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 a different search term or clear the filters.
Which installed home-improvement sales had to be treated as contractor real-property work, and could Virginia credit use tax paid to the first receiving state?
Virginia removed many installed items because the retailer acted as a consuming contractor rather than making installed retail sales under the law then applicable. It also allowed a possible credit fo…
Could Virginia estimate a restaurant's sales from income-tax returns when audit-period register records were missing, and did first-audit penalty apply?
Yes. Because the restaurant did not preserve or provide audit-period sales journals and register reports, Virginia used the difference between sales-tax and income-tax return sales and extrapolated it…
Could Virginia project a grocery store's three-year sales from a two-day observation, and did the 50% fraud penalty apply?
Yes. With no supporting records, Virginia reasonably used one low-sales day and one high-sales day chosen with the store to project food, nonfood, and phone-card sales across the audit period. Unsuppo…
How do Kansas retailers report July 2015 sales when they lawfully charged both the 6.15% and 6.5% state rates?
Kansas Notice 15-03 (June 30, 2015) is the companion to Notice 15-02 and explains a rate-increase adjustment that certain retailers claim on their July 2015 sales and use tax return so they do not pay…
Were Santa Fe Tow and Emergency Lock & Key acting as AAA's disclosed agents when AAA paid them fixed rates for roadside services to its members?
No. AAA imposed extensive branding, dispatch, background-check, and service-quality requirements, but written contracts expressly called the businesses independent contractors, denied agency, and gave…
Could Harold's Grading preserve an assessment protest postmarked one day after the 90-day deadline because a Department employee initially said “yes” to a January 31 date?
No. The Department served the October 30, 2014 assessment on October 31, making January 29, 2015 the 90th day. Harold's protest was postmarked January 30 and was one day late, depriving the Department…
Is Nebraska Revenue Ruling 22-13-1 (Tax Guidance for Individuals in a Same-Sex Marriage) still in effect?
No -- it has been rescinded. Revenue Ruling 22-15-1 (individual income tax), issued June 29, 2015, formally rescinds Revenue Ruling 22-13-1, 'Tax Guidance for Individuals in a Same-Sex Marriage' (issu…
What gold, silver, and platinum bullion sales qualified for Virginia's exemption under Tax Bulletin 15-6?
Under the 2015 bulletin, a transaction over $1,000 was exempt only for refined bullion containing at least 90% gold, silver, or platinum whose value depended on metal mass and purity and did not excee…
Could an Illinois retailer advertise sales as tax-free, omit tax from receipts, and pay the sales tax itself?
No. The retailer had to collect Use Tax from customers by adding it to the selling price. Advertising that sales were tax-free or that the retailer would absorb the tax violated the Use Tax Act and wa…
Were graduation caps and gowns sold or rented directly to students tax-exempt because their schools were exempt organizations?
No exemption applied to sales made directly to students merely because they attended exempt schools; the exempt organization itself had to buy directly using a valid E-number. True cap-and-gown leases…
How long did South Carolina Revenue Ruling 15-6 say a Department of Revenue tax lien remained enforceable?
A Department of Revenue tax lien expired ten years after it was filed with a clerk of court or register of deeds. At expiration, the lien was no longer enforceable in any manner and ceased to encumber…
Who became liable for Virginia's Forest Products Tax under Tax Bulletin 15-5, and what records and filings were required?
Effective July 1, 2015, the bulletin generally placed the tax on the first fixed-place manufacturer that processed, used, consumed, or stored Virginia forest products for out-of-state sale. If no manu…
Could a nonresident Electing Small Business Trust claim Virginia credit for California ESBT income tax and the California Mental Health Services Tax?
Yes. California's separately computed ESBT tax was still a broad-based fiduciary net income tax, and the 1% Mental Health Services Tax on income over $1 million also qualified. The credit had to refle…
Could a nonresident keep Virginia itemized deductions when supporting records were unavailable and a tax preparer had prepared the return?
No. The taxpayer did not substantiate the itemized deductions after repeated requests, could not show that a claimed package had been received, and said records were lost, destroyed, or unavailable. V…
Was an all-terrain vehicle exempt from Virginia use tax when used to spray pastures, haul cattle feed, herd cattle, and move farm equipment?
