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Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8909L0960B06 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1989-09-19

Did keeping production rooms at Class 100 or better air quality make the janitorial service exempt as necessary to manufacturing?

Short answer: No. Cleaning rooms where production occurred was taxable because the janitorial service was performed on the physical facility, not directly on the manufactured product. Rule 3.300 supplied no exemption.

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This page answers the general question as of 1989. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1989
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 an official Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts letter published on the State Tax Automated Research (STAR) system. Letters on STAR can be the basis of a detrimental reliance claim only for the taxpayer to whom the letter was directly issued (see 34 Tex. Admin. Code Rules 3.1 and 3.10); documents on STAR may no longer represent current policy even if not marked superseded. Taxpayer-identifying details are redacted. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Texas tax professional about your specific situation.
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

A manufacturer bought janitorial services to maintain production rooms at Class 100 or better air quality.

The cleaning was taxable. It was performed on the rooms and physical facility rather than directly on the manufactured product, so Rule 3.300 provided no manufacturing exemption.

Common questions

Did the production-room air-quality requirement make cleaning exempt? No.

Why not? The service was performed on the facility, not directly on the manufactured product.

Citations and references

  • 34 Tex. Admin. Code Rule 3.300

Source

Original ruling text

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
STATE OF TEXAS
AUSTIN 78774

September 19, 1989

Dear **:

Thank you for your letter regarding the taxability of janitorial services
provided to maintain certain production areas at Class 100 or better air
quality.

Cleaning of rooms in which production activities take place is taxable.

The janitorial service provided is not performed directly on the product
manufactured. There is simply no exemption available under Rule 3.300.
(Copy enclosed).

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 our toll-
free number 1-800-252-5555. The regular number is 512/463-4600. You may
write me at Tax Correspondence, Comptroller of Public Accounts.

Sincerely,
Julie Pesl
Tax Correspondence

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