Bekins Van Lines, Inc. v. Johnson
Bekins Van Lines, Inc. v. Johnson
Opinion of the Court
— This is an appeal from the judgment in favor of the defendant. After the trial judge had or
On the original hearing it was assumed that the trial court had in effect so found and the appeal was considered in the light of that assumption. A reconsideration of the questions involved has persuaded us that the opinion on the former hearing correctly and adequately disposed of the appeal. That opinion is therefore adopted as the opinion of the court on rehearing. It is as follows:
The plaintiff sued to recover additional taxes assessed for the years 1935 and 1936 under the provisions of the California Motor Vehicle Transportation License Tax Act (Stats. 1933, p. 928, as amended, Stats. 1935, p. 2176; Deering’s Gen. Laws, 1937, Act 5130d), and paid under protest.
The plaintiff was and is engaged in the business of transporting property for hire over the public highways of the state by motor vehicle and was therefore taxable for the years involved pursuant to the provisions of said act. The act is entitled, “An act imposing a license fee or tax for the transportation of persons or property for hire or compensation upon the public streets, roads and highways in the State of California by motor vehicle.” It requires operators of motor vehicles within the state engaging in the business of transporting persons or property over any public highways within the state for compensation or hire to obtain a license. The operator is required by section 4 to make a monthly report “showing the gross receipts from operation of such operator for the preceding calendar month.” The section also provides that a “license tax equal to three per cent of
Section 1(a) provides that the word “operator” shall include all persons or corporations who operate motor vehicles upon any public highway in this state and thereby engage in the transportation of persons or property for hire or compensation either directly or indirectly.
Section 1(d) reads: “The term ‘gross receipts from operation’ shall include all receipts from the operation of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles beginning and ending entirely within this state and a proportion based upon the proportion of the mileage within this state to the entire mileage over which such business is done of gross receipts of such operator on all business passing through, into or out of this state, or partly within and partly without this state.”
In its return for the years 1935 and 1936 to the Board of Equalization the plaintiff reported its gross receipts from all transportation business in the state exclusive of hauls excepted by section 14 of the act. In said returns, however, the plaintiff claimed as deductions 40 per cent of the gross receipts which it computed was derived from loading and unloading operations, also additional sums derived from pick-up and delivery service within municipalities. The Board of Equalization disallowed deductions of $25,533.32 for loading and unloading operations and $1,010.68 for pick-up and delivery service on the 1935 returns; and $25,570.28 loading and unloading operations, and $1,400 pick-up and delivery service on the 1936 returns. It assessed an additional tax of $2,016.63 for those years, which the plaintiff paid under protest.
It is the plaintiff’s contention that inasmuch as the Motor
Both sides concede that there is no decided case which directly involves the point considered under the first claimed deduction. However, we are of the opinion that the plain language of the act determines the issue. This court has
There is no constitutional objection urged or which could be urged to the application of the plain language of the act. All of the required safeguards have been afforded by the Legislature in the exercise of the taxing power. No unreasonable discriminations are involved and in the absence of any such unlawful classification the act is constitutional. (Bacon Service Corp. v. Huss, 199 Cal. 21 [248 P. 235].) It is not urged that imposition of a tax equal to a percentage of gross receipts from operation of the business of transportation including all of its connected incidental operations and so-called “accessorial” services or operations for the purposes stated in the act is not a proper exercise of the taxing power. The fact that in determining the fixed rate to be charged for transportation operations or services the Railroad Commission of the state computed that 40 percent of transportation operations was attributable to accessorial services (see § 10, Highway Carriers Act, Stats. 1935, p. 878) is not a factor bearing upon the legislative intent in adopting the definition here under consideration. The fact that the Legislature in the present act did not distinguish between actual rolling on the public highways and any accessorial services is an argument that it intended no such distinction.
