Were peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerky, and pretzels exempt when a retailer sold them without providing eating facilities?

Plain-English summary

Peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerky, and pretzels were exempt food products under the historical ruling applied in the letter.

The result changed if the retailer provided facilities or tableware for consuming them. The letter specifically named tables, chairs, counters, trays, glasses, dishes, and other tableware as conditions making the sales taxable.

If the retailer had paid tax on exempt sales, the letter said it could file a written refund claim stating the grounds. The official annotation page now marks the annotation “AM 2017,” but the complete supporting letter is dated March 11, 1954.

Common questions

Were all four listed products treated as food?

Yes. The letter classified peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerky, and pretzels as food products under Section A of historical Ruling 52.

What made their sales taxable?

Providing facilities or tableware for consumption brought the sales within Section D of that historical ruling.

Did the letter allow a refund claim?

Yes. It said a written claim could be filed for tax previously paid on exempt sales, with the grounds stated.

Citations and references

• Sales and Use Tax Ruling 52, Section A — historical food-product list applied; stated enclosure not reproduced in the official PDF
• Sales and Use Tax Ruling 52, Section D — historical rule for retailer-provided consumption facilities; stated enclosure not reproduced in the official PDF
• California sales tax refund-claim procedure — written claim and grounds requirement stated without a statute, regulation, or limitations period
• Redacted retailer's January 6 letter concerning peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerkey, and pretzels — referenced; source-printed jerkey form preserved; letter not reproduced in the official PDF
• Retail sales and provision of tables, chairs, counters, trays, glasses, dishes, or other tableware — conditions described; product records, invoices, sales records, premises records, photographs, customer-use evidence, and facility records not reproduced in the official PDF
• Past tax payments and possible refund claim for exempt sales — procedure stated; returns, payment records, claim, grounds letter, amount, and Board disposition not reproduced in the official PDF
• Annotation 245.0920's AM 2017 notation — published on the official annotation page; no amendment file or supporting record reproduced in the official PDF
• Copy to a redacted Auditing office and possible later sale, audit, assessment, refund action, appeal, or other agency action — copy notation present; no copy, follow-up, or final outcome supplied in the official PDF

Source

• Annotated Legal Opinions collection: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/taxes-and-fees/annotations-menu.htm
• Annotation page: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/lawguides/vol2/suta/245-0000-all.html
• Original supporting opinion: https://cdtfa.ca.gov/lawguides/annotations/245-0920.pdf

Original ruling text

245.0920

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION
PO BOX 942879, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA 94279-0001
TELEPHONE (916) 445-6450

March 11, 1954

Mr. [B]
[N]
--- X, Box XXX
---, California

Your letter of January 6
Account No. -- - XXXXX

Dear Mr. [B]:
You inquire concerning the application of sales tax to sales of peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerkey, and pretzels. As indicated in Ruling 52 (copy enclosed), tax does not apply to the sale of items which are listed as “food products” in Section A of the ruling. Peanuts, dried salmon, beef jerkey, and pretzels are “food products” under Section A of Ruling 52. However, if the retailer provides tables, chairs, or counters or trays, glasses, dishes, or other tableware for the consumption of food or drink items, their sale is taxable (Section D of Ruling 52). If you have, in the past, paid tax on exempt sales, you may file a claim for refund. The claim for refund need not be in any particular form, but it must be in writing and state the grounds for the claim. Yours very truly,

Bill Holden
Assistant Counsel
BH:ja
cc:

--- - Auditing