U.S. Court Rules That Fuel Tax on Native Americans Invalid

The U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, ruled that an Idaho fuel tax imposed on fuel delivered to Native American-owned fuel stops located on a tribe’s reservation was invalid. The decision was in Coeur d’Alene Tribe of Idaho vs. Hammond. According to a report in the State Laws Newsletter, the Idaho Supreme Court previously ruled that the tax was bad, but the Legislature had changed the tax statute in response to specify that the incident of the tax now rested on the suppliers rather than the Native American retailers. The Court of Appeals found that legislative intent did not govern the matter of incidence, which was not changed merely by saying so, Pitcher reported. The fuel suppliers continued to collect the tax from the tribe, which continued to bear the burden of it.