No special significance may be given the fact that the license tax under the present act is not, strictly speaking, a so-called “in lieu” tax, insofar as any applicability of the case of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. Roberts, supra, is concerned. It is true the license tax here involved is not an all-purpose tax and that ad valorem taxes are assessable; but
Nor may any distinction be made by the plaintiff on its returns between intercity hauls which require for convenience an intra-city pick-up and delivery service, and those which do not require such service in the convenient method of initiating or terminating such intercity transportation. The plaintiff in this connection relies on Pioneer Express Co. v. Riley, 208 Cal. 677 [284 P. 663], In that ease the plaintiff’s activities were confined exclusively to intercity hauls. Another company, formerly a competitor of the plaintiff, abandoned all intercity activities and confined itself to intracity business exclusively, including the pick-up and delivery service required by the plaintiff. It appeared that the plaintiff in that case in good faith did not engage in intra-city pick-up and delivery service as part of its intercity hauls. It was held that it had paid its tax in full, based on the report of intercity operations as conducted by it. No invalidity may be said to attach by reason of the fact that the plaintiff here is taxed on its intra-city pick-up and delivery service in connection with its intercity hauls as distinguished from its strictly intra-city business. (In re Bush, supra.) The trial court in the present ease properly concluded that receipts from all hauls which originated in one city for transportation over the public highways or which terminated in a city after such transportation should be treated without distinction as taxable gross receipts from operation.
It is shown that receipts from intra-city business as excepted from the act were not included in the computation of gross receipts from operation as defined by the act. Nor were charges for labor furnished for the purpose of packing and crating goods, or warehousing, included in the gross receipts subject to taxation. All exceptions and limitations provided by the act were contemplated in the additional assessment paid under protest by the plaintiff. The trial court correctly concluded that the assessment of the additional tax was in accordance with the statute.
The judgment is affirmed.
Traynor, J., did not participate herein..
Dissenting Opinion
— I dissent.
The tax which is the subject of this action is claimed by the state under the provisions of “An act imposing a license fee or tax for the transportation of persons or property, for hire or compensation upon the public streets, roads and highways in the State of California by motor vehicle, etc.” (Italics ours.) (California Motor Vehicle Transportation License Tax Act [Stats. 1933, p. 928, as amended Stats. 1935, p. 2176].)
Under section 1(a) of said act “The word ‘operator’ shall include all persons, firms, . . . who operate motor vehicles upon any public highway in this state and thereby engage in the transportation of . . . property for hire or compensation, etc.”
Section 1(d) reads as follows: “The term ‘gross receipts from operation’ shall include all receipts from the operation of . . . motor vehicles. ...” Section 2 of said act provides that “Bach operator of a motor vehicle within this state who transports or desires to transport for compensation or hire . . . property upon or over any public highway within this state shall make application to the State Board of Equalization . . . for a license to operate motor vehicles for the transportation of . . . property for hire or compensation over public highways in this state. ’ ’
Under section 2 of the act, the Board of Equalization “shall issue to such applicant a license to transport for compensation or hire . . . property upon or over any public highway within this state.” Section 3 of said act makes it unlawful after the effective date of the act for any person, firm, etc., to operate any motor vehicle for the transportation of persons or property for hire or compensation over the public highways of the state without obtaining such license.
Under section 4 of said act each operator is required to file on or before the tenth day of each month with the Board of Equalization “a verified report . . . showing the gross receipts from operation of said operator for the preceding calendar month, and such other information relating to his or its operations as said board may require, to enable the board to make the assessment for which provision is herein made. A license tax equal to three per cent of gross receipts from operation derived on and after the first day of the month after the effective date of this act, shall be levied and assessed by said board.”
It will thus be seen from the title of said act and from
The majority opinion strongly relies upon the case of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. Roberts, 176 Cal. 183 [167 P. 845], for a proper construction of the words “gross receipts from operation.” In that case, section 14 of article 13 of the Constitution, under which the tax enacted in that case was levied, provided that the levy of the tax was upon “gross receipts from the operation of such companies,” while in the present case the statute provides that the tax is levied upon “gross receipts from the operation of motor vehicles.” Comparing these two enactments, it is apparent that the section of the Constitution in the Roberts case providing for the levy of the tax upon the “gross receipts from the operation of the company” was much broader than the present statute which limits the tax to be levied to “gross receipts from the operation of the motor vehicles.” In one case the gross receipts of the company are taxed while in the other only the gross receipts from the motor vehicles are the subject of the tax. As a motor vehicle is defined as “a vehicle operated upon or over the public highway” it seems clear that the legislative intent was to levy a tax only on those receipts from operation of vehicles upon the public highway.
For the reasons stated herein, I think the judgment should be reversed.
Edmonds, J., concurred.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- BEKINS VAN LINES, INC. (A Corporation), Appellant, v. CHARLES G. JOHNSON, as State Treasurer, Etc., Respondent
- Cited By
- 48 cases
- Status
- Published