State Tax Rulings
Free state tax letter rulings and advisory opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and the original source on every page.
No rulings match these filters
Try fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.
Is a booting fee charged to remove a boot from an illegally parked car taxable as part of a taxable motor vehicle parking service?
Yes. The Comptroller ruled the parking violation (booting) fee is taxable because it is part of a taxable parking service -- booting a car parked in an illegal space in a garage constitutes an…
How did Texas source property sales, interest, rental-broker services, and railroad-car lease receipts under the former franchise tax?
Tangible-property sales were sourced where delivery occurred; interest followed the payor's legal domicile; lease-negotiation and car-rental management receipts followed where services were…
How did Texas compute tax when a lessor bought a vehicle, used a retired vehicle's value, and later re-leased the unit?
The lessor's vehicle purchase was taxable, but the lease payments were not. A lessor could reduce taxable value by a qualifying Texas-titled retired vehicle's fair market value without trading it to…
On a combined report, are a securities dealer's sales sourced to New York based on the selling activity of an affiliate in the same combined group?
Yes. On a combined report under Article 9-A the receipts factor is computed as though the corporations in the group were one corporation, with intercorporate receipts eliminated (20 NYCRR 4-1.2,…
Did a grantor-beneficiary have a taxable trust interest when the trust allowed reacquisition of principal by substituting other property?
Yes. The power to reacquire trust principal by substituting other property gave the grantor-beneficiary a taxable beneficial interest under the trust provisions reviewed by Florida. A Florida…
How could fuel moved from a Florida terminal by tank trailer and vessel to the Bahamas qualify for Florida export-tax refunds?
Florida rack tax had to be paid first because trailer movement to the vessel was not a bulk transfer. A licensed exporter could buy the fuel, pay the tax, and seek a refund with proof of Florida…
When can Nebraska tax a nonresident motor carrier employee who works in more than one state?
It cannot. A nonresident motor carrier employee (as defined by federal law) who regularly performs duties on a commercial motor vehicle in more than one state can be taxed only by their state of…
Which nonresident rail carrier employees are exempt from Nebraska income tax when they work in more than one state?
A nonresident rail employee who regularly works on the railroad across multiple states is taxed only by their home state. Under Revenue Ruling 22-96-1, compensation paid to rail carrier employees…
Does Nebraska sales tax apply to Internet or on-line service connection and access charges?
Access is never taxed; the initial connection is taxed only if it comes with software. Under Revenue Ruling 1-96-1 (sales and use tax), charges to end users for the initial connection to the…
Is graphic design artwork (camera-ready art) subject to Utah sales tax, and does it matter whether the designer also does the printing or bills the art separately?
Sales of artwork or printed material are taxable, including design services, whenever you're selling a final printed product or the artwork itself to a client. Who owes the tax depends on the…
Does Utah tax a nonresident partner's share of income from an investment partnership that itself invests in a Utah-based fund, the way New York, California, and North Carolina exempt this kind of investment-only income?
It depends on what the underlying investment is, not on where the investment partnership itself is located. Under Utah Code Ann. § 59-10-303, a nonresident partner is taxed on Utah-source…
Can a charitable foundation buy construction materials tax-free and donate them toward a university research building?
Only partially, and not the way the foundation proposed. The university does NOT get a tax exemption on materials it purchases for the building (it's a higher-education entity, not part of the K-12…
Did a supplier's name and logo on fundraising materials make a PTA the supplier's sales agent?
No, not by themselves. The PTA could still sell on its own account if the materials clearly showed that it solicited orders and collected customer payments in its own name.
Is a cable company's "Technical Access Fee" taxable, and should local sales tax on cable service be based on the provider's business location or the customer's service location?
Yes, the fee is taxable. The Comptroller ruled that a cable provider's "Technical Access Fee" is part of the taxable charge for cable television service under Section 151.007(a) of the Texas Tax…
Did pharmaceutical manufacturers owe Florida use tax when they gave free prescription-drug samples to practitioners and hospitals for patient treatment?
No. Florida did not impose use tax when permitted prescription-drug manufacturers and distributors gave properly labeled free samples to practitioners and hospitals for use in medical treatment. The…
Was a graphic designer's separately charged press-check service taxable when the client separately contracted with the printer?
No, under the stated assumptions. The press check was truly optional, and the designer only approved or rejected output without directing the printing process.
