Ezel / Tax Rulings / CA

Did a 1984 law exempt food and drink prepared and served on the premises of congressionally chartered veterans service organizations?

Short answer California found no federal or state law creating the newsletter's claimed exemption. The letter invited the requester to identify the specific legislation if additional review was needed.
State
CA
Ruling
Annotation 505.0814
Tax type
Sales and Use Tax
Issued
1984-12-13
Issued by
California State Board of Equalization
Requested by
A correspondent asking about a veterans-organization newsletter claim (identity redacted)
Topics
veterans organizations prepared food on premises consumption
Source
View Original PDF

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1984. Ask about yours and see what current California tax law says, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1984
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 is a December 13, 1984 California State Board of Equalization tax-counsel letter published by CDTFA as support for a sales and use tax annotation. It reports the result of a historical search for the newsletter-described exemption and does not analyze later legislation. Verify current law before relying on it. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice.
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

A newsletter reportedly claimed that, effective August 3, 1984, every congressionally chartered veterans service organization became exempt from state sales tax on food and drink prepared for consumption on its premises.

California could not identify the newsletter or any federal or California law creating that exemption. The Board invited the requester to provide the specific legislation if it could be located, but on the information available the claimed exemption had no verified legal basis.

What this means for you

Veterans clubs, food-service operators, accountants, and tax advisers

Do not rely on an organizational newsletter or congressional charter alone. Identify the specific current tax-exemption statute before treating on-premises food and drink sales as exempt.

Common questions

Q: Did California verify the claimed exemption?

A: No.

Q: Did a congressional charter by itself create the exemption?

A: The letter found no law supporting that conclusion.

Q: Was the requester allowed to submit more authority?

A: Yes. The Board invited the specific legislation for further review.

Citations and references

  • The letter cited no numbered statute, regulation, or case.

Source

Original ruling text

505.0814

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION
(916) 323-7712
December 13, 1984

REDACTED TEXT

Dear REDACTED TEXT:
Your letter of November 1, 1984, has been referred to me for response. You state that you have received a newsletter statement to the effect that: "Effective August 3, 1984, all veterans service organizations chartered by Congress are exempt from State Sales Taxes on food and drink prepared for consumption on their premises." You then ask if and when such legislation was passed. We are unable, from the information provided, to determine which newsletter you have quoted. We have generally researched the question of whether there has been any recent legislation creating a sales tax exemption for veterans service organizations. We have found no federal or California law creating an exemption such as is described in the newsletter. If you locate the specific legislation mentioned in the newsletter and have further questions, please feel free to write this office. Sincerely,

James A. Davis
Tax Counsel
JAD:la

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