Opinion ID: 2611463
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: a functional approach to creating exemptions from ad valorem tax assessments

Text: ¶ 24 A governmental official's immunity from civil liability is now allocated on a functional analysis. [36] In applying this approach the court must look to the nature of the functions performed at the critical time, and not to the status of the defendant. [37] I would adopt today a functional analysis to determine for this case if the state was acting in a sovereign capacity when acquiring the land against which the unpaid ad valorem assessment is now sought to be canceled. [38] Measured by the gauge I propose, the State's quest for cancellation of the validly assessed tax cannot pass constitutional muster. Its land purchase bears no connection to any exercise of sovereign power. In short, viewed through the prism of a functional analysis, the State's land in contest here was not acquired in sovereign capacity.