Salt Lake Tribune | 1917-03-02 | Page 11 | Bank Doubly Taxed, Supreme Court Says

DOUBLY MED, SUPREME COURT SAYS McCornick & Co. Wins Suit Brought Against Former City Treasurer. An opinion of much importance to the banking institutions of the state of Utah was handed down yesterday hy the su-Pine su-Pine court. It was held in the case of MoCoinick & Co., hankers, against Fred 'C. Bassett, former treasurer of Salt Lake county, that assessment of both the cap-Hal cap-Hal stock of a bunk and the real estate of the banking corporation constitutes double taxation and consequently is not permissible under the constitution of the stale. The case arose on November 15, 1913, when the banking company under pro-tost pro-tost paid Stia-H.41 taxes on its building at First South and Main streets. The bank had previously paid S-2.JS1.37 taxes on 6000 shares of Its capital stock for the year ending December 31, 1JU3. The contention of the bank was that the payment of the tax on the capital stock also covered the building. The county board of equalization took the op posite view, and suit was started in the Third district court. The county got judgment, and the bank appealed. In yesterday's decision the supreme court says: We are of the opinion and so hold that the taxing oi the capital stock of the bank, the value of which was in part represented by the real estate in question, without deducting therefrom there-from the assessed value of such real 1 estate was, under the circumstances, double taxation to tiie extent of the real estate and in contravention of the provisions of the constitution of Utah.