An Act to amend certain tax laws applicable to the District of Columbia
PL 82-493 (S.2605), enacted 07/10/1952

66 STAT. ] 
PUBLIC LAW 493-JULY 10, 1952 
543 
Public Law 493 
CHAPTER 649 
AN ACT 
To amend certain tax laws applicable to the District of Columbia. 
July 10, 1952 
[S. 2605] 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America m Congress assembled^ That section 8 of 
title I of the District of Columbia Revenue Act of 1937, as amended, 
is amended to read as follows: 
"SEC. 8. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section 
the taxes imposed upon personal property shall be assessed or re-
assessed within three years after the return was filed. For the pur-
poses of this subsection, a return filed before the last day prescribed 
by law for the filing thereof shall be considered as filed on such last 
day. 
"(b) In the case of a false or fraudulent return with intent to evade 
tax or of a failure to file a return, the taxes may be assessed at any 
time. 
"(c) Where the assessment of personal property taxes has been 
made within the period properly applicable thereto, such taxes may be 
collected by distraint or by a proceeding in court, but only if begun 
within three years after the date of the assessment of such taxes.". 
SEC. 2. (a) Section 4 of Article I I I of title V of the Act of August 
17, 1937 (50 Stat. 683, ch. 690), as amended, is hereby amended to 
read as follows: 
"If the taxes imposed by this title are not paid when due, one-half 
of 1 per centum interest for each month or portion of a month from the 
date when the same were due until paid shall be added to the amount of 
said taxes and collected as a part of the same, and said taxes shall be 
collected by the collector of taxes in the manner provided by the law 
for the collection of taxes due the District on personal property in 
force at the time of such collection." 
(b) Subsection (c) of section 4 of the Act of August 28, 1935 
(49 Stat. 948, ch. 794), as amended, is amended to read as follows: 
"(c) If the contributions are not paid when due, there shall be 
added, as part of the contributions, interest at the rate of one-half of 1 
per centum per month from the date the contributions become due 
until paid." 
(c) Subsection (a) of section 147 of title I of the District of Columbia 
Revenue Act of 1949 (Public Law 76, Eighty-first Congress) is 
amended to read as follows: 
"(a) Any person failing to file a return or who files a false or 
incorrect return or who fails to pay any tax to the Collector wdthin 
the time required by this title shall be subject to a penalty of 5 per 
centum of the amount of tax due, plus interest at the rate of one-half of 
1 per centum of such tax for each month of delay after such return was 
required to be filed or such tax became due; but the Assessor, if satisfied 
that the delay was excusable may waive the penalty of 5 per centum. 
Unpaid penalties and interest may be collected in the same manner as 
the tax imposed by this title. The interest provided for in this 
section shall be applicable to any tax determined by the Assessor as a 
deficiency." 
(d) Sections 38, 40, and 41 of title I I of the Act of July 26, 1939 
(53 Stat. 1104, ch. 367), as amended, are hereby further amended by 
deleting therefrom wherever they appear the words "1 per centum" 
and by substituting in each place in lieu thereof the words "one-half 
of 1 per centum". 
SEC. 3. (a) Section 3 of title I X of the District of Columbia Revenue 
Act of 1937, as added by the Act of May 16, 1938, and as amended by 
D.C., tax l a w s . 
50 Stat. 675. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
1408. 
Personal p r o p -
erty. 
53 Stat. 1116. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
1619. 
I n t e r e s t 
a n d 
penalties. 
D. C. C o d e 46-
304. 
63 Stat. 123. 
D.C. C o d e 47-
2624. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
1538. 47-1540, 47-
1541. 
52 Stat. 371. 
544 
PUBLIC LAW 493-JULY 10, 1952 
[66 S T A T . 
53 Stat. 1108. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
2403. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
2404. 
Petition for re-
view. 
Jurisdiction. 
62 Stat. 928. 
D. C. C o d e 
708 to 47-711, 
2405. 
Board of Equal-
i z a t i o n and Re-
view. 
47-
47-
the Act of July 26,1939, is amended by striking out from such section 
the words "under protest in writing". 
