The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Ford Motor Co.'s appeal in a tax case involving the cities of Seattle and Tacoma, allowing the cities to tax 100 percent of the automaker's wholesale sales in the two Washington State cities, even though the transactions were processed in Dearborn, Mich.
Ford appealed a ruling last April by the Washington State Supreme Court on the "business and occupation taxes" owed by the automaker on its sales to dealers in Seattle and Tacoma. In 2003, Ford paid $1.7 million in taxes, penalties and interest to the two cities, but then appealed the taxes. The U.S. Supreme Court turned away the appeal without comment.
Ford argued that it has no auto plants in Washington and that it only sends its representatives to meet with dealers in the state.
It said the taxes should be assessed based on how much work was actually done in Seattle and Tacoma. Much of the work, according to Ford, was performed in Michigan, including sales forecasts, car shipments and allocations of vehicles to dealers.