What documentation does a Texas seller need to prove a sale was shipped out of state and is exempt from Texas sales tax?
Shipping documents such as a bill of lading, federal express receipt, or postal receipt, together with an invoice showing an out-of-state shipping address, are acceptable proof of an exempt…
Was a one-year water-truck agreement a taxable Texas motor vehicle rental or a lease?
It was a lease, not a rental. The agreement ran for one year and did not require an earlier return, while the historical rental definition covered exclusive use for 180 days or less. The customer's…
Who owes sales/use tax on materials, equipment, and labor when a contractor builds a highway improvement for the tax-exempt State of Utah (UDOT)?
The contractor (or subcontractor) who last owns construction materials as tangible personal property before they're converted to real property is the taxable "end user" and owes sales or use tax on…
I run a cleaning business and never knew about New Mexico's gross receipts tax — can I get the penalty and interest refunded?
The protest was denied. Elke Foster ran a residential cleaning business as a sole proprietor and kept careful records, but didn't know New Mexico imposes a gross receipts tax on services. Her…
Could a no-profit shell subsidiary keep a separate seller's permit, and did vendor transportation charges enter its resale tax measure?
Counsel recommended revoking the subsidiary's permit because the submitted facts suggested no independent going concern and an apparent local-tax-redirection purpose; the source gives no revocation…
How is Texas sales tax applied to charges for designing, coding, and updating a web page for a client?
Taxable as a data processing service. The Comptroller ruled that web pages are electronic data and graphics rather than computer programs, so charges for designing, programming, and updating a web…
Can a commercial landlord avoid sales tax on trash removal, painting, maintenance, and water-leak repair charges just by billing them to the tenant as 'additional rent'?
It depends on the specific charge -- a landlord's overtime freight elevator service, overtime heating, and overtime air conditioning tower cleaning charges are treated as untaxed real property rent…
Did an irrevocable trust or its income beneficiary owe Florida intangible tax when trustees had to remain outside Florida and the beneficiary held only a limited appointment power?
No. An individual trustee could not reside in Florida, a corporate trustee could not qualify or do business there, and any trustee becoming taxable in Florida had to stop serving. The beneficiary's…
Did an irrevocable trust or its income beneficiary owe Florida intangible tax when trustees had to remain outside Florida and the beneficiary held only a limited appointment power?
No. An individual trustee could not reside in Florida, a corporate trustee could not qualify or do business there, and any trustee becoming taxable in Florida had to stop serving. The beneficiary's…
Did an irrevocable trust or its income beneficiary owe Florida intangible tax when trustees had to remain outside Florida and the beneficiary held only a limited appointment power?
No. An individual trustee could not reside in Florida, a corporate trustee could not qualify or do business there, and any trustee becoming taxable in Florida had to stop serving. The beneficiary's…
Were wood chips salvaged after natural, accidental, or arson-caused forest fires exempt waste by-products like chips from planned burns?
Yes. California found no material difference between planned and unplanned burns because forest management includes both prevention work and responses to fire. The retailer did not itself need to…
Did California violate the bankruptcy automatic stay by recording an FAA lien against an aircraft registered to a different name but owned by the debtor?
Yes. Staff said the lien attached to bankruptcy-estate property despite the misleading registration, so the payment was illegally collected and should be refunded.
Does a mobile home skirting/door/window installer owe sales tax on the charge to the dealer, or on the materials, when installing skirting on mobile homes treated as real property?
It depends on how you bill. For sales tax purposes a mobile home is treated as real property, so you can use either a lump-sum contract (you pay tax on materials, and your lump-sum charge to the…
When a caterer or event planner rents out a facility with recreational amenities and provides food, is the facility rental charge taxable as an amusement-service admission?
Yes, in most cases. Because the taxpayer's facility included a swimming pool, volleyball court, horse riding trails, baseball fields, and fishing area, the Comptroller ruled the facility rental…
If an out-of-state company builds and runs a client retailer's website and collects payment on the retailer's behalf, is the website operator responsible for collecting and remitting Utah sales tax, and does it create its own Utah nexus?
The website operator must collect sales tax on behalf of any client retailer that has Utah nexus, but whether the operator itself must also report and remit the tax (versus just collecting and…
Did a corporate officer's criminal restitution order replace or suspend California's civil tax claim against the corporation?
