Jeriesha Rose Smith

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
In re
JERIESHA ROSE SMITH,
Debtor.
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Case No. 08-00574
(Chapter 7)
Not for Publication in
West’s Bankruptcy Reporter
MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER RE MOTION TO REDEEM
The debtor seeks to redeem certain personal property from
the tax liens of the Internal Revenue Service. 	Specifically, the
debtor’s motion states:
The item to be redeemed is Debtor’s tangible personal
property intended primarily for personal, family or
household use listed on Schedule B and more
particularly described as follows:
Cash on Person 	$ 25.00
Checking Account with Bank of America 	$108.00
Savings Account with Bank of America 	$ 	7.75
Savings Account with BB&T 	$187.00
Personal furniture 	$850.00
Clothing 	$800.00
Bicycle 	$200.00
TOTAL: 	$2,177.75
The motion also seeks an order directing the Internal Revenue
Service to release its tax liens upon the debtor paying the value
of the redeemed property. 	The motion cannot be granted as
The document below is hereby signed.
Signed: December 17, 2008.
_____________________________
S. Martin Teel, Jr.
United States Bankruptcy Judge
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presently cast.
I
A debtor’s checking and savings accounts are not tangible
personal property, and redemption is limited to tangible personal
property. 	A bank account “consists of nothing more or less than
a promise to pay, from the bank to the depositor.” 	Citizens Bank
of Maryland v. Strumpf, 516 U.S. 16, 21 (1995) (citations
omitted). 	Redemption cannot be ordered as to the checking and
savings accounts.
II
The motion may be motivated by a desire to have a ruling
limiting the tax liens to the value of the property the debtor
now owns, the property sought to be redeemed, with the tax liens
not reaching property acquired in the future. 	But as a matter of
law, by reason of the debtor’s forthcoming discharge, the tax
liens will not reach property that was acquired by the debtor
after the petition date. 	See, e.g., In re Schneiderman, 254 B.R.
296 (Bankr. D.D.C. 2000); United States v. Sanabria, 424 F.2d
1121, 1123 (7th Cir. 1970). 	There is no necessity to obtain a
decree to that effect as the Internal Revenue Service will not
engage in a prohibited attempt to collect its discharged claims
from assets acquired postpetition. 	The debtor’s discharge will
be all she needs to establish that her assets acquired
postpetition are not subject to the tax liens.
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The debtor seeks an order compelling the Internal Revenue
Service to release the tax liens, but that would be inappropriate
as such an order would be injunctive in nature, requiring an
adversary proceeding by reason of Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7001.
Moreover, non-redeemed property (the bank accounts) will remain
subject to the tax liens, so a release of the tax liens (which
releases the tax liens in toto) would be inappropriate. 	The
court has no authority to order a release under 26 U.S.C. §
6325(a) (declaring that the lien no longer attaches to any
property) when the lien continues as a lien against any assets
the debtor has not redeemed (including any assets the debtor may
not have disclosed). 	Isom v. United States (In re Isom), 901
F.2d 744 (9th Cir. 1990).
At most the debtor would be entitled to obtain from the
Internal Revenue Service a discharge of the redeemed property
from the tax liens. 	26 U.S.C. § 6325(b). 	Once the debtor
redeems the property, if the Internal Revenue Service refuses to
issue a certificate of discharge, the debtor could then sue in an
adversary proceeding for an injunction compelling the Internal
Revenue Service to issue a certificate of discharge. 	But the
debtor could by motion obtain an order directing deposit of the
necessary funds for redeeming the property into the registry of
the court, awaiting granting of the redemption motion. 	The order
granting redemption and directing transmittal of the deposited
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1 	Pursuant to an amendment made in 2005, the statute now
requires payment to the lienholder “in full at the time of
redemption.” 	11 U.S.C. § 722. 	When the funds are deposited in
the registry of the court, and transmitted to the creditor upon
entry of the order authorizing redemption, there is no issue
regarding the payment having been made at the time of redemption.
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redemption funds to the creditor could decree that the property
has been redeemed from the liens. 1 	Upon recording of that order
where the notices of tax liens are recorded, it would achieve the
same effect as a certificate of discharge.
III
Because the court would not grant the debtor’s request in
her motion for a release of the tax liens, the debtor may not
wish the balance of her motion to be granted. 	I am reluctant to
grant the motion in part when that would not seem necessary to
advance the debtor’s interests. 	The debtor’s clothing,
furniture, and bicycle are exempt from levy under 26 U.S.C. §
6334(a)(1) and (2). 	The tax liens, therefore, cannot be enforced
by way of levy against those items of personal property. 	It is
unlikely that a civil action would be brought to foreclose on
property worth only $1,850.00 that, at foreclosure sale, would
likely fetch less. 	There are no reported decisions of which I am
aware in which the United States has sought to foreclose on
property exempt from levy. 	Enforcement of the lien against the
$25 in cash (if the debtor still has it) is exceedingly unlikely,
and, in any event, there is no apparent reason why the debtor
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would take the step of redeeming cash with cash.
Although 11 U.S.C. § 722 provides that the debtor may redeem
property, I am reluctant to sign an order granting the motion in
part, and directing that redeemable property can be redeemed by
prompt payment of the specified values, unless it is clear that
the debtor intends to go forward with redemption even though
redemption appears unnecessary to advance any interest of the
debtor.
IV
In light of the foregoing, it is
ORDERED that the motion is denied with respect to the
checking and savings accounts and with respect to the request for
an order directing the Internal Revenue Service to issue (upon
payment of the redemption amounts) a certificate of release of
the tax liens. 	It is further
ORDERED that if the debtor desires to pursue the balance of
her motion even though it does not appear to be necessary to
advance her interests, then within 28 days after entry of this
order, the debtor shall file a statement that she wishes to
pursue the balance of her motion, together with a revised
proposed order (a) eliminating the request for an order directing
the Internal Revenue Service to issue a release of its liens and
(b) limiting redemption to the items of tangible personal
property. 	It is further
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6	O:\TEEL\Judge Temp Docs\Smith (Jeriesha Rose) Mem Decsn & Order re Redemption Mtn.wpd
ORDERED that if the debtor neglects to timely file a revised
proposed order, the court will enter an order dismissing the
motion without prejudice.
[Signed and dated above.]
Copies to: Debtor; Debtor’s attorney.
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