State Tax Rulings
Free state tax letter rulings and advisory opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and the original source on every page.
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Could a partnership use a new corporation, five statutory mergers, and a liquidation to acquire assets for cash or notes without sales or use tax?
Each formal step was nontaxable separately, but California could collapse the series if its sole substantive motive was letting the partnership acquire five corporations' tangible property for cash…
How did California tax a satellite sold after reaching orbit and the parts used to build the satellite and its launch vehicle?
The in-orbit satellite sale was outside California, and its component parts escaped use tax if the builder only retained and removed it. Launch-vehicle parts were taxable because launch was…
Does a trucking company owe Texas sales tax on satellite-tracking data fees, fuel-card billing fees, or a work-injury medical services retainer, and how should it apportion its Interstate Motor Carrier (IMC) tax?
It depends on the charge. A California company's satellite-tracking/messaging fees are not subject to Texas sales tax if the transmissions don't originate in Texas (they are taxable if the…
Were asphalt pump-kettle units subject to Texas motor vehicle tax or limited sales tax?
Limited sales tax applied. Although local officials viewed the units as trailers, the Tax Administration Division found they were not designed and built to transport people or property on highways,…
At the end of a Nebraska incentive project, can a company sign a new agreement for the same activities and keep using its old credits?
Yes. Under Revenue Ruling 29-93-3, when a project's entitlement period ends, a taxpayer may enter a subsequent Employment and Investment Growth Act agreement covering the same activities as the…
Were post-July 1991 installments taxable when non-equity country-club initiation fees had been sold before July 1, 1991?
No. The transaction occurred when the membership was sold, so later installments on pre-July 1991 initiation fees remained exempt. The club had to refund tax collected in error before seeking a…
Do I have to charge Texas sales tax on drafting or CAD design services, like drawings and blueprints made from a client's specs?
Yes. Texas sales tax is due on drafting delineations and blueprints, including CAD drafting, when the draftsman works from specifications the customer supplies, and on any additional copies of the…
If I rent my Texas condo out short-term part of the year and use it as my residence the rest of the year, is repair and remodeling work on it taxable?
Yes. The Comptroller told this condo owner that because the unit was rented on a daily or weekly basis part of the year (taxable under the Hotel Occupancy Tax) and used residentially the rest of the…
Is a scale used to weigh cattle at a farm or ranch exempt from Texas sales tax as agricultural equipment?
It depends on installation: a free-standing scale used exclusively on a farm or ranch to weigh livestock can qualify for the Texas agricultural exemption as farm equipment, but a scale that becomes…
Does a repairman owe Texas sales/use tax on warranty forms and cards bought from an out-of-state retailer, or can the repairman use an exemption certificate instead?
Yes, tax is owed. A repairman must pay sales or use tax on warranty forms and cards because they are consumable supplies used to perform the repair, not parts transferred to the customer, and a…
Is a jewelry appraisal taxable in Texas?
It depends on why the appraisal is done. Under Rule 3.355(a)(2), an appraisal is a taxable 'insurance inspection' if it's done to get an insurance floater for replacement value or to support payment…
How did Florida sales tax apply to one disclosed agent simultaneously representing multiple sellers of taxable goods and exempt services?
The agent's own service compensation was exempt. Each principal's sale was classified separately, so one principal's exempt service was not tainted by another's taxable goods. A principal selling…
When was Florida sales tax due on burial merchandise promised under a cemetery company's cancelable preneed plan?
Not when the plan was signed. The agreement was executory because no actual or constructive delivery or title transfer occurred until it became at-need. Tax was due upon delivery at the rate then in…
Were dining-club dues and refundable initiation deposits taxable when membership included reciprocal access to a country club's golf course?
The monthly dues were taxable while the reciprocal agreement gave dining-club members country-club recreation access. The refundable deposits were not taxable because repayment was required, they…
Did South Carolina PLR 93-2 impose the historical accommodations tax on reserved recreational-vehicle parking at a raceway?
No. The separately sold RV spaces, which had electrical hookups but no water or sewer hookups, were not taxable accommodations because the raceway was not a campground.
