Susquehanna Coal Co. v. South Amboy, 228 U.S. 665 (1913)

Susquehanna Coal Company v. City of South Amboy


No. 301


Argued May 6, 7, 1913
Decided May 26, 1913
228 U.S. 665

APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

Syllabus

Where the trade in an article can only be accommodated by storage at some point in transit from the point of shipment in one state to final destination in another, and there is a business purpose and advantage in the delay during which the article secures the protection of the state where it is stored, there is a cessation of interstate commerce and the article is subject to the dominion of, and taxation by, the state. Bacon v. Illinois, 227 U.S. 504.

Coal shipped from Pennsylvania to South Amboy, New Jersey, and intended for further shipment to ports in other states or countries, but not definitely determined, and stored while awaiting orders or means of transportation for orders already received, held, that there was in this case more than mere incidental interruption, and the coal was subject to taxation by the municipality within whose jurisdiction it was stored.

Quaere whether, in New Jersey, a decision as to the legality of a tax for one year is res judicata as to same grounds in regard to a tax for a later year on the same property.

The facts, which involve the right of the state to tax coal brought from another state while it is awaiting shipment to ports in other states and countries, are stated in the opinion.