Jasper County Democrat, Volume 3, Number 46, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 February 1901 — Can’t Reach Corporations. [ARTICLE]

Can’t Reach Corporations.

The tax case of the Jhsper County Telephone Co., against the officers of this county to enjoin the collection of taxes on alleged ommitted property for several years, was practically decided by Judge Palmer in tho. White circuit court a few dkyg ago, when he sustained dfemur to the answer filed in behalf of the county. It will be remembered that through the Democrat it was ’shown about two years ago theabove corboration capitalized for' $28,000 (all alleged to be paid was assessed $75 in the city of Rensselaer—for three miles of lir.« onjy—and that their total taxes ;pi y»ujs assement for 1898 was only $5.28. The county assessor finally got after the company and 1 assessed it on phones,office fixtures, etc., for the years of 1896 T 7-8 for a total of about SIB,OOO. The telephone company then brought suit to enjoin the collection of the taxes and held that the county assessor had no power, to assess a corporation on otnited property. It is said that the state tax board has no power to assess omitted property, and if the local officers cannot reach a corporation it is likely that the several hundred dollars Jasper county and Rensselaer is entitled to from the telephone company will be lost. Judge Palmer, we understand, took the same view as the telephone people. There is talk of the county taking an appeal. If this view is sustained by the higher court we would suggest that the farmers and other individual tax payers of Jasper county organize themselves into a corporation and then tell the tax officers to go to Halifax or some other seaport town. In this way they might even mattere up a little.