Did a monthly publication covering all public transportation serving San Francisco qualify as an exempt periodical?

Plain-English summary

An unnamed account holder's September 25 and March 7 letters asked about sales tax on a redacted publication and included copies. Associate Tax Counsel reviewed it and found monthly publication with news and information about all public transportation facilities serving San Francisco.

The source redacts the title. CDTFA's live 385.2101 list prints San Francisco Time Card and Ready Reference, 3/21/51, but the HTML combines that text in the same bullet as Realty Sales Service, 9/22/76. The exact March 21 date and San Francisco transit description support treating the former as the live-list identity while preserving the markup defect.

Associate Tax Counsel concluded that its sales were exempt as periodical sales under former Ruling 50.

The requester had already paid sales tax on publication sales and filed a refund claim. Counsel referred the claim to the Audit Section for ordinary processing; the opinion did not approve or pay the refund.

Source and live-annotation limits

The official PDF does not include either request letter, the publication or any issue, title, news or transportation information, publication or delivery records, account records, Ruling 50 enclosure, prices, invoices, sales or uses, returns, refund claim, tax-payment records, Audit Section processing, assessment, refund decision or payment, appeal, or later outcome. The requester, publication title in the source, copied recipient, readers, transportation facilities, transactions, quantities, prices, refund amount, and tax amounts are redacted or unidentified.

The source leaves its cc: line empty and says the claim was referred for processing in the usual manner. The original-text section preserves those forms and the redacted title.

The live annotation is a broader list of publications considered newspapers or periodicals under Regulation 1590. It prints San Francisco Time Card and Ready Reference with the opinion's March 21, 1951 date, but malformed markup places it directly after Realty Sales Service, 9/22/76 in the same list item. It omits the request and counsel, redacted account and source title, monthly schedule, all-public-transportation content, Ruling 50, submitted copies, prior tax payment, refund claim and Audit Section referral, missing records, source forms, and absent outcome. Its other titles are not supported by this linked transit-publication opinion.

What this means for you

Transit-information publishers and tax professionals

Preserve every issue, title and content, publication and delivery schedule, geographic and transportation coverage, Ruling 50 or current authority, contracts, invoices and sales, returns, refund claims, tax-payment and Audit Section records, tax calculations, and any refund decision. Referral alone is not approval.

Common questions

Q: How often was the publication issued?

A: Monthly.

Q: What did it cover?

A: News and information about all public transportation serving San Francisco.

Q: Was the refund granted in this letter?

A: The letter referred the claim for processing; it did not reproduce a final refund determination.

Q: What title does CDTFA's live list supply?

A: It prints San Francisco Time Card and Ready Reference with the same date, but a markup defect joins that text to the preceding Realty Sales Service item.

Q: Did the source include the publication or refund records?

A: No.

Citations and references

• Former California Sales and Use Tax Ruling 50
• California Sales and Use Tax Regulation 1590 — cited by the live list, not the 1951 opinion
• September 25 and March 7 letters, publication copies, Ruling 50 enclosure, refund claim and tax-payment records, sales, refund outcome, and later disposition — described or implicated but not documented

Verbatim support

From the official Associate Tax Counsel opinion:

Our examination of this publication indicates that it is regularly published at monthly intervals and that it contains news and information concerning all public transportation facilities serving San Francisco.

It is our opinion that the sale of this publication is exempt as a periodical, pursuant to Sales and Use Tax Ruling 50, copy enclosed.

We are referring your claim for refund of the sales tax which you have already paid in connection with your sales of this publication to our Audit Section for processing in the usual manner.

Source

• Annotated Legal Opinions collection: CDTFA Annotated Legal Opinions
• Annotation page: Annotation 385.2101
• Original supporting opinion: 385.2101 PDF

Original ruling text

385.2101

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION

March 21, 1951

Account --------

Gentlemen:
This is in answer to your letters of September 25 and March 7 with respect to the application of the State sales tax to your sales of a publication entitled --- ---, copies of which you enclosed with your letters. Our examination of this publication indicates that it is regularly published at monthly intervals and that it contains news and information concerning all public transportation facilities serving San Francisco. It is our opinion that the sale of this publication is exempt as a periodical, pursuant to Sales and Use Tax Ruling 50, copy enclosed. We are referring your claim for refund of the sales tax which you have already paid in connection with your sales of this publication to our Audit Section for processing in the usual manner.

Very truly yours,

R. G. HAMLIN
Associate Tax Counsel

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