(b) Subsection (a) of section 4 of title I X of such Act is amended 
to read as follows: 
"(a) The decision of the Board may be reviewed by the court as 
hereinafter provided if a petition for such review is filed by either 
the District or the taxpayer within thirty days after the decision is 
rendered. 
Such petition for review shall be filed with the Board, 
and shall be in such form as the Board by regulation shall provide. 
Upon such review the court shall have the power to affirm, modify, or 
reverse the decision of the Board with or without remanding the case 
for hearing as justice may require. 
The court shall have the exclu-
sive jurisdiction to review the decisions of the Board in the same 
manner and to the same extent as decisions of the United States Dis-
trict Court for the District of Columbia in civil actions tried without 
a jury; and the judgment of the court shall be final, except that it 
shall be subject to review by the Supreme Court of the United States 
upon certiorari in the manner provided in title 28, United States 
Code, section 1254, as amended. 
The court is authorized to adopt 
rules for the filing of the record on review, the preparation of the 
record for review, and the conduct of the proceedings upon such 
review." 
(c) Subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 5 of title I X of such 
Act are amended to read as follows: 
"(a) The Assessor and Deputy Assessor of the District and the 
board of all of the assistant assessors, with the Assessor as chairman, 
shall compose a Board of Equalization and Review, and as such Board 
of Equalization and Review they shall convene in a room to be pro-
vided for them by the Commissioners, on the first Monday of January 
of each year, and shall remain in session until the first Monday in 
April of each year, after which date no complaint as to valuation as 
herein provided shall be received or considered by such Board of 
Equalization and Review. Public notice of the time and place of such 
session shall be given by publication for two successive days in two 
daily newspapers in the District not more than two weeks or less than 
ten days before the beginning of said session. It shall be the duty of 
said Board of Equalization and Review to fairly and impartially 
equalize the value of real property made by the board of assistant 
assessors as the basis for assessment. Any five of said Board of Equali-
zation and Review shall constitute a quorum for business, and, in 
the absence of the Assessor, a temporary chairman may be selected. 
They shall immediately proceed to equalize the valuations made by 
the board of assistant assessors so that each lot and tract and improve-
ments thereon shall be entered upon the tax list at their value in 
money; and for this purpose they shall hear such complaints as may 
be made in respect of said assessments, and in determining them they 
may raise the valuation of such tracts or lots and improvements as in 
their opinion may have been returned below their value and reduce 
the valuation of such as they may believe to have been returned above 
their value to such sum as in their opinion may be the value thereof. 
The valuation of the real property made and equalized as aforesaid 
shall be completed not later than the first Monday of May annually. 
The valuation of said real property made and equalizad as aforesaid 
shall be approved by the Commissioners not later than July 1, 
annually, and when approved by the Commissioners shall constitute 
the basis of taxation for the next succeeding year and until another 
valuation is made according to law, except as hereinafter provided. 
Any person aggrieved by any assessment, equalization, or valuation 
made may within ninety days after October 1 of the year in which such 
66 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 493-JULY 10, 1952 
545 
assessment, equalization, or valuation is made, appeal from such 
assessment, equalization, or valuation in the same manner and to the 
same extent as provided in sections 3 and 4 of this title: Provided^ 
however^ That such person shall have first made his complaint to the 
Board of Equalization and Review respecting such assessment as 
herein provided, except that, in case of increase of valuation of real 
property over that for the immediately preceding year, where no 
notice in writing of such increase of valuation is given the taxpayer 
prior to March 1 of the particular year, no such complaint shall be 
required for appeal. 
