Afton publisher is tax-exempt, justices say

Updated: December 13, 2007 - 8:42 PM

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An Afton publishing house that gives books to libraries and schools shouldn't have to pay property taxes, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

In deciding the nonprofit Afton Historical Society Press was a charity, the high court reversed a decision by the Minnesota Tax Court that required the publisher to pay Washington County property taxes for 2003 through 2005.

The nonprofit publishes color hardcover books about Minnesota history and culture. Recent releases include "My Heart It Is Delicious" about the Center for International Health in St. Paul, "Latino Minnesota," and "The Grain Merchants," an illustrated history of the Minneapolis Grain Exchange.

The Supreme Court said the tax court erred in not considering the Afton publisher's minimal pricing of books. "We conclude that Afton provides a substantial proportion of its goods free of charge or at considerably less than cost," the Supreme Court wrote. "It did not earn a profit in any of the years at issue and its assets are not available to private interests upon dissolution. Afton is therefore an institution of purely public charity."

The high court limited its ruling to taxes assessed for the three years in dispute.

KEVIN GILES