Western Pacific Railroad v. State Board of Equalization

The question is whether the levy of the use tax made by the state against two self-propelled diesel electric cranes is violative (1) of the commerce clause of the Constitution of the United States, or (2) of section 2015 subdivision (b) of title 18 of the Administrative Code of California.

In this action to recover the paid taxes, the parties have stipulated to the facts. Western Pacific, a California corporation which has its headquarters in San Francisco, operates as an interstate carrier between Nevada, California, and Utah, and also conducts intrastate operations in each of these states. In the relevant years, it operated 1192.51 miles of railroad, of which 596.17 miles were in California, 450.5 miles in Nevada, and 145.84 miles in Utah. In addition, it had two wholly owned California subsidiaries, Sacramento Northern Bailway (operating solely in the Sacramento Valley communities of California) and Tidewater Southern Bailway (operating freight lines in the San Joaquin Valley of California), the mileage of which roads does not appear. During the year 1952, appellant’s revenues, exclusive of those of subsidiaries, attributed to California sources were about 45.8 per cent of its…