Tax Type
Retail Sales and Use Tax
Description
Bottled Gas; Exemption of Gas Delivered Through Pipes;Validity
Topic
Taxability of Persons and Transactions
Date Issued
08-18-1966
This is in reply to your letter of August 16, 1966, in which you refer to subsection (g) of §58-441.6 of the Code which exempts from the sales tax "gas, electricity, or water when delivered to consumers through mains, lines or pipes.' You raise the question as to whether or not this is a valid exclusion, due to the fact that bottled gas is not exempted.
The State Department of Taxation has issued rules and regulations relating to the Virginia Retail Sales and Use Tax and regulation No. 1-43 reads as follows:
- "The tax does not apply to gas, electricity, or water when delivered to consumers through mains, lines, or pipes.
"Retail sales of bottled water are taxable.'
It is contended that the person using gas that is stored in bottled containers is discriminated against on the ground that a person using gas or electricity for the same purpose when delivered to a consumer through mains, lines or pipes is not subject to the tax.
The constitutionality of the Virginia Retail Sales and Use Tax Act must be presumed. The State Tax Commissioner is authorized under §58-441.41 to promulgate Rules and Regulations for the enforcement of the Act. Since he has so acted in regard to the provisions of the statute in question, I would be reluctant to issue an opinion to the contrary without the citation of Virginia court decisions holding such a classification to be invalid. Both the statute and the Regulations are free from ambiguity.
Attorney General's Opinion