Yes. The ATV qualified for Virginia's agricultural exemption because it was used in cattle and pasture operations, including spraying herbicides, hauling minerals and feed, herding and inspecting catt…
Did Virginia reopen a mail audit for more invoices when a retailer repeatedly failed to document claimed exemptions, tax payments, labor charges, and extrapolation errors?
No. The retailer had already received repeated requests and an extra year to provide records, yet still could not document its claimed exemptions, tax payments, duplicate items, labor charges, or extr…
Were optional bed-making and midweek housekeeping charges taxable when added to invoices for short-term Virginia accommodations?
Yes. Even though guests chose the services, they were separately charged, and the manager passed the money to a third party, bed making and midweek housekeeping were directly connected to the rented a…
How did Illinois distinguish a taxable conditional sale from a true lease of equipment?
A nominal purchase option or guaranteed sale generally made the arrangement a conditional sale, so all lessor receipts were taxable. A true lease generally had no buyout, or only a fair-market-value o…
How did Illinois sales-tax credit rules apply when a defective boat was replaced through a lawsuit settlement?
The result depended on structure. If the dealer refunded the first boat's price and tax and the customer bought a second boat, whoever paid the first tax to IDOR could seek credit or refund. If the fi…
Is a prescription cancer-treatment device that uses electric fields exempt from Connecticut sales and use tax?
Yes. Gross receipts from the retail sale of the Product — an FDA-approved, prescription-only device that uses alternating electric fields to treat glioblastoma (an aggressive brain cancer) — are exemp…
Did a taxpayer's unsupported claim of another-state residence justify changing Virginia's 2011 income-tax assessment?
No. The taxpayer used a Virginia address on the federal return, had filed Virginia returns before 2011 and again for 2012 and 2013, and supplied no objective evidence of the claimed other-state domici…
Did an overseas job transfer end a couple's Virginia domicile when they kept a Virginia home, vehicles, licenses, and obtained a Virginia divorce?
No. The couple had established Virginia domicile in 2010 and retained a Virginia home, vehicles, licenses, and the wife's presence while the husband worked abroad. A Virginia divorce order also recite…
Could a military member satisfy Virginia's extended-active-duty subtraction when the 90-day period crossed two tax years?
Yes. Virginia said the extended-active-duty period could exceed 90 consecutive days across two tax years; it did not have to exceed 90 days within 2011 alone. But only qualifying basic pay included in…
Did the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act toll Virginia's deadline for a military member's 2007-2008 withholding refund claims?
No. The servicemember filed Forms 763-S in September 2013, after the Virginia refund deadlines for 2007 and 2008. The cited Servicemembers Civil Relief Act provisions deferred collection and tolled co…
Could a bakery receive audit credit for claiming it collected the reduced food rate but mistakenly remitted the general sales-tax rate?
No. Virginia agreed the bakery products qualified for the reduced food rate, but the bakery could not prove it had collected that lower rate while mistakenly remitting the general rate. Summary report…
What process did a Virginia city have to follow to qualify for, track, and receive sales-tax revenue from a proposed arena?
The city first had to execute a qualifying lease, issue bonds, or enter a facility contract and obtain a Tax Commissioner ruling. Contractors then had to register for special use-tax treatment, and th…
Did a second conservation deed create a new easement, or merely reform the original deed so the corrected Land Preservation Tax Credit application could proceed?
It merely reformed the original deed. The second deed reaffirmed the original gift, reasserted its restrictions, and cured defects rather than making a new donation. The appraisal correctly valued the…
What Virginia state and local tax legislation did the Department summarize from the 2015 General Assembly session?
The Department's informational guide summarized 2015 enacted changes to taxes it administers and local taxes on which it assists, including general administration, income tax, sales and use tax, tobac…
How does the July 1, 2015 increase in the Kansas sales and use tax rate to 6.5% apply to sales, leases, services, and contracts?
Kansas Notice 15-02 (June 22, 2015) explains that the Kansas state sales and use tax rate increased from 6.15% to 6.5% on July 1, 2015, and sets out transition rules determining which rate applies to …
Did a Multistate Tax Commission certificate protect Caleb Dutton's New Mexico diesel-repair receipts when the buyer resold the services and parts?
