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Business Taxes Law Guide—Revision 2024
Transactions and Use Tax Annotations
800.0000 Application of Transactions (Sales) Tax and Use Tax—Regulation 1823
Annotation 800.0958
800.0958 Sales by Fueling Network. A fueling network has three parties involved in each network transaction: the "host participant," the "foreign participant," and the "trucker." The host participant is the person who physically provides the fuel. The foreign participant is the party who contracts with the trucker for the sale of fuel to the trucker.
Each participant has its own truckers to whom it issues network cards, and enters into agreements with each trucker for the sale of fuel at a specific price. This price is confidential; whenever a sale is made within the network, the host participant is never apprised of the retail selling price of the fuel. For participation in the sale of the fuel through the network, the host participant is reimbursed for its cost of the fuel, as determined by the OPIS price at the time of the sale, plus actual freight charges and a previously agreed upon network allowance.
Where the foreign participant is engaged in business in this state, the host participant is a seller making a sale for resale to the foreign participant. Thus, the retail sale is made by the foreign participant directly to the trucker (consumer) with whom it has an agreement for the sale of fuel. As the negotiations leading up to the sale are entirely between the foreign participant and the trucker, the location of the place of business of the foreign participant is the place of sale of the fuel for local tax purposes under Regulation 1802(a)(2). The same holds true for district taxes. (Regulation 1822(a)(2).) However, the local and district tax consequences differ.
The local sales tax would be allocated to the location of the foreign participant's place of business, but the sale would be subject to the district use tax, if any, of the location in which the host participant delivered the fuel. (Regulation 1823(a)(2)(B).) For purposes of collecting the tax, the foreign participant would be considered engaged in business in the district under Regulation 1827(c)(2) and so required to collect its use tax. (Regulation 1827(a).)
When the foreign participant's place of business is located out of state and is not engaged in business in the state, the host participant is deemed the retailer under the second paragraph of section 6007. The applicable local tax is that of the location of the host participant's place of business. (Regulation 1802 (a)(1).) If the host participant is located in a taxing district, the transaction (sales) tax of that district (or districts) applies to the sale. Thus, the tax rate in effect at the host participant's location will apply whether the foreign participant is engaged in business in this state (and thus, the retailer) or not (meaning that the host participant is deemed the retailer). (Regulation 1823(a)(1).) 1/29/96.