Altoona v. O'Leary

Citations

• 254 Pa. 25
• 98 A. 798
• 1916 Pa. LEXIS 677

Syllabus

<p>Taxation — Corporations — Municipalities — Cities of the third class — Acts of May 23, 1889, P. L. 277; May 16, 'l901, P. L. 224-Constitutional law — Constitution of Pennsylvania, Art. IX, Sec. 1.</p> <p>1. Under the Acts of May 23, 1889, P. L. 277, and May 16,1901, P. L. 224, relating to the government of cities of the third class, a city has power to levy and collect a license tax of $100.00 on gas companies doing business within the limits of such city, irrespective of the volume of such business; said act discloses the intention of the legislature to confer upon such cities the power to assess and levy such taxes for general revenue purposes and not in the exercise of the police power.’</p> <p>2. Where a city, in pursuance of the authority conferred upon it by said act, levies a fixed tax upon all gas companies doing business within its limits, without regard to the volume of business done by each, there is no violation of Section 1, Article IX, of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, requiring that all taxes shall be uniform upon the same class of subjects within the territorial limits of the authority levying the taxes.</p> <p>Interstate commerce — Gas companies.</p> <p>3. A gas company which manufactures its product within the limits of Pennsylvania and sells its entire product within the same limits to a railroad company and a sleeping car company for lighting cars is not engaged in interstate commerce although the cars themselves are operated in interstate traffic.</p>