No. The restitution order did not alter the corporation's civil liability; payments credited its 1991 balance, but California could continue administrative review and corporate collection.
Were charges for scanning and processing customer documents taxable when the results were returned on separately billed CDs?
The information-processing and related pickup and delivery were nontaxable, but the separately billed CDs were taxable retail sales.
How did an accounting-year and S-election change affect the 1997 former Texas report, and where were export commissions sourced?
Taxable capital used the December 31, 1996 financial condition and calendar-year receipts. Earned surplus combined February 1, 1995 through December 31, 1996, including short federal periods before…
Is every overage in a fast-food retailer's sales-tax accrual account excess tax reimbursement that must be returned or paid to California?
No. Correct chart-based rounding can create an account overage without excess reimbursement, but an auditor may investigate and the retailer must rebut an excess finding.
How did changing a corporation's year-end from July 31 to January 31 affect its 1997 and 1998 former Texas franchise tax reports?
The change created no additional filing requirement. The 1997 report used December 31, 1996 for taxable capital, the August 1, 1995-July 31, 1996 period for earned surplus, and the 1998 report used…
When a city raises its local sales tax rate mid-project, does a construction contract signed before the increase still shield materials and subcontracts from the higher rate?
Yes, if the requirements are met. The Comptroller ruled that a written construction contract signed before a city's local sales tax rate increase takes effect can exempt the general contractor's…
As of late 1996, did a Utah retailer have to charge state sales tax on prepaid telephone calling cards at the point of sale?
As of this 1996 ruling, prepaid telephone calling cards were NOT subject to Utah sales tax at the point of sale, continuing a position the Commission had taken the prior year while it worked on an…
Which office facilities-management functions — copying, mailroom, courier, data entry, reception, and more — are taxable under Utah sales tax?
It varies by function. Taxable: copy center charges, unmanned "convenience copier" rentals, forms/printing services, and any equipment sold or rented to the client. Not taxable: mailroom services,…
Is renting out space to others a tax-exempt real-property lease, or a taxable license to use my property?
Mixed result: the rental receipts were taxable, but the penalty was abated. Quantum Corporation remodeled buildings into bingo halls and rented them to non-profit bingo operators for short…
Were an independent artist's detailed jewelry drawings and lost-wax models taxable when sold to jewelers?
Yes. The jewelers' true objects were the physical drawings and wax models, so the artist made taxable retail sales and needed a seller's permit.
Were detailed jewelry-design drawings and lost-wax models taxable property when an independent artist sold them to jewelers?
Yes. The true object was the physical drawing or wax model, so the full charge was taxable without deducting labor, skill, design time, or other production costs.
Is electricity and gas used in an electroplating and precision-grinding business exempt from Texas sales tax, or does it matter whether the work is processing new parts versus repairing/regrinding existing ones?
It depends on what the power is used for. Gas and electricity used to chrome and grind parts as a sub-processor for original part manufacturers is exempt as processing personal property for sale,…
When is help provided by a temporary help service exempt from Texas sales tax as a 'temporary employee,' even if the assignment lasts an extended period?
There is no fixed time limit that turns a 'temporary' worker into a taxable service. The Comptroller applies a three-part test under Tax Code 151.057: the help must supplement the customer's…
Is a farm or ranch scale exempt from Texas sales tax, and does it matter whether the scale is free-standing or built into the ground or a building?
It depends on whether the scale stays tangible personal property or becomes part of the real property. A free-standing scale used exclusively on a farm or ranch in producing or marketing…
Does Texas sales tax apply to a floral order that a Texas florist takes over the internet from an international customer, if the flowers are delivered outside the U.S. by an unrelated florist?
Yes, taxable. The Comptroller ruled that charges for floral orders taken in Texas over a web site are subject to Texas sales tax, even when the flowers are delivered outside the state or outside the…
If the person who created a trust was a New York domiciliary when the trust became irrevocable, but every trustee later becomes domiciled outside New York and the trust's assets and income have no New York connection, does the trust still owe New York income tax?
The trust is still technically a New York 'resident trust' under Tax Law § 605(b)(3)(C), because that status is fixed permanently by the grantor's domicile at the time the property was transferred…
Were receivables sold before January 1 by a Florida parent to an independent Colorado subsidiary taxable when the parent continued routine servicing?
