I was forced to hire another man and a helper to operate my service station, and that cost me not less than $600. Besides, I was forced to take treatments from doctors, and the following expenses were incurred, to wit: The affidavit of my physician is hereto attached, and the receipted bills for the above expenses, except said $600 paid for operating my service station, are hereto attached. Besides, I lost in not being able to operate my service station not less than $3,582.24. Since I was shot, I have not been the same, and still suffer from the effects of said shooting. JOHN K. JACKSON. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 2d day of December 1948. [SEAL] My commission expires July 25, 1952. A. A. ANDERSON, Notary Public for Oregon. To Whom It May Concern: ASTORIA CLINIC, Astoria, Oreg., May 27, 1948. I, Jon V. Straumfjord, M. D., being first duly sworn, depose and say that I am a duly licensed physician of the State of Oregon and of the city of Astoria, practicing my profession with offices at third floor, Spexarth Building, Astoria, Oreg., and that Mr. John K. Jackson was under the care of Dr. Allen M. Boyden and myself in connection with an injury which he sustained December 22, 1937. On that date he sustained a gunshot wound. The wound of entrance was in the left lower abdominal wall, and the wound of exit through the left buttock. The line of the wound was through the inguinal canal. It entered the thigh just below the inguinal ligament, pierced the pectineal fascia and muscles of the adductor group, and continued through the gluteal area very close to the rectum but not piercing it. These wounds were thoroughly debrided and closed with drainage. Mr. Jackson was confined in Columbia Hospital, Astoria, until January 5, 1938. The wounds were completely healed on January 10, 1938. He was totally disabled, until the middle of February 1938, and partial disability continued until April 1, 1938. There is no permanent disability resulting from this injury. JON V. STRAUMFJORD, M. D. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 27th day of May 1948. [SEAL] My commission expires July 4, 1949. MILDRED L. DAWSON, Mr. JOHN K. JACKSON. STATEMENT ASTORIA, OREG., July 23, 1948. TO COLUMBIA HOSPITAL, DR. Hospital attendance: Dec. 22, 1937, to Jan. 5, 1938: Room, 14 days, at $6 per day. Surgery Anesthesia.. Blood transfusion.. Use of surgery Tetanus shot__ Total..... $84.00 20.00 15.00 15. 00 5.00 2.00 141. 00 I do hereby certify that the above is a correct and true billing of Mr. John Jackson's account with the Columbia Hospital. C. O. MOBERG, Superintendent. To Mr. JOHN JACKSON. Professional service, $5 a day, 3 days, total.. Paid in full January 15, 1938. To Mr. JOHN JACKSON. Professional services, $5 a day, 8 hours, 2 days, total... Paid: December 24, 1937. $15 Mrs. Eva JONES. $10 Mrs. FAE LEFOR. COLUMBIA HOSPITAL. OREGON STATE GRADUATE NURSES ASSOCIATION DISTRICT NO. Date: December 27, 1937. MRS. JOHN JACKSON TO VERNADINE GREEN, DR. Address: 527 Exchange. From: December 22 to December 24; 2 days, at $5, total $10. Mr. JOHN K. JACKSON. Professional services, 1 day, at $5.. Paid, Dec. 31, 1937. Mrs. M. HOLTHE. CITY OF RENO, NEV. MAY 18, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed Mr. DENTON, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany S. 41] The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill (S. 41) for the relief of the city of Reno, Nev., having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The facts will be found fully set forth in Senate Report No. 113, Eighty-first Congress, which is appended hereto and made a part of this report. Your committee concur in the recommendation of the Senate. IS. Rept. No. 113, 81st Cong., 1st sess. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to authorize and direct the Secretary of the Treasury to pay to the city of Reno, Nev., the sum of $1,620, representing the amount which would have been paid for street improvements by the Forest Service had the Forest Service been a private person. STATEMENT In 1947 the city of Reno, Nev., embarked upon a street-improvement program which included the street on which property owned by the United States Forest Service was located. A bill in the amount of $1,620 was submitted to the Forest Service on September 10, 1947, for its share of the cost of the improvement abutting on its property. On September 30, 1947, the Forest Service, under the signature of C. E. Favre, forest supervisor, declined to pay the bill and recommended that a private bill be initiated in Congress for this purpose. Accordingly, legislation identical with that presently under consideration was introduced in the Eightieth Congress. At that time a report was submitted by the Department of Agriculture in which it recommended against enactment