Dunbar-Stanley Studios, Inc. v. Alabama

Background

A North Carolina photography company that takes children’s portraits contracted with J.C. Penney to send photographers into eight Alabama stores. The photographers were non‑residents, set up temporary studios in the stores for two to five days per visit, and visited each city one to five times a year. The stores handled advertising, appointments, payments, and delivery; the exposed film was sent to the company’s plant in North Carolina for processing. Alabama charged a $5 per‑week license for transient photographers; state courts upheld assessments against the company, and the company sued saying the tax improperly burdened interstate commerce.

Reasoning

The Court asked whether taking pictures inside Alabama was so tied to interstate commerce that it could not be taxed locally. The Justices concluded that actually posing subjects and operating a camera in a local store is a local service, not an inseparable part of interstate trade. Because the tax targets the act of providing photography in Alabama and applies equally to in‑state and traveling photographers, the Court found no unconstitutional burden or discrimination on interstate commerce in the record before it.

Real world impact

States may license and tax traveling photographers who enter to provide local portrait services even if film is developed elsewhere. Out‑of‑state firms that set up temporary studios in stores should expect local licensing fees. The ruling affirmed the state court’s assessment but rested on the facts shown, so different facts could produce a different result.

Dissents or concurrances

Justice White wrote separately to stress that if Alabama taxed the company solely because films were sent out of state, that would unlawfully discriminate; but he joined the judgment because the record did not prove that was done.