How were civil engineering, subcontracted land surveying, landscaping, and services connected with State projects taxed?

Note -- obsolete historical guidance. DRS marks this ruling "not current" and states that it was obsoleted by Announcement (AN) 94(3).

Plain-English summary

DRS said the requester's civil engineering services were not taxable as building engineering or building planning/design under the historical provision.

Land surveying received different treatment. When the civil engineering firm hired land surveyors for boundary-line and topographic surveys, the surveyor had to charge tax. The engineering firm could not issue a resale certificate because it consumed the surveys in providing its own services.

State projects created an exemption. Sales and services directly to Connecticut were exempt, and services connected with work for the State were also exempt. For an architect's State project, directly connected subcontractor services normally included engineering, land surveying, and landscaping.

What this means for you

The historical ruling distinguished the engineering firm's own service, its consumption of taxable surveys, and exempt work directly connected to State projects. AN 94(3) later obsoleted that framework.

Common questions

Were the civil engineering services taxable as building engineering? No under the ruling.

Could the engineer buy boundary surveys for resale? No, because it consumed the surveys.

Were State-project surveying services exempt? Yes when directly connected with the project.

Citations and references

• Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 12-407(2)(i)(F), 12-407(2)(i)(S), and 12-412(1).
• Conn. Agencies Regs. § 12-426-26(h).
• 1989 Conn. Pub. Acts 251.
• Announcement (AN) 94(3) -- identified by DRS as obsoleting this ruling.

Source

• Landing page: Connecticut DRS Rulings
• Ruling: Ruling 89-280

Original ruling text

Ruling 89-280, Land Surveyor

This information is not current and is being provided for reference purposes only

Ruling 89-280

Land Surveyor

This Ruling has been obsoleted by   AN 94(3)

As a civil engineering firm, the services rendered by your firm are not subject to the sales and use tax under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(F), as amended by Public Act No. 89-251, which taxes "building engineering and building planning or design services."

Landscaping services are subject to sales tax pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(2)(i)(S), as amended by Public Act No. 89-251. When land surveyors are employed as subcontractors by civil engineering firms to provide boundary line and topographic surveys, the land surveyor must charge sales tax. The civil engineering firm cannot buy land surveying services on a resale certificate, because it consumes those services in rendering its own services.

Sales of property and services directly to the State of Connecticut are exempt from sales and use tax pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-412(1). In addition, Conn. Agencies Regs. § 12-426-26(h) provides that:

services in connection with work done for . . . the State of Connecticut . . . are exempted from the tax.

Accordingly, subcontractors of architects for State projects whose services are directly connected with the project are exempt from the tax on those services. Those services would normally include engineering, land surveying and landscaping services.

LEGAL DIVISION

December 20, 1989