Did South Carolina PLR 93-1 exempt printing inputs used to produce a free advertising shopper that was not a newspaper?
Mostly no. Because the shopper was distributed free and was not a newspaper, newsprint, ink, composing supplies, press plates, photo negatives, production electricity, and local telephone service…
Are an out-of-state software company's analysis, adaptation, training, and license fees taxable in Connecticut?
It splits. An out-of-state company sold a tool for developing custom software -- analyzing each customer's needs, adapting the program, licensing it, and offering maintenance and training. DRS held…
Is the gas a rental-equipment company uses for heating its repair area and for steam-cleaning returned machinery exempt from Texas sales tax as a processing/manufacturing use?
Partly. Gas used to heat the specific area where repairs on rental equipment are performed can be exempt as processing, but only for the time that area is actually used for repairs, and it must be…
Does a technician who installs, services, or repairs gas station pumps, tanks, and related equipment have to charge sales tax on the job?
It depends on whether the equipment is going into a brand-new station or an existing one. New construction: tax the materials/equipment only, not the labor. Work on existing stations (installation,…
Does Texas sales tax apply to the sale of a prescription drug discount card?
No. The Comptroller ruled that selling a 20% prescription discount card is the sale of an intangible and is not taxable in Texas. The seller instead owes Texas sales or use tax on its own cost of…
A nonresident alien partner in a New York law firm works entirely from the firm's London office and receives fixed annual 'guaranteed payments' under IRC section 707(c), on top of his distributive share of partnership income. Are those guaranteed payments taxable as New York source income, even though he performs no services in the United States?
It depends on federal tax treatment, and the Department did not decide that federal question. The Department held that if a guaranteed payment to a nonresident alien partner is not includible in the…
Did selling shares and investing in Florida bonds create Florida tax nexus for an out-of-state business-trust fund?
Not by themselves. The fund's stated activities did not create corporate-income-tax nexus, and Florida bonds alone did not do so, but nexus of the trust or another fund could create filing duties…
When were shares of an out-of-state business trust holding government obligations exempt from Florida intangible tax?
The shares were exempt to the extent determined by the fund's January 1 portfolio under Florida's stated allocation rules. The fund itself owed no tax because it had no Florida taxable situs.
Could employees discount publicly traded shares bought through a restricted stock-purchase plan for Florida intangible tax?
Yes. For the plan described, Florida allowed a total 40% discount from year-end closing price: 25% for lack of marketability and 15% for the shares' restricted availability.
How did Florida allocate intangible tax on a mortgage loan secured by both real and personal property?
Florida allocated 11.9% of the loan to real-property collateral subject to the 2-mill nonrecurring tax. The other 88.1% was exempt from annual tax because the lender lacked Florida domicile or…
Were rents taxable when related partnerships leased mortgaged real estate to commonly owned automobile-dealership corporations?
Yes. The mortgage-debt rule applied only between related corporations, so leases from partnerships to tenant corporations remained taxable even where parties shared liability on secured notes.
Was rent taxable when individual owners leased mortgaged Florida real estate to a corporation solely owned by one lessor?
Yes. The related-corporation mortgage-debt rule did not apply because the lease was between individuals and a corporation, not two related corporations. Rent equal to the mortgage payments remained…
Was a corporation's in-kind dividend of all division property to its sole shareholder a sale when the shareholder assumed the division's liabilities?
Yes. The April 2 memorandum treated the dividend as a sale because the sole shareholder assumed liabilities allocable to the division, providing consideration for all transferred assets. It…
Was a pager company the retailer or consumer when it sold pagers for about 25% of cost without requiring customers to subscribe to service?
Assuming the low standalone price was genuine, the company was the consumer under the cited below-50%-of-cost guidance, so tax was measured by its cost rather than the customer charge.
Did Florida's solid-mineral severance tax apply to a company's mined and processed clay sold for further processing?
No. On the described operation, Florida found no severance tax due because the processed clay was sold for further processing under the sales-and-use-tax provisions of Chapter 212.
