Ezel / Tax Rulings / CT
CT Ruling 91-5 Sales and Use Taxes 1991-02-11

Was hazardous-waste cleanup performed under a state environmental mandate considered 'voluntary' and excluded from Connecticut sales tax?

Short answer: No under this historical ruling. The exclusion in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(I) applied only when a company acted solely on its own initiative. Cleanup following a federal or state agency mandate or a court order was not voluntary, so the company owed sales tax on its Department of Environmental Protection closure plan. DRS marks the ruling not current and says it was superseded by SN 95(17).

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1991. Ezel answers yours, under current Connecticut tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1991
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 an official 1991 Connecticut Department of Revenue Services Ruling based on the facts and law then in effect. DRS expressly marks it 'not current' and says it was superseded by Special Notice (SN) 95(17); it was also cited by Ruling 92-15. It should be treated as historical guidance only, and current hazardous-waste-service rules must be confirmed. Connecticut imposes sales and use tax solely at the state level: there are no local or municipal sales taxes. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Connecticut tax professional about your specific situation.
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)

Note -- superseded historical guidance. DRS marks this ruling "not current" and says it was superseded by Special Notice (SN) 95(17). The summary explains the 1991 ruling; verify current law before relying on it.

Plain-English summary

A company undertook a hazardous-waste closure plan required by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection to stop groundwater pollution near its plant. It asked whether the cleanup was excluded from sales tax as a service for the "voluntary" containment or removal of hazardous waste under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(I).

DRS said no. Cleanup was voluntary only when the company acted solely on its own initiative. Work performed after a federal or state agency mandate or a court order did not qualify. The company therefore had to pay sales tax on the mandated closure-plan services.

What this means for you

The historical ruling drew a bright line between self-initiated cleanup and legally compelled remediation. But because DRS says SN 95(17) superseded the ruling, confirm the current statute and notice before applying that distinction.

Common questions

Was a DEP-mandated cleanup voluntary? No. The agency order made it compelled rather than self-initiated.

What did the company owe? Sales tax on the closure-plan services under the ruling's historical analysis.

Can this ruling be relied on today? No. DRS marks it not current and superseded by SN 95(17).

Citations and references

  • Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(I) -- historical voluntary hazardous-waste-service exclusion.
  • SN 95(17) -- identified by DRS as superseding the ruling.
  • Ruling 92-15 -- identified by DRS as citing this ruling.

Source

Original ruling text

Ruling 91-5, Hazardous Waste

This information is not current and is being provided for reference purposes only

Ruling 91-5

Hazardous Waste

This Ruling has been cited by   Ruling 92-15 ; superseded by   SN 95(17)

FACTS:

Company X is in the process of undertaking a "closure plan" as mandated by the Department of Environmental Protection in order to eliminate the pollution of the groundwater system adjacent to its plant. Section 12-407(2)(i)(I) of the General Statutes excludes from the sales and use tax "any such services rendered for the voluntary containing or removing of hazardous waste."

ISSUE:

Whether hazardous waste containment or removal services rendered in accordance with a mandate or order from the Department of Environmental Protection are considered to be "voluntary" with the meaning of Section 12-407(2)(i)(I)?

RULING:

In order to be excluded from sales and use tax as being "voluntary" within the language of Section 12-407(2)(i)(I), a company must act solely on its own initiative in the containment or removal of hazardous waste. The removal or containment of hazardous waste is not "voluntary" when performed following an order or mandate issued by a federal or state agency or by a court order. Thus, Company X must pay sales tax in undertaking the closure plan mandated by the Department of Environmental Protection.

LEGAL DIVISION

February 11, 1991

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