Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8709L0829F13 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1987-09-14

Did Railroad Commission regulation of an armored-car company's rates prevent Texas sales tax from applying to its customer charges?

Short answer: No. The total customer charge became taxable October 1, 1987, even though another government agency regulated the carrier's sales price.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1987. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1987
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 taxpayer-specific September 1987 Texas Comptroller letter about an armored-car company's regulated rates. It says the opinion may change if the facts differ. The body does not discuss the private-investigator licensing issue suggested by STAR's caption. Its October 1, 1987 effective date is historical; verify current taxability. STAR documents may no longer represent current policy even when not marked superseded.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 armored-car company's total customer charge became taxable October 1, 1987.

Railroad Commission regulation of the carrier's rates did not change how sales tax applied. The Comptroller said a sales price could be regulated by another government agency and still have sales tax added to it.

What this means for you

The historical letter treated rate regulation and sales-tax liability as separate issues. A government-prescribed price did not make the underlying taxable charge exempt.

Common questions

Was the total armored-car customer charge taxable? Yes, effective October 1, 1987.

Did Railroad Commission rate regulation change that result? No.

Did the body decide a private-investigator licensing question? No.

Citations and references

  • No statute or rule number is cited in the ruling text.

Source

Original ruling text

September 14, 1987

Dear **:

Thank you for your letter regarding the taxability of your client, an
armored
car company.

Effective October 1, 1987, the total charge to a customer will be
taxable.
The fact that the Railroad Commission has prescribed rates for carriers
does
not change the rate or manner in which sales tax is applied. The Sales
and
Use Tax Statutes impose a tax to be added on to the sales price of
taxable,
items. The "sales price" may be regulated by other governmental agencies
and
still have sales tax applied to it.

This opinion is based on the facts presented. If there are additional or
different facts, the opinion may change.

If you have any questions or need more information, please call me at
1-800-252-5555 toll free from anywhere in Texas. The regular number is
512/463-4600. You may write me at the Tax Policy Division.

Sincerely,

Julie Pesl
Tax Policy Division

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