No. Dutton timely accepted the multistate certificate in good faith after asking Oasis for New Mexico tax documents, but New Mexico recognized MTC certificates as NTTCs only for sales of tangible pers…
Could a seller use one Illinois ST-587 or resale certificate for repeated manufacturing-equipment purchases?
Yes, in limited circumstances. A sufficiently specific ST-587 could cover multiple purchases fulfilling one contractor-manufacturer contract or repeated repair-part purchases for identified equipment.…
What did Illinois's 2015 rules require of an online textbook retailer with employees in Illinois?
Its Illinois salesperson and account manager appeared to require registration and Use Tax collection, though IDOR lacked facts to decide Retailers' Occupation and local tax. Under the 2015 Internet-sa…
Are walk-in tubs, in-home wheelchair lifts, and modular ramps exempt from Georgia sales tax as medical or mobility equipment?
Prescribed in-home wheelchair lifts and modular ramps were exempt as mobility-enhancing equipment. Walk-in tubs were taxable even with medical features because installation made them real-property fix…
Did Illinois Telecommunications Excise Tax apply to bandwidth an Internet provider bought to supply Internet access?
To the extent the provider bought and supplied the bandwidth so customers could connect to the Internet or access online content and services, the 2015 letter treated it as Internet access covered by …
Did an out-of-state CPAP seller using an Illinois drop shipper have to collect Illinois tax from Illinois customers?
IDOR did not decide because the seller provided too little information. It identified the standard drop-shipment rules and resale-certificate requirements, describing a typical transaction as an out-o…
How did Illinois tax materials bought by construction contractors for permanent incorporation into real estate?
Contractors were the end users and owed Use Tax on material cost, generally paying suppliers and not issuing resale certificates. Customers owed no Use Tax, and any pass-through could be labeled reimb…
Could a leased soybean seed-treatment system qualify for Illinois's farm machinery exemption?
Potentially, but IDOR lacked enough facts to rule on this system. Machinery bought for lease qualified when the lessee used it primarily in production agriculture and the purchaser-lessor certified th…
Could an affiliated group stop filing consolidated Florida returns after substantial growth and changes in business focus?
Yes. The group's changed business focus, divestitures, spin-off, and operational growth established good cause to stop consolidated filing, subject to four stated conditions.
Were software training, consulting, and conversion services taxable when the software package included a mailed DVD?
Yes. Although some software was electronically conveyed, the same contract delivered additional software on a DVD and contemplated tangible delivery. That made the package a taxable retail sale. Becau…
Which fiber-optics manufacturing and research purchases qualified for Virginia sales-and-use-tax exemptions?
Virginia exempted stainless-steel scissors used during molten-glass production and a specially modified production socket. It taxed cleaning equipment, supports, storage, setup tools, timers, contamin…
Could Virginia refund special use tax paid on construction equipment more than three years before the refund request?
No. Although Virginia had authorized refunds for March 2011-September 2013 after determining the out-of-state contractor did not owe the special use tax, an April 2014 request could not reach payments…
Could a sign manufacturer prove that invoice charges labeled 'Ship/Handling' were actually exempt shipping rather than taxable handling?
Yes for this audit. Carrier invoices matched the amounts billed to customers and proved that the combined label represented shipping only, so Virginia removed the assessments and directed refunds or a…
Are separately billed hotel parking charges subject to Virginia sales tax when the customer also buys accommodations?
Yes. Parking sold to a customer who also purchased hotel accommodations was an additional charge connected with the room and was taxable, even when billed outside the room revenue. Parking sold by its…
Must an online marketplace collect Georgia sales tax when independent chefs prepare meals at customers' homes and the marketplace takes a service fee?
Yes. The marketplace advertised meal options and prices, scheduled orders, billed customers, collected their payments, and hired chefs to prepare the food. Georgia treated it as a dealer making taxabl…
Was a company's March 17, 2015 Form QBA timely for equity issued near the end of its 2014 calendar year?
Yes. Because the calendar-year company issued equity within three months of the end of 2014, its Form QBA deadline was April 1, 2015 under the regulatory exception. Department records showed a March 1…
Was a company's 2014 Form QBA timely when its certified-mail receipt said December 31 but the Department's envelope was postmarked January 2?