"(b) Annually, on or prior to July 1 of each year, the Board of 
Assistant Assessors shall make a list of all real estate which shall 
have become subject to taxation and which is not then on the tax list, 
and affix a value thereon, according to the rules prescribed by law for 
assessing real estate; shall make return of all new structures erected 
or roofed, and additions to or improvements of old structures which 
shall not have theretofore been assessed, specifying the tract or lot of 
land on which each of such structures has been erected, and the value 
of such structure, and they shall add such valuation to the assessment 
made on such tract or lot. When the improvements on any lot or 
tract of land shall become damaged or be destroyed from any cause, 
the said board of assistant assessors shall reduce the assessment on 
said property to the extent of such damage: Provided^ That the 
Board of Equalization and Review shall hear such complaints as may 
be made in respect of said assessments between September 1 and 
September 30 and determine the same not later than October 15 of 
the same year. Any person aggrieved by any assessment or valuation 
made in pursuance of this paragraph may, within ninety days after 
October 15 of the year in which said valuation or assessment is made, 
appeal from such assessment or valuation in the same manner and 
to the same extent as provided in sections 3 and 4 of this title: Pro-
vided^ however^ That if the taxpayer shall be notified in writing not 
later than September 1 of a particular year of the valuation of the 
real estate valued in accordance with this subsection, such taxpayer 
shall first make a complaint to the Board of Equalization and Review 
respecting such assessment as herein provided. 
"(c) In addition to the annual assessment of all real estate made on 
or prior to July 1 of each year there shall be added a list of all new 
buildings erected or under roof prior to January 1 of each year, in the 
same manner as provided by law for all annual additions; and the 
amounts thereof shall be added as assessment for the second half of 
the then current year payable in the month of March. 
When the 
improvements on any lot or tract of land shall become damaged or be 
destroyed from any cause prior to January 1 of each year the said 
board of assistant assessors shall reduce the assessment on said prop-
erty to the extent of said damage for the second half of the then 
current year payable in the month of March. The Board of Equaliza-
tion and Review shall hear such complaints as may be made in respect 
of said assessments for the second half of said year between March 1 
and March 31 and determine said complaints not later than April 15 
of the same year. Any person aggrieved by any assessment made in 
pursuance of this paragraph may, within ninety days after April 15 
of the year in which such assessment is made, appeal from such assess-
ment in the same manner and to the same extent as provided in sections 
3 and 4 of this title: Provided^ however^ That if the taxpayer shall be 
notified in writing not later than March 1 of a particular year of the 
valuation of the real estate valued in accordance with this subsection, 
such taxpayer shall first make a complaint to the Board of Equalization 
and Review respecting such assessment as herein provided." 
Real estate. 
Annual asse 
New buildings. 
546 
PUBLIC LAW 493-JULY 10, 1952 
[66 S T A T . 
52 Stat. 371. 
5 3 S t a t . 
1108. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
2 40 1 et seq., 47-
708 et seq. 
Overpayments. 
53 Stat. 1085. 
61 Stat. 328. 
D.C. C o d e 4 7-
ch, 15. 
63 Stat. 112. 
B o a r d of T a x 
Appeals. 
SEC. 4. Title I X of the District of Columbia Revenue Act of 1937, 
as added by the Act of May 16, 1938, and as amended by the Act of 
July 26, 1939, is amended by adding thereto a new section 14, as 
follows: 
"SEC. 14. (a) Where there has been an overpayment of any tax, 
the amount of such overpayment shall be refunded to the taxpayer. 
No such refund shall be allowed after two years from the date the tax 
is paid unless before the expiration of such period a claim therefor is 
filed by the taxpayer. 
The amount of refund shall not exceed the 
portion of the tax paid during the two years immediately preceding 
the filing of the claim, or if no claim is filed, then during the two years 
immediately preceding the allowance of the refund. Every claim for 
refund must be in writing, under oath, must state the specific grounds 
upon which the claim is founded and must be filed with the Assessor. 
If the Assessor disallows all or any part of the claim for refund, he 
shall send to the taxpayer by registered mail a notice of such dis-
allowance. Within ninetj^ days after the mailing of the notice of 
disallowance, if the claim is acted upon within six months after the 
filing thereof, or within ninety days after the termination of such 
six months' period, if the claim is not acted upon within such period, 
the taxpayer may appeal to the Board, in the same manner and to the 
same extent as set forth in sections 3 and 4 of this title: Provided^ 
That this subsection shall not apply to the taxes imposed by title II, 
District of Columbia Revenue Act of 1939, as amended; by the District 
of Columbia Income and Franchise Tax Act of 1947, as amended; or 
by titles I and II, District of Columbia Revenue Act of 1949, refunds 
of which are otherwise provided for by law; and that it shall not apply 
to the real-estate tax. 
