Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8709L0843F14 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1987-09-28

Was turf-irrigation installation treated as landscaping, and what happened when it was part of a landscaping job?

Short answer: Installation was excluded from landscaping, but its charge had to be separately stated when included in a landscaping job or the entire charge was taxable.

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 response about turf-irrigation installation and landscaping. It left unresolved whether and when irrigation installation would become taxable under the January 1, 1988 repair-and-remodeling provision. Its classifications are historical; verify current law. This genuine response lacked the boilerplate used by the automated Texas content filter and was manually rescued from STAR. STAR documents may no longer represent current policy even when not marked superseded.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 Comptroller agreed that installing turf-irrigation systems was not landscaping and said the rule would exclude construction items from landscaping.

If irrigation was installed as part of a landscaping job, its charge had to be broken out or the entire charge would be taxable. The agency had not yet decided when or whether irrigation installation would be taxable under the real-property repair-and-remodeling provision effective January 1, 1988.

What this means for you

The historical answer separated irrigation construction from landscaping but made separate billing important when both were sold together. It did not resolve the upcoming repair-and-remodeling treatment.

Common questions

Was turf-irrigation installation landscaping? No.

What if it was part of a landscaping job? Its charge had to be separately stated or the entire charge was taxable.

Did the letter decide the January 1, 1988 treatment? No.

Citations and references

  • Attorney General Request RQ-1229 — referenced as asking whether turf-irrigation installation required sales-tax collection.

Source

Original ruling text

Bob Bullock
Comptroller of Public Accounts
Austin, Texas 78774

September 28, 1987

Dear *:

On August 11, 1987, you asked the Attorney General in RQ-1229 if sales
tax had to be collected on the installation of turf irrigation systems.

You were of the opinion the installation of irrigation systems did not
constitute landscaping.

We have reached the same conclusion, and our rule will reflect this in
that we exclude construction items from landscaping.

However, if an irrigation system is installed as part of a landscaping
job, the charges for the irrigation system must be broken out of the
bill for landscaping or the entire charge will be taxable.

January 1, 1988, repair and remodeling of real property becomes
taxable. We have not yet decided when or if the installation of turf
irrigation systems will be taxable under this provision.

Sincerely,
Wade Anderson
Executive Counsel

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