Fond Du Lac Band v. Frans, No. 10-1236 (8th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseThe Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Band) sued the the Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Revenue (Commissioner) to prevent taxation of the out-of-state pension income of Band members. The state taxed a Band member's pension earned in Ohio but received on a reservation. The Band argued that the taxation violated due process and was preempted by federal law. The court held that because citizenship provided a constitutional nexus, Minnesota's taxation complied with due process. The court also held that Minnesota's taxation was not preempted where the case was controlled by the general rule: "Absent express federal law to the contrary, Indians going beyond reservation boundaries have generally been held subject to non-discriminatory state law otherwise applicable to all citizens of the state." Accordingly, the judgment of the district court was affirmed.
Court Description: Civil case - Indian law. Minnesota's act in taxing a Band member's pension, earned in Ohio, but received on the reservation, did not violate due process as the member's Minnesota citizenship created a constitutional nexus for the taxation. Judge Murphy, dissenting.
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