49 U.S.C. § 11501 : US Code - Section 11501: Tax discrimination against rail transportation property

Search 49 U.S.C. § 11501 : US Code - Section 11501: Tax discrimination against rail transportation property

(a) In this section -
(1) the term "assessment" means valuation for a property tax
levied by a taxing district;
(2) the term "assessment jurisdiction" means a geographical
area in a State used in determining the assessed value of
property for ad valorem taxation;
(3) the term "rail transportation property" means property, as
defined by the Board, owned or used by a rail carrier providing
transportation subject to the jurisdiction of the Board under
this part; and
(4) the term "commercial and industrial property" means
property, other than transportation property and land used
primarily for agricultural purposes or timber growing, devoted to
a commercial or industrial use and subject to a property tax
levy.
(b) The following acts unreasonably burden and discriminate
against interstate commerce, and a State, subdivision of a State,
or authority acting for a State or subdivision of a State may not
do any of them:
(1) Assess rail transportation property at a value that has a
higher ratio to the true market value of the rail transportation
property than the ratio that the assessed value of other
commercial and industrial property in the same assessment
jurisdiction has to the true market value of the other commercial
and industrial property.
(2) Levy or collect a tax on an assessment that may not be made
under paragraph (1) of this subsection.
(3) Levy or collect an ad valorem property tax on rail
transportation property at a tax rate that exceeds the tax rate
applicable to commercial and industrial property in the same
assessment jurisdiction.
(4) Impose another tax that discriminates against a rail
carrier providing transportation subject to the jurisdiction of
the Board under this part.
(c) Notwithstanding section 1341 of title 28 and without regard
to the amount in controversy or citizenship of the parties, a
district court of the United States has jurisdiction, concurrent
with other jurisdiction of courts of the United States and the
States, to prevent a violation of subsection (b) of this section.
Relief may be granted under this subsection only if the ratio of
assessed value to true market value of rail transportation property
exceeds by at least 5 percent the ratio of assessed value to true
market value of other commercial and industrial property in the
same assessment jurisdiction. The burden of proof in determining
assessed value and true market value is governed by State law. If
the ratio of the assessed value of other commercial and industrial
property in the assessment jurisdiction to the true market value of
all other commercial and industrial property cannot be determined
to the satisfaction of the district court through the random-
sampling method known as a sales assessment ratio study (to be
carried out under statistical principles applicable to such a
study), the court shall find, as a violation of this section -
(1) an assessment of the rail transportation property at a
value that has a higher ratio to the true market value of the
rail transportation property than the assessed value of all other
property subject to a property tax levy in the assessment
jurisdiction has to the true market value of all other commercial
and industrial property; and
(2) the collection of an ad valorem property tax on the rail
transportation property at a tax rate that exceeds the tax ratio
rate applicable to taxable property in the taxing district.