Tax Win for New York City at High Court

The New York Sun reports:

The Supreme Court, in a victory for Mayor Bloomberg that could bring New York hundreds of millions of dollars, has opened the way for municipalities across the nation to hold foreign countries accountable for the tax abuses of their diplomatic staff in America.

A 7–2 ruling by the federal high court gives New York City the go-ahead to collect a so-called pillow tax from the diplomatic missions to the United Nations that dot Midtown and the Upper East Side. The ruling confers jurisdiction on American courts to hear the city's argument that many of those countries should be paying taxes on their diplomatic property. The city claims that it has a right to tax nations using missions to the United Nations for non-diplomatic purposes — such as providing living quarters for low-level staff.

The ruling came in lawsuits Mr. Bloomberg filed against the Indian and Mongolian missions to the United Nations. The suits tested whether the city could sidestep the immunity foreign nations are presumed to have in American courts.

Mr. Bloomberg understands: those who can't vote don't count when you are trying to tax someone.