Ezel / Tax Rulings / CA

Could a hop exporter buy lumber tax-free when using it to pack hops for shipment?

Short answer Only when the lumber became crates resold with the hops. Lumber used merely as railcar strips or transit bracing was taxable.
State
CA
Ruling
Annotation 195.0520
Tax type
Sales and Use Tax
Issued
1957-04-16
Issued by
California State Board of Equalization
Requested by
Redacted hop exporter
Topics
exports lumber packing materials nonreturnable containers sales tax
Source
View Original PDF

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1957. Ask about yours and see what current California tax law says, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1957
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This April 16, 1957 opinion distinguishes lumber made into crates resold with exported hops from lumber used as railcar strips or transit bracing. The March 22 request and the enclosed copies of historical Rulings 49 and 60 are not reproduced in the official PDF. The result depends on the material's actual function and transfer with the contents. Current container, export, packing-material, and sales-tax rules control.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.
View original ruling (PDF)

Plain-English summary

Lumber used to make crates for hops was an exempt nonreturnable-container purchase when the crates were resold together with the hops.

The exemption did not cover lumber used only as car strips or to brace hop packages while they were in transit.

Common questions

Was every piece of lumber used in shipping exempt?

No. The letter distinguished a crate transferred with the hops from bracing used only during transit.

Citations and references

  • Sales and Use Tax Ruling 49 — historical nonreturnable-container guidance applied to crates; copy listed as enclosed but not included in the official PDF
  • Sales and Use Tax Ruling 60 — historical authority cited for taxable car strips and bracing; copy listed as enclosed but not included in the official PDF
  • Requester's March 22 letter — lumber and other hop-packing material purchases for export summarized; separate letter not reproduced in the official PDF

Source

Original ruling text

195.0520

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION

April 16, 1957

J---n I. H--XXXX --- ----- XX, Calif.
Attention:

Mr. A. J. J---

S- -- XX-XXXXXX

Gentlemen:
In your letter of March 22 you inquired whether your purchases of lumber and other materials, used in packing hops for export, are subject to sales tax. Tax does not apply to purchases of non-returnable containers which are resold together with their contents. Under Ruling 49, a copy of which is enclosed, wrapping and packing materials are classified as non-returnable containers. If the lumber is used to make crates for the hops, it is exempt. However, if the lumber is used as car strips or for bracing the packages of hops while in transit, it is not exempt. See Ruling 60, copy enclosed.

E. H. Stetson
Tax Counsel

GAT:rc

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