"(b) In any proceeding under this title the Board of Tax Appeals 
for the District of Columbia shall have jurisdiction to determine 
whether there has been any overpayment of tax and to order that 
such overpayment be credited or refunded to the taxpayer: Provided^ 
That a timely refund claim has been filed. Where a notice of assess-
ment is mailed to the taxpayer on or before the last day on which a 
timely claim for refund could be filed, an appeal filed within ninety 
days after the mailing of such notice asserting an overpayment shall, 
for the purposes of this subsection, be deemed to be a timely claim for 
refund. 
"(c) The remedies provided to the taxpayer under this title shall 
not be deemed to take away from the taxpayer any remedy which he 
might have under any other provision of law, but no suit for the 
recovery of an overpayment of any tax shall be instituted in any 
court if the taxpayer has elected to file an appeal with respect to such 
overpayment with the Board of Tax Appeals for the District of 
Columbia under this title. 
"(d) Any other provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, 
if it shall be determined by the Assessor, the Board of Tax Appeals 
for the District of Columbia, or any court having jurisdiction over 
the subject matter that there has been an overpayment of any tax, 
whether as a deficiency or otherwise, interest shall be allowed and 
paid upon such overpayment of tax at the rate of 4 per centum per 
annum from the date such overpayment was paid until the date of 
refund: Provided^ That with respect to that part of any overpayment 
which was not assessed and paid as a deficiency or as additional tax 
such interest shall be allowed and paid only from the date of filing 
a claim for refund, a petition to the Board, or a complaint with a 
court of competent jurisdiction, as the case may be. 
"(e) For the purposes of this section, any interest or penalties paid 
by the taxpayer in connection with an overpayment of tax shall be 
deemed to be a part of such overpayment of tax. 
66 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 493-JULY 10, 1952 
547 
SEC. 5. Section 2 of title I X of the District of Columbia Revenue 
Act of 1937, as added by the Act of May 16, 1938, and as amended, is 
amended by striking out in the second paragraph thereof the numerals 
and words "$8,000 per annum" and inserting in lieu thereof the 
numerals and words "$13,000 per annum"; and is further amended by 
adding thereto the following new paragraphs: 
"The Board of Tax Appeals for the District of Columbia shall 
hereafter be known as the District of Columbia Tax Court and the 
member thereof shall be known as the judge of the District of Colum-
bia Tax Court. The said District of Columbia Tax Court shall not be 
deemed or held to be a constituent member of the assessing or taxing 
authority of the District of Columbia but shall be deemed to be an 
independent agency, separate and apart from such assessing and tax-
ing authority. All references in any statute (except this paragraph) 
to the Board of Tax Appeals or to the Board when used m the sense 
of the Board of Tax Appeals for the District of Columbia, or to the 
member thereof shall be considered to be made to the District of 
Columbia Tax Court and to the judge thereof, respectively. 
"Whenever the judge of the District of Columbia Tax Court shall 
be unable to hear and determine any case, or if said judge shall dis-
qualify himself from hearing and determining any case, or if that 
office should become vacant, the Commissioners are authorized in 
their discretion to appoint any member in good standing of the bar 
of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to 
hear and determine such case or cases in the place and stead of the 
duly appointed judge, or of the duly appointed judge who has vacated 
that office: Provided^ That, if the of&ce of judge of the District of 
Columbia Tax Court shall become vacant, no such vacancy shall be 
deemed to exist for the purposes of this paragraph after the expiration 
of one hundred and twenty days, except that the person appointed to 
fill the temporary vacancy may and shall determine all cases the hear-
ing of which commenced within such one hundred and twenty days. 
Any person appointed under this paragraph to act in the place and 
stead of the duly appointed judge of the District of Columbia Tax 
Court, or so to act while that oiRce is vacant, shall take the oath of 
office and shall be paid on a per diem basis in an amount to be deter-
mined by the Commissioners and paid out of the annual appropria-
tion for the District of Columbia Tax Court. No action taken under 
this paragraph shall operate to reduce the salary of the duly appointed 
judge of the District of Columbia Tax Court. No person employed 
by the United States or by the District of Columbia shall be appointed 
under this paragraph. 
