Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8612L0780A11 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1986-12-05

Did Texas give retailers time to convert cash registers to the January 1, 1987 sales-tax rate without penalties?

Short answer: Yes. A December amendment replaced the earlier no-grace answer and granted a five-day penalty-free conversion period from January 1 through January 5, 1987.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1986. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1986
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 combined record contains an October 31, 1986 letter denying a grace period and a December 5 amendment granting one for January 1–5, 1987; the later amendment controls within the record. It is historical transition guidance, not a current penalty waiver. Verify current rate-change, register, point-of-sale, collection, penalty, state, local, and MTA rules. STAR documents may no longer represent current policy even when not marked superseded. Identities are redacted. 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) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

Plain-English summary

The original October 31, 1986 letter said Texas could not give retailers a grace period for collecting the new rate on January 1, 1987.

The December 5 amendment changed that answer. Retailers received a five-day period, January 1 through January 5, 1987, to convert cash registers to the new rate without penalty.

What this means for you

The later amendment is the controlling statement in this combined record. It granted only a short, date-specific penalty accommodation for the 1987 transition.

Common questions

Did the original letter grant a grace period? No.

Did the amendment change the answer? Yes.

What dates were covered? January 1 through January 5, 1987.

What relief was granted? Conversion without penalty during that period.

Citations and references

  • The letters cited no numbered statute or Comptroller rule.

Source

Original ruling text

December 5, 1986

Dear ***:

I wish to amend my letter of October 31, 1986 and am enclosing a copy of
the letter for your reference.

We are going to give retailers a five day grace period to convert their
cash registers to the new tax rate without being penalized. As we discussed,
this period will be from January 1 through January 5, 1987.

Please feel free to contact us if you have additional questions. You may
write us, call 1-800-252-5555 toll free from anywhere in Texas, or
telephone 512/463-4600.

Sincerely,

Tax Policy
Tax Administration Division

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
STATE OF TEXAS
AUSTIN, 78774

October 31, 1986

Dear ***:

Thank you for your recent letter regarding the tax increase to take
effect January 1, 1987.

We cannot exempt your customers from collecting the new rate on January

  1. I understand that it will be difficult, especially for those who do a
    volume business and I apologize for the inconvenience. However, no grace
    period can be extended.

Please feel free to contact us if you have additional questions. You may
write us, call 1-800-252-5555 toll free from anywhere in Texas, or
telephone 512/463-4600.

Sincerely,

Tax Policy
Tax Administration Division

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