State AG Backs Cookeville Boat Dock Court Decision

The Tennessee Attorney General is in agreement with Circuit Court Judge Amy Hollars that Cookeville Boat Dock must pay taxes owed to DeKalb County.
Henry H. Slatery, III, State Attorney General and a Counter-Defendant in the case has responded to a motion in Chancery Court asking for Judge Hollars to reconsider her recent ruling that Cookeville Boat Dock must pay more than $200,000 in property taxes, interest, and penalties.
In his response filed last week in DeKalb County Chancery Court, the Attorney General said Cookeville Boat Dock’s motion to reconsider should be denied because it merely repeats the same arguments that were thoroughly considered and rejected by Judge Hollars in her Opinion and Order entered on April 7, 2015.
The boat dock has refused to pay the taxes since 1998 and Judge Hollers ruled in April that the dock’s challenge to the tax was invalid.
The boat dock’s attorney, Jon. E. Jones of Cookeville, now argues the county cannot collect taxes beyond 10 years; that the judge’s ruling on the “Supremacy Clause” of the U.S. Constitution was incorrect; and that the amount of interest the county wants to charge is above what is allowed by law.
In his response, Slatery states that “Cookeville Boat Dock does not allege that the taxes in dispute were imposed on property owned by the federal government. To the contrary, as this Court ruled, “Cookeville Boat Dock has been assessed for boat dock buildings and other structures that Cookeville Boat Dock actually owns”. Even if this Court were to strike down Article II, Section 28, as violating the Supremacy Clause, this ruling would provide no relief to Cookeville Boat Dock. Under these circumstances, Cookeville Boat Dock lacks standing to challenge Article II, Section 28, based on its claim that the provision treats property owned by the federal government differently than state and local governmental property.”
“In the April 7, 2015, Opinion and Order, this Court (Judge Hollars), correctly ruled that Article II, Section 28, “does not mandate a differing rule of taxation for commercial boat docks operated on state or county property”, and, further, that the Supremacy Clause does not prevent a state or local government from imposing a tax on an individual or corporation that operates a business for private gain on federal property. These conclusions are amply supported by the authorities cited in the Court’s opinion and, thus, Cookeville Boat Dock’s motion should be denied, ” Attorney General Slatery concluded.
The Tennessee Attorney General was made a party to the case to defend the constitutionality of Article II, section 28 of the Tennessee Constitution.