Pullman Company v. Croom

These are appeals from orders of the circuit court of the United States for the northern district of Florida.

The Pullman Company, appellant herein, in its complaint filed in the court below, in the first case (No. 28 of this term), alleged that it was an Illinois corporation, engaged in furnishing to railroad companies under contract, parlor, dining, and sleeping cars in Florida and other states, and had complied with the laws of Florida requisite to engaging in that business; that the defendant, A. C. Croom, was the duly qualified comptroller of the state of Florida, charged with the collection of all taxes due from such companies. It averred that chapter 5597 of the laws of Florida for the year 1907 provides for the payment of license taxes to the state, and that it had bpaid such taxes; that § 46 of chapter 5596 provides for the collection of an ad valorem tax upon the cars of sleeping and parlor car companies, and that it had satisfied such tax. The appellant further averred that by the provisions of an act approved June 1, 1895, which by sundry amendments had been re-enacted and incorporated into chapter 5596, being § 47, sleeping and parlor car companies operating their cars in the state were required to annually report, under oath, the total amount of the gross receipts of business done between points in the state to the comptroller of the state, and to pay into the state treasury $1.50 upon each $100 of such gross receipts, and in event of failure to make the report and pay the tax, the comptroller was authorized to estimate the amount of such gross receipts from the information he might obtain, and to add a penalty of 10 per cent of the tax, and to collect it, with costs and penalties, the same as other delinquent taxes.

The appellant stated that since the passage of the act in 1895, and up to 1907, no property tax had been levied upon it, and that it had therefore taken the act of 1895 to impose a tax upon its property, and had paid the amount required by it; but it asserted that the act of 1907, § 46 of chapter 5596, contained an ad valorem tax, and it stated that it had not made a report of its business on January 1, 1910, or January 1, 1911, as required by the act, and had not paid the tax provided for, and that the defendant had demanded by wire that the reports be sent in at once. It assailed the constitutionality of the law, and pleaded allegations to support its claim to jurisdiction of the case by the court in equity. It prayed that the defendant be restrained and enjoined from estimating the gross receipts of the company and adding the penalty, and from issuing a warrant for the collection of the tax, as provided by § 47 of chapter 5596, and from taking any action to enforce the payment of such tax or penalty, and that the act be declared void.

A restraining order was granted, but upon application for an injunction pendente lite, the circuit judges for the fifth circuit held that § 47 of chapter 5596, taken in connection with chapter 5597, provides for a graded license tax on all sleeping and parlor car companies operating their cars in the state, and is within the legislative power of the state, and that until the complainant had complied with the requirements of the act, it had no standing in equity, and denied the application. Thereupon an appeal was sued out to this court.

Thereafter the defendant notified the complainant that unless it made report within a time stated, he would proceed to estimate the amount of the gross receipts and take such further action as the statute warranted. The complainant then, under protest, filed its return for the years ending October 31, 1909, and October 31, 1910, but did not pay the tax required by the act. The defendant issued a warrant of the state to the sheriff of Duval county, who levied upon one of the complainant's cars, and the complainant paid the taxes for the years 1909 and 1910, with costs.

The complainant later filed its bill in the second case (No. 158 of this term), containing practically the same allegations as its former bill, with additional averments with reference to the return and tax for the year 1911, and statements concerning the payment of the taxes for 1909 and 1910. W. V. Knott, treasurer of the state of Florida, was made a defendant, and the complainant prayed that he be compelled to repay the taxes and costs collected by the sheriff and turned over to him. The circuit judges again denied the application for an injunction pendente lite, upon the ground that § 47, read in connection with chapter 5597, provides for a graded license tax and is legal. An appeal was likewise sued out to this court.

On April 21, 1913, by stipulation and order, W. V. Knott was substituted for the appellee, A. C. Croom, in both cases, Croom having died and Knott having succeeded him in the office of comptroller; and J. C. Lunning was substituted for the appellee, W. V. Knott, in the second case, having succeeded him as treasurer.

Messrs. Frank B. Kellogg and Gustavus Fernald for appellant.

Mr. T. F. West, Attorney General of Florida, and Mr. Park Trammell, former Attorney General, for appellees.

Statement by Mr. Justice Day:

After making the foregoing statement, Mr. Justice Day delivered the opinion of the court: