Property Tax Assessment – Hub Facility Exemption

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WI Supreme Court

Case Name: Southwest Airlines Co., et al., v. State of Wisconsin Department of Revenue

Case No.: 2021 WI 54

Focus: Property Tax Assessment – Hub Facility Exemption

The petitioners, Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways (collectively, Southwest), seek review of an unpublished opinion of the court of appeals affirming the circuit court’s determination that Southwest does not qualify for the “hub facility” property tax exemption. Specifically, Southwest contends that under a “strict but reasonable” interpretation of Wis. Stat. § 70.11(42)(a)2.a. (2017-18), it is entitled to the exemption for both the 2013 and 2014 tax assessments.

The hub facility provision exempts from property taxes all property of an air carrier company if the air carrier company “operated at least 45 common carrier departing flights each weekday in the prior year” from a facility at a Wisconsin airport. Southwest argues that it is entitled to the exemption despite admitting that it did not operate at least 45 departing flights on each and every weekday of the subject years.

Nevertheless, Southwest advances that under a “strict but reasonable” reading of the statute, it should be given an allowance for holidays and days with bad weather when it did not operate 45 departing flights. It further asserts that it is entitled to the hub facility exemption if it operated an average of over 45 flights each weekday in the subject year.

We conclude that Southwest is not entitled to the hub facility exemption for either the 2013 or 2014 property tax assessment. The plain language of the statute requires that an air carrier company operate 45 departing flights on each weekday without exception, and Southwest admittedly did not meet this requirement. Accordingly, we affirm the decision of the court of appeals.

Affirmed

Concur:

Dissent:

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Derek A Hawkins is Corporate Counsel, at Salesforce.