No. The Colorado subsidiary owned, managed, and controlled the receivables on January 1, had no Florida business or people, and operated independently. The Florida parent's listed servicing duties…
Were sales of utility poles subject to Tennessee sales tax before the poles were erected or installed?
No. The statute excluded utility poles from tangible personal property and deemed them real property. The ruling followed a Tennessee Court of Appeals decision holding that a pole did not need to be…
Was a lipstick given for returning six valueless makeup containers a nontaxable premium tied to the customers' earlier purchases?
No. Because customers had no contract right to the lipstick and the company could cancel the program, the lipstick was a gift; the company owed use tax on its cost and could not deduct its retail value.
I'm buying vacant land for $550,000 and, on the same day, separately contracting with the same builder to construct a $1,000,000 custom home on that land -- together the deal is worth $1.55 million, well over the mansion tax's $1 million threshold. But the land purchase contract and the building contract are expressly written as separate, divisible agreements with no cross-default provisions, and only the vacant land (not a finished or partially-built house) will actually be conveyed to me. Do I owe the 1% mansion tax on this land purchase?
No mansion tax -- only unimproved vacant land was actually conveyed. Petitioner, Mitchel H. Engel, entered into two separate contracts with Thomas Wright Development Corp. on the same day: a…
New York State condemned part of my land for a highway project and paid me an advance payment, with more expected after settlement or trial. Part of that money compensates me for damage to the LAND I'M KEEPING, not the part that was taken. Does that severance-damage portion count as taxable consideration under New York's Real Property Transfer Gains Tax?
No -- severance damages don't count as taxable consideration, to the extent the property owner can prove that's what the payment represents. Stefco Realty Corp. owned about 70,567 square feet of…
Were rentals of manufactured signs taxed on rent, while leases of pole signs embedded in real property were not?
Yes. Removable manufactured building signs had rent tax; embedded freestanding signs were realty leases taxed through construction inputs.
What proof did a California resident need to show that an Oregon-bought motorhome was used outside California before entry?
Declarations and odometer readings alone likely were insufficient. The buyer needed credible trip, purchase, service, park, phone, or similar records showing out-of-state use.
How did California tax sales, repairs, leases, and advertising involving building signs and freestanding monument signs?
Treatment depended on classification and billing: building signs were fixtures, monument signs were structures, and repair parts changed with lump-sum versus separate billing.
If Utah exempts health insurance premiums from its own premium tax, does a foreign insurer still have to include health premium taxes imposed by its home state in Utah's retaliatory tax calculation?
Yes, it must be included. Even though Utah exempts health insurance premiums from its own direct premium tax under section 59-9-101(5), that exemption doesn't carry over to the separate retaliatory…
What certificate wording can apartment complexes and multifamily property managers use to claim the residential exemption on electricity purchased from utility companies?
Yes, with the right wording. The Comptroller approved two proposed certificate wordings utility companies could accept from customers: one for apartment complexes where 100% of a meter's electricity…
Are industrial back/lumbar support belts sold as braces exempt from Texas sales tax?
Yes. The Comptroller ruled that the listed industrial back support belts/harnesses qualify for exemption as a brace under Texas Tax Code SEC. 151.313(a)(4) and Rule 3.284(a)(1) and (c)(1). Because…
Is Texas sales tax owed on claims processing services performed for the Texas Public Entity Excess Insurance Pool?
No. The Comptroller ruled that claims processing services performed for the Texas Public Entity Excess Insurance Pool, or for an administrator hired by the Pool, are not taxable — because the Pool…
If I rent out a 'grip package' (electrical production equipment plus a 5-ton truck and driver) for one price, do I owe motor vehicle rental tax on the truck, and can I buy the equipment tax free for resale?
Pay motor vehicle tax when you buy the truck, and don't collect motor vehicle rental tax when you rent out the grip package, because you're renting production equipment with transportation, not…
How these rulings are useful
- See how the rule applies: A letter ruling shows how a state revenue department actually applied the tax law to a specific business and set of facts.
- Plan with confidence: Find a ruling with facts close to yours before you charge, remit, or claim an exemption.
- Binding only on the requester: A ruling is binding on the department only for the taxpayer who asked. It is persuasive, not a substitute for your own ruling or professional advice.
- Research across states: Compare how different states treat the same issue, from SaaS and food exemptions to nexus and contractor purchases.