No. The Department's original envelope and application showed that the Form QBA was sent by first-class mail with a January 2, 2015 postmark. The company did not show that the special extension for la…
When may South Carolina require or allow alternative apportionment, including combined unitary reporting?
The Department could require, or a taxpayer could request, a reasonable alternative method when the statutory separate-entity formula did not fairly represent the taxpayer's South Carolina business ac…
Was a portable lighting tower using solar panels and batteries exempt as a Florida solar energy system?
No. The portable tower was a lighting system that used solar and electric components, not an exempt solar energy system. Qualifying solar modules, inverters, and charge controllers were exempt compone…
A company takes online orders and uses its own drivers to deliver goods to Tennessee customers on behalf of disclosed third-party vendors, collecting the sales tax and remitting it to the vendors. Must the company itself collect and remit Tennessee sales tax on those sales?
No. The company is not liable to collect or remit Tennessee sales tax on these sales. Under Tennessee's longstanding 'Rule 1' (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1320-5-1-.01), when a person sells tangible person…
What Virginia tax interest rates applied during the third quarter of 2015?
Virginia's third-quarter 2015 rates were 5% for tax underpayments and 5% for tax overpayments. The reduced rate for qualifying assessments in administrative appeals was 0%. Certain local delinquency a…
Did an internet subscription company have to collect sales tax or communications services tax on admission certificates?
No. The qualifying certificates were nontaxable gift certificates, and the admission provider collected sales tax when they were redeemed. The internet service was not subject to communications servic…
Were USAC Federal Lifeline Program disbursements to a telecom provider subject to Illinois Telecommunications Excise Tax?
IDOR did not decide. It lacked the billing invoices and enough information about how USAC administered the Lifeline disbursements. The letter noted that State and Federal governments were exempt, but …
When did South Carolina Revenue Ruling 15-4 exempt a residence rented for fewer than 15 days, and preserve its 4% property tax ratio?
A direct owner rental was exempt from sales tax on accommodations when the income came from a qualifying dwelling unit, the unit was actually rented for fewer than 15 days during the tax year, and the…
What deed-recording-fee rules and transaction examples did South Carolina Revenue Ruling 15-3 provide before later rulings superseded it?
This historical ruling described a $1.85 deed recording fee for each $500 or fraction of $500 of realty value, defined value to include money and money's worth, allowed specified lien deductions and s…
What affidavit must be filed with a South Carolina deed, and which sample affidavits does the Department provide (per SC IL #15-6)?
SC Information Letter #15-6 provides two sample affidavits for South Carolina's deed recording fee and supersedes SC Information Letter #06-12. Under S.C. Code § 12-24-70, an affidavit showing the val…
Which of an executive-search and leadership-consulting firm's services are subject to Connecticut sales and use tax?
It depends on the specific service. Executive and middle-management search are taxable employment-agency services, and most of the firm's assessment and consulting offerings — executive/board/cultural…
How should a debt-collection company that buys charged-off receivables apportion its income when it fits none of Colorado's standard receipt categories?
As a service provider. The company isn't a 'financial institution' (it doesn't handle financial transactions or provide financial services, isn't a bank, and doesn't earn over 50% from finance leases)…
Are single-serve condiment packets (butter pads, jelly, creamers) taxable when a restaurant buys them from a wholesaler, and does it matter how the restaurant hands them out?
Taxable. Individually wrapped butter pads, jelly packets, half-and-half creamers, and similar single-serve condiments are 'nonessential food articles' — they're for the customer's convenience and aren…
Is a monthly charge to lease unlit 'dark' fiber optic cable subject to Colorado sales or use tax?
Likely taxable. The Department's general understanding is that dark fiber — unlit fiber optic cable leased to a customer that must 'light' it themselves — is tangible personal property, not real prope…
Are replacement batteries for electric wheelchairs exempt from Colorado sales tax as repair/replacement parts for mobility enhancing equipment, and what documentation must the retailer keep?
Yes, with a prescription. A replacement battery for an electric wheelchair, motorized cart, or scooter is exempt as a component/replacement part of mobility enhancing equipment — but only when the equ…
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.