Good morning, everyone,
A colleague is seeking an attorney at a law firm who has experience representing cities in disputes related to their water system, including, but not limited to, allegations related to pipe failures caused by water.  Geographically, an attorney practicing in Ohio is the preference, but they are looking for an expert so they are open to the attorney practicing in other states.
If you have any recommendations or know who they could contact to get such recommendations, please send it to me at rarneja@imla.org and I'll pass it along.

Thank you,

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Dear Colleagues,

Have any of your localities dealt with a claim from the Federal Home Loan Bank that they are exempt from paying tangible personal property taxes on equipment they owned and is located within your jurisdiction pursuant to 12 U.S.C. 1433?

For background purposes, the Federal Home Loan Banks are federally chartered banks (11 total) created by US Congress around 1932, which as a whole form the national Federal Home Loan Bank System. While the FHLBs' mission reflects a public purpose (providing flexible credit liquidity source for member community lenders engaged in home mortgage and neighborhood lending furthering affordable housing), all FHLBs are privately capitalized and do not receive federal funding.

Section 1433 of the Federal Home Loan Banks Act (Chapter 11, Title 12 (Banks and Banking) of the USC, sections 1421 through 1449)), deals with the tax exemption of the FHLB and states that:

(i)                  "all notes, debentures, bonds, and other such obligations issued by a Federal Home Loan Bank, and consolidated Federal Home Loan Bank bonds and debentures shall exempt both as to principal and interest from all taxation..."; and

(ii)                A Federal Home Loan Bank, "including its franchise, its capital, reserves, and surplus, its advances, and its income, shall be exempt from all taxation now or hereafter imposed by... any State, county, municipality, or local taxing authority, except that in any real property of the bank shall be subject to ...county, municipal or local taxation to the same extent...according to its value as other real property is taxed..."

The question is whether your localities have treated business personal property owned by a Federal Home Loan Bank and located in your jurisdictions and specifically if your locality has exempted a Federal Home Land Bank from tangible personal property taxes.

Thanks,
Belkys

Belkys Escobar
Deputy County Attorney
County of Loudoun, Virginia
(703) 777-0307 (master
(571) 258-3119 (direct)
(703) 7771-5025 (fax)
Belkys.Escobar@loudoun.govmailto:Belkys.Escobar@loudoun.gov