erect the greater part of it's plant within the corporate limits of Juneau, a por- tion which might otherwise have been erected outside the corporate limits.
 The company further agreed to install a water system and salt water pumping plant and furnish both fresh water and salt water for fire protection, and to allow the city and it's inhabitants to take away tatlings free of charge for use in filling in the tide lands and streets of the city. The tailings mentioned in the contract appar- ently include also waste rock.
 This contract has been in force, and the terms of same have been observed by both parties, for a pe- riod of nearly twenty-two years. It might be pointed out here that not all of the company's property sit- uated within the corporate limits Is exempt from city taxes by the terms of the contract, and I find by the records that the company pays taxes to the city each year amounting to approximately 5000; this tax being paid upon property which is not described in the con- tract but which the company owns within the corporate limits. It might also be pointed out that not all of the milling plant is within the corporate limits. The boundary line of the m u nicipality cuts through the mill of the company, so that approximately one half of the mill is outside the corporate limits.
 The question of law presented is whether the Council in 1913 had the power to enter into the con- tract involved and to exempt the portion of the company's property from taxation in return for the services furnished by the company.
 The Organic Act of 1912, which