Supreme Court says government may not take more than a taxpayer owes

 Breitbart:

It is unconstitutional for government to keep more money from a property seizure sale than it needs to satisfy unpaid property tax bills, the Supreme court unanimously held on Thursday, adding that taxpayers must “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, but no more.”

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the 9-0 opinion for the court. The case involved a 94-year-old grandmother who had moved out of her small condo, after which under Minnesota law the title on the condo was transferred to her local government when she went two years without paying property taxes on the home.

“Hennepin County, Minnesota, sold Geraldine Tyler’s home for $40,000 to satisfy a $15,000 tax bill,” Roberts began. “Instead of returning the remaining $25,000, the County kept it for itself. The question presented is whether this constituted a taking of property without just compensation, in violation of the Fifth Amendment.”

Roberts explained:

The Takings Clause, applicable to the States through the Fourteenth Amendment, provides that private property shall not be taken for public use, without just compensation. States have long imposed taxes on property. Such taxes are not themselves a taking, but are a mandated contribution from individuals . . . for the support of the government . . . for which they receive compensation in the protection which government affords. In collecting these taxes, the State may impose interest and late fees. It may also seize and sell property, including land, to recover the amount owed.

Under Minnesota law, government can keep the extra money in situations like this, giving part to local public schools. Hennepin County’s lawyers argued this is allowed by the Constitution.

“History and precedent say otherwise. The County had the power to sell Tyler’s home to recover the unpaid property taxes. But it could not use the toehold of the tax debt to confiscate more property than was due,” the court responded. “By doing so, it effected a classic taking in which the government directly appropriates private property for its own use. Tyler has stated a claim under the Takings Clause and is entitled to just compensation.”
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This is a fair reading of the taking clause.  Taking more than is owed is nothing more than government greed.