of legislation in a cursory paragraph alleging that land owned by the United States is not assessable for local improvements by a State or its political subdivisions. The Department of Justice in its report quotes the paragraph contained in the Agriculture Department letter and adds the further comment that "The provisions of the bill do not appear to be in accord with the recommendations of the Federal real-estate board which made an extensive study of such problems several years ago.' Your committee, having in mind the tendency exhibited in recent legislation to expand the right of the citizen to sue the sovereign, as indicated in the Federal Tort Claims Act and other legislation, invites attention to the fact that had the Forest Service been a private person it would not, under the regulations of the Internal Revenue Bureau, have been permitted to deduct such a payment from its gross income as a tax paid, for the purpose of computing its income tax. The regulation referred to appears in Regulations 111, 29.23 (c)-3, and is as follows: "So-called taxes, more properly assessments, paid for local benefits, such as street. sidewalk, and other like improvements, imposed because of and measured by some benefit inuring directly to the property against which the assessment is levied, do not constitute an allowable deduction from gross income. A tax is considered assessed against local benefits when the property subject to the tax is limited to property benefited. Special assessments are not deductible, even though an incidental benefit may inure to the public welfare. The real-property taxes deductible are those levied for the general public welfare by the proper taxing authorities at a like rate against all property in the territory over which such authorities have jurisdiction. Assessments under the statutes of California relating to irrigation and of Iowa relating to drainage, and under certain statutes of Tennessee relating to levees, are limited to property benefited, and if the assessments are so limited, the amounts paid thereunder are not deductible as taxes. The above statements are subject to the exception that insofar as assessments against local benefits are made for the purpose of maintenance or repair or for the purpose of meeting interest charges with respect to such benefits, they are deductible. In such cases the burden is on the taxpayer to show the allocation of the amounts assessed to the different purposes. If the allocation cannot be made, none of the amounts so paid is deductible." For the above reasons and in view of the benefit accruing to this property by virtue of the city of Reno having paved the street, your committee is of the opinion that the Federal Government has been unjustly enriched under these circumstances and that payment should be made to the city of Reno for value received. Attached hereto and made a part of this report are letters received from the Department of Agriculture and Department of Justice in connection with an identical bill of the Eightieth Congress. SEPTEMBER 13, 1948. Hon. ALEXANDER WILEY, Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR SENATOR: This is in response to your request for the views of this Department relative to the bill (S. 2685) for the relief of the city of Reno, Nev. The bill would provide for payment of the sum of $1,620 to the city of Reno, Nev., which sum represents the amount which would have been assessable for street improvements against property owned by the United States, and used by the Forest Service, in such city if such property had been privately owned. In compliance with your request a report was obtained from the Department of Agriculture concerning this legislation. That report, which is enclosed, states that the Department of Agriculture acknowledges that the street in front of the Forest Service shop and warehouse in Reno was paved It further states that, at the same time, it is well recognized that land owned by the United States cannot be taxed by a State or its political subdivision, and this rule applies equally to special assessments for local improvements. The report concludes with the statement that the Department of Agriculture. therefore, does not recommend enactment of the bill. Attention is directed to the fact that existing law provides that 25 percent of receipts from national forests shall be paid to States for the benefit of counties in which national forests are situated to be used for schools and roads (16 U. S. C. 500). The provisions of the bill do not appear to be in accord with the recommenda tions of the Federal real-estate board, which made an extensive study of such problems several years ago (H. Doc. No. 216, 78th Cong., 1st sess.). The Department of Justice concurs in the recommendation of the Department of Agriculture. |