SEC. 6. The first sentence of subsection (h) of section 4 of the Act 
of August 28, 1935 (49 Stat. 948, ch. 794), as amended, is further 
amended to read as follows: 
"(h) COLLECTIONS.—If, after due notice, any employer defaults 
in any payment of contributions or interest thereon, the amount due 
may be collected by the Board or its designated agent in the manner 
provided by law for the collection of taxes due the District on personal 
property in force at the time of such collection (including collection 
thereof by distraint), or by civil action in the name of the Board, and 
the employer adjudged in default shall pay the costs of such action." 
SEC. 7. Notwithstanding the provisions of the Reorganization Act 
of 1949 and notwithstanding the provisions of Reorganization Plan 
Numbered 5 of 1952, relating to the District of Columbia, the Board 
of Tax Appeals for the District of Columbia shall not be abolished, 
and, if prior to the enactment of this Act it has been abolished, it is 
hereby reestablished. 
In either event, the functions of the said Board 
of Tax Appeals transferred to the Board of Commissioners of the 
52 Stat. 371. 
D. C. C o d e 47-
2402. 
D.C. Tax Court. 
57 Stat. 108. 
D.C. 
C o d e 46-
304. 
B o a r d of T a x 
Appeals. 
63 Stat. 203. 
5 u s e 133Z note. 
3300 O - 53 - 38 
548 
PUBLIC LAW 494-JULY 10, 1952 
[66 STAT. 
District of Columbia by said Keorganization Plan Numbered 5 of 
1952 are hereby retransferred to said Board of Tax Appeals or to 
said Board of Tax Appeals as hereby reestablished, to be exercised in 
the same manner, to the same extent, and under the same provisions 
of law as if said Reorganization Plan Numbered 5 had never gone into 
effect, except only as such provisions of law may be modified by this 
Act. 
All petitions, answers, or other pleadings, documents, or papers filed 
with, and all actions taken by, and all decisions rendered by, the person, 
persons, office, or agency to which said Board of Commissioners may 
have redelegated the functions of said Board of Tax Appeals, between 
the effective date of said Reorganization Plan Numbered 5 and the 
enactment of this Act, shall have the same force and effect for all 
purposes as if filed with, taken by, or rendered by, said Board of Tax 
Appeals or said Board of Tax Appeals as hereby reestablished. 
If, prior to the enactment of this Act, the said Board of Tax Appeals 
shall have been abolished, the said Board of Commissioners shall 
appoint an individual to act as the member of the said Board of Tax 
Appeals as hereby reestablished, said appointment to be made in 
D^c!^c o^di'4 7- accordance with the provisions of section 2 of title I X of the District 
2402. ' 
of Columbia Revenue Act of 1937, as added by the Act of May 16, 
1938, and as amended, including any amendments made by this Act. 
SEO. 8. The amendments made by section 2 of this Act shall be 
effective July 1,1952. 
Approved July 10, 1952. 
Public Law 494 
CHAPTER 650 
AN ACT 
July 10, 1952 
[H.R. 6326] 
To amend subsections (c) and (d) of section ,3 of the Postal Salary Act of July 6, 
1945, as amended. 
Postal service 
Overtime. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assemhled^ That subsections (c) 
and (d) of section 3 of the Act entitled "An Act to reclassify the 
salaries of postmasters, officers, and employees of the Postal Service; 
to establish uniform procedures for computing compensation; and for 
64 Stat. 1118. 
other purposes", approved July 6, 1945, as amended, are amended 
to read as follows: 
"(c) The Postmaster General may, if the exigencies of the service 
require, authorize the payment of overtime to employees other than 
supervisory employees whose base salaries, exclusive of longevity 
salary, are more than $4,970 per annum, for services performed on 
Saturdays, Sundays, and Christmas Day during the month of Decem-
ber, in lieu of compensatory time. 
"(d) Supervisory employees shall be allowed compensatory time 
for services performed in excess of eight hours per day, and those 
whose base salaries, exclusive of longevity salary, are more than 
$4,970 per annum shall be allowed compensatory time for services 
performed on Saturdays, Sundays, and on Christmas Day during 
the month of December, within one hundred and eighty days from 
the days such service was performed." 
Approved July 10, 1952.