AGO 81-014.

• Case Date: February 17, 1981
• Court: North Dakota

North Dakota Attorney General Opinions 1981. AGO 81-014. OPINION 81-14Date Issued: February 17, 1981 (AGO 81-14) Requested by: Representative Verdine D. Rice- QUESTION PRESENTED - Whether existing provisions of law provide the same exemption from property taxation as would be provided by House Bill No. 1349 now being considered by the Forty-seventh Legislative Assembly of North Dakota.- ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OPINION - It is my opinion that if House Bill No. 1349 is enacted by the Legislature and becomes law it will exempt some property from taxation that is not now exempt under existing provisions of law. - ANALYSIS - House Bill 1349 would add a new subsection to section 57-02-08 of the North Dakota Century Code that would exempt the following property from property taxation:

All rights and privileges in or appertaining to real property occupied by an individual, including his family, if any, as his place of residence if that real property is owned by the United States, this state, or a political subdivision or other unit of local government of this state, and i that individual is an employee of the owner of the real property and is required to reside in the residence as a condition of his employment.

Under present North Dakota law, privately held rights and privileges in government-owned real property are required by section 57-02-03, N.D.C.C., and subsection 1 of section 57-02-04, N.D.C.C., to be taxed unless exempted from taxation by some provision of law. Otter Tail Power Company v. Degnan, 252 N.W. 619 (N.D. 1934), and Lower Yellowstone Irrigation District Number Two v. Nelson, 2 N.W.2d. 180 (N.D. 1941). This, of course, does not mean that the governmental body that owns the land or improvements is subject to taxation; but it does mean that to the extent that privately held rights and privileges in that government-owned property have taxable value they are subject to taxation unless expressly exempted by law. The above-cited North Dakota Supreme Court cases did not involve the question of whether a governmental employee had a taxable interest in government-supplied housing in which the employee was required to live as a condition of his employment. The cases do, however, establish the principle that privately held rights and privileges in government-owned property are subject to property taxation if they have...