Is renting a large locked wire-mesh storage cage in a condo basement a taxable 'locker rental,' or a nontaxable rental of space, in Connecticut?

Plain-English summary

A condominium association rented 30 locked walk-in storage cages in its basement to unit owners for an extra charge. Each cage was 6 feet by 7 feet (over 40 square feet), built of wooden framing and steel mesh wire. Renters got keys, but the basement itself was locked and could be entered only during business hours by asking management to unlock it. The association asked: is that charge a taxable "locker rental," or a nontaxable rental of space?

Connecticut taxes miscellaneous personal services listed in SIC industry group 729 (1987 edition) under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(FF), and locker rental (with the exception of cold storage) is one of those taxable services (per SN 91(4)). So the whole question was whether these cages are "lockers."

DRS said they are not. Reading "locker" by its commonly approved usage (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 1-1(a)) — an enclosure that can be locked, especially in a public place for safekeeping — DRS pointed to what people actually call lockers: the compartments at gyms, health clubs, country clubs, and transit stations. Those are much smaller, enclosed by solid or vented walls and doors, and are essentially self-contained items of tangible personal property (freestanding or wall-mounted). The association's cages, by contrast, are large enclosed areas of floor space (over 40 square feet) surrounded only by wire mesh. Given their size and construction, they aren't "lockers." Renting them is therefore a nontaxable rental of space, not a taxable locker rental.

What this means for you

Condo/HOA associations and landlords renting storage

If you rent room-sized storage — walk-in cages or enclosed floor areas measured in square feet, framed and screened with mesh — that's likely a nontaxable rental of space in Connecticut, not a taxable locker rental. The extra charge to unit owners here wasn't taxable.

Self-storage and locker operators — size and construction decide

The taxable "locker rental" category targets the small, self-contained locker (gym/transit style: solid or vented walls, a door, essentially a movable item). The bigger and more room-like the unit — walk-in, wire-mesh, tens of square feet — the more it looks like nontaxable space. Where your units fall on that spectrum drives the tax answer.

Cold storage is treated separately

Even within taxable locker rental, cold storage is carved out. If your storage involves refrigeration, don't assume the general locker-rental rule applies.

Don't over-read this to all storage charges

This is a fact-specific result about large mesh cages. A different mix of size, walls, and access could tip a unit into taxable "locker" territory. Match your actual units against the size/construction factors DRS used.

Common questions

Q: Is renting a storage cage or unit taxable in Connecticut?
A: It depends on whether it's a "locker." A small, self-contained locker (solid/vented walls and door) is taxable locker rental; a large walk-in wire-mesh cage of many square feet is a nontaxable rental of space, as DRS held here.

Q: What makes something a taxable "locker"?
A: DRS looked to common usage — the gym/health-club/transit-station type: much smaller, enclosed by solid or vented walls and a door, essentially a self-contained item of tangible personal property. These 6x7-ft mesh cages didn't fit that picture.

Q: Does the size really matter that much?
A: Yes. DRS emphasized that these units were over 40 square feet and surrounded only by wire mesh. Size and construction were the deciding factors.

Q: Is cold storage taxable?
A: Cold storage is specifically excepted from the taxable "locker rental" category. Refrigerated storage is treated differently from ordinary lockers.

Citations and references

Statutes and guidance:

• Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(FF) (miscellaneous personal services in SIC industry group 729, 1987 edition, enumerated as taxable)
• Conn. Gen. Stat. § 1-1(a) (statutes construed according to commonly approved usage)
• SN 91(4) (locker rental — except cold storage — is a taxable miscellaneous personal service)

Source

• Landing page: Connecticut DRS Rulings
• Ruling: Ruling 95-4

Original ruling text

Ruling 95-4, Sales and Use Taxes / Miscellaneous Personal Services / Locked Storage Rental Space

FACTS:

A condominium association (hereinafter, the "Association") offers the rental of thirty locked walk-in cages in the basement of its building to its unit owners for an additional charge. These cages are constructed out of wooden frames and steel mesh wire partitions. The measurement of each cage is six feet by seven feet. Renters are issued keys to their respective cages; however, the basement where the cages are located is locked, and renters of the locked storage cages may gain access to them only during business hours by requesting that a member of management unlock the basement area.

ISSUE:

Whether the rental of locked storage cages measuring six feet by seven feet and constructed of wooden framing and steel mesh wire constitutes the rental of space not subject to sales and use taxes or locker rentals subject to sales and use taxes as a miscellaneous personal service under Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-407(2)(i)(FF).

DISCUSSION:

Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-407(2)(i)(FF) makes taxable miscellaneous personal services included in industry group 729 in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, United States Office of Management and Budget, 1987 edition ...

The service of locker rental, with the exception of cold storage, is included among such miscellaneous personal services. See SN 91(4) . Thus, whether the rental of storage space in the basement of the Association's building is taxable under Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-407(2)(i)(FF) depends upon whether such storage space constitutes "lockers."

The word "locker" is defined as "an enclosure that can be locked, especially one at a public place for the safekeeping of items." Webster's II New Riverside University Dictionary, 1984, p. 701.

The dictionary definition of locker does not include a limitation as to size. However, compartments which are commonly identified as lockers, such as locked compartments commonly found in gymnasiums, health clubs, private country clubs, public transit stations, and similar places, are generally much smaller in size than the locked storage cages which the Association rents and are generally enclosed by solid, or vented, walls and doors. They are essentially self-contained items of tangible personal property either freestanding, or affixed to walls. The storage areas which the Association rents are relatively large enclosed areas of floor space (over 40 square feet) surrounded only by wire mesh. Considering their size and the materials of which the storage areas are constructed, it is reasonable to conclude that they are not "lockers," if the word is construed, as it must be here, "according to the commonly approved usage of the language"; Conn. Gen. Stat. §1-1(a).

RULING:

The rental of locked storage cages measuring six feet by seven feet and constructed of wooden frames and steel mesh wire, constitutes a nontaxable rental of space and not locker rentals subject to sales and use taxes imposed by Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-407(2)(i)(FF).

LEGAL DIVISION

February 7, 1995