Was a deed taxable when a partnership transferred pre-July 1986 land, free of debt, to current partners who had not contributed it?
No. Because the partnership acquired the land before July 1, 1986 and it was unencumbered, the deed was not taxable. Any mortgage balance, recorded or not, would have been taxable consideration.
Did extending a revolving promissory note's maturity date through an amended loan agreement trigger more Florida documentary stamp tax?
No, if the original obligor signed the amendment and it only extended maturity without increasing principal. The amendment was a renewal, but no additional documentary stamp tax was due.
Which of ten open-end loan forms did Florida treat as subject to documentary stamp tax?
The guarantor agreement and termination-of-joint-borrower form were taxable. The security agreement also became taxable if filed or recorded; the other submitted forms did not meet the stated requirements.
Were five open-end loan forms taxable written obligations under Florida's documentary stamp tax?
No. Although all but the unsigned addendum bore the borrower's signature, none contained a written promise to pay a sum certain, so none of the submitted forms was taxable.
Did a 1993 Florida ruling tax a quitclaim deed from an individual buyer to a family corporation formed after the purchase?
Yes, the ruling taxed the deed and Dade County surtax on fair market value because the corporation did not exist when the individual bought the property. The Department now marks this ruling obsolete.
When did Florida documentary stamp tax apply to occupancy documents for cooperative mobile-home units?
Tax applied when a document first granted a shareholder the right to occupy a cooperative unit, whether recorded or not. Properly taxed ownership did not incur tax again on later documents showing…
How much documentary stamp tax applied when an original trustee deeded two parcels without consideration to a substitute trustee of the same land trust?
Only the historical 70-cent minimum tax applied, whether the two parcels were transferred together or by separate deeds. The original and substitute trustees acted for the same land trust, and no…
Can a bakery that sells some food for immediate consumption and some for later consumption still give a gas/utility exemption certificate based on a utility study?
Yes, if the combination of the two uses still shows an overall exempt use. Multiply the percentage of gas used for production by the percentage of goods NOT sold for immediate consumption; if that…
Does Texas sales tax apply to charges for inspecting and testing a commercial fire alarm system?
No, not if the inspection/testing charge is separately stated. The Comptroller ruled that a commercial fire alarm system is an improvement to realty, so separately stated charges for inspecting and…
Is an advertising agency's charge for a video tape produced for advertising taxable, or is it an exempt advertising service?
It depends on the structure. Pure advertising concept work is an exempt service, but selling the video tape itself is a taxable sale of tangible personal property. If the client cannot buy the video…
Is a company's lease of mobile MRI tractor-trailer units exempt from New York sales tax under the heavy tractor-trailer exemption, or taxable because of the MRI machine inside?
Taxable. The tractor and trailer alone would qualify for the heavy-vehicle exemption, but the MRI machine is taxable medical equipment used to perform medical services for compensation — and because…
Does South Carolina's March 1993 policy citator PDF contain the promised status entries and exhibits?
No. The notice says a policy-document citator is attached, but the official three-page PDF ends after its definitions and cumulative-topic explanation. It contains no document-level status entries…
Does South Carolina's March 1993 policy index PDF contain the promised document entries?
No. The notice says a policy-document index is attached, but the current official two-page PDF stops after listing five major categories and contains no document-by-document entries.
Could concept-development, preliminary-art, and early copywriting charges be excluded before a client approved camera-ready art?
Early author services could be excluded if Regulation 1543(b)(4)'s approval, possession, contract, and record rules were met. 'Concept development' alone was too vague to prove tangible preliminary art.
Did approximately biweekly technology research notes and periodic analysis reports meet California's regular and stated interval requirements?
The facts were insufficient. A specific schedule disclosed to subscribers could qualify, but as-needed or information-accumulation releases could not; taxable reports could be allocated at fair…
When can California advertising charges labeled concept development, sketches, or copywriting be excluded from tax?
Specific preliminary-art labels could qualify if supported by tangible approval work and Regulation 1540 records; separately stated author services could be excluded when the client retained…
Are supervised physical-therapy and fitness services taxable as New York City gymnasium/health-salon services, or exempt because a licensed physiotherapist is involved?
Taxable in NYC unless the service is actually performed by a licensed professional. The facility's supervised training is a taxable New York City gymnasium/health-salon service; only services…
Could an advertising agency buy a photograph for resale when its customer agreement transferred title before the agency used it?
Yes, if the contract actually transferred title before use. The agency's purchase was for resale, and tax applied to its retail sale to the client.
Were a medical group's listed diagnostic slides, reagents, test kits, and blood-collection system exempt from Florida sales tax?
Yes. Florida exempted all listed A-1 through A-9 diagnostic slides and reagents as chemical compounds or test kits, and exempted the Vacutainer blood-collection system as needle and syringe components.
An out-of-state retailer ships goods into Texas that the purchaser will later export and use only outside Texas. Is Texas tax due on that shipment?
Use tax (not sales tax) is normally due when an out-of-state retailer ships an item into Texas, but the purchaser can give the retailer an exemption certificate claiming a temporary-storage…
Can a freight forwarder's bill of lading and receipt serve as proof of export for a Texas sales tax exemption, even if the buyer's name isn't on the bill of lading?
Yes. A copy of the bill of lading together with the freight forwarder's receipt showing the purchaser delivered the items is sufficient proof of export under Rule 3.323(c)(1)(D), and the consignee's…
ABC CO. imports equipment from out-of-state vendors to its Austin facility, tests or modifies it (sometimes loading software), and then re-exports it within 30 days to a foreign subsidiary — does that testing or modification count as a taxable 'use' in Texas that defeats the export exemption?
Yes. The Comptroller ruled that testing and/or modifying the equipment in Texas before export — even briefly, even within 30 days, and even where title later passes to a resale subsidiary before…
COMPANY B bought testing equipment from COMPANY A in Oregon, shipped it to Austin, and tested it for 4-5 days before exporting it to Singapore. Was that Texas testing a taxable 'use' even though the equipment was headed out of state?
Yes. The Comptroller ruled that COMPANY B's purchase from COMPANY A was taxable, because testing the equipment in Austin for 4-5 days to confirm it worked before exporting it to Singapore counted as…
Was a company's charge to install, maintain, and remove real-estate yard-sign arms a taxable rental of equipment?
No. Florida treated the arrangement as a nontaxable personal service because the realtor never received possession, control, or the right to use, service, alter, or remove the company's yard arms.
Did sales tax apply when a contest winner took cash instead of a prize car and never received title or possession of the vehicle?
No. With neither title nor possession passing to the winner, there was no vehicle gift or sale to reverse; the dealer's later retail sale of the car to another customer remained taxable.
Was an entire weekly periodical subscription exempt when 80 percent of copies were mailed but subsidiary employees delivered the remaining 20 percent?
No. Assuming periodical status, only the 80 percent delivered by mail qualified; delivery by employees of a wholly owned subsidiary was neither mail nor common-carrier delivery.
Was a wholesaler's sale of prescription-only TENS units and supplies to physicians exempt from Florida sales tax?
Not automatically. Sales to physicians were taxable unless a registered physician bought for resale and gave the wholesaler a proper resale certificate. A patient's prescription purchase was…
When did a sale occur for Florida tax when a seller mailed a purchase agreement and waited for the customer to sign and pay?
The sale occurred when the seller received the signed agreement and required partial or full payment, not when it mailed the blank form. Tax was computed on the full sales price at that time.
How could a proprietorship acquire a related corporation's heavy equipment and lease it back without creating inconsistent tax treatment?
Pay purchase-price tax on all equipment and leave rent nontaxable, or buy all for resale and tax rent; doing neither created mixed truck/nontruck treatment.
Was reprocessing a customer-supplied silicon 'test wafer' nontaxable repair or taxable fabrication?
Repair if the wafer had been used in testing or research and was restored for its original use; fabrication if it was merely tested and rejected as substandard.
How these rulings are useful
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