34 Tex. Admin. Code § 3.72 - Trailers, Farm Machines, and Timber Machines
(a) Definitions. The following words and
terms, when used in this section, shall have the following meanings, unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1)
Bunkhouse--A house trailer designed to be used as sleeping accommodations for
multiple persons, such as a work crew, but not as a single-family
residence.
(2) Farm or ranch--One
or more tracts of land used, either wholly or in part, in the production of
crops, livestock, and/or other agricultural products held for sale in the
regular course of business. The term includes feed lots, dairy farms, poultry
farms, commercial orchards, commercial nurseries, and similar commercial
agricultural operations that are original producers of agricultural products.
The term does not include, among other operations, home gardens, wildlife
management, and timber operations.
(3) Farm machine--A self-propelled motor
vehicle specially adapted for, and whose primary use is in, the production of
crops or rearing of livestock, including poultry or use in feedlots. The term
includes a self-propelled motor vehicle specially adapted for distributing and
applying plant-food materials, agricultural chemicals, or feed for livestock.
The term does not include pickup trucks or any self-propelled motor vehicle
specifically designed, or specially adapted, to transport property other than
the property being applied or for the sole purpose of transporting or setting
in place agricultural products, plant-food materials, agricultural chemicals,
or feed for livestock. Examples of farm machines include, but are not limited
to, a truck cab chassis with a tank and equipment designed to apply liquid
fertilizer, a truck cab chassis with a hopper and auger designed to distribute
feed in a feedlot, and a truck modified with a flat bed, feed distributor, and
hay bale roll-out distribution device. A flat bed truck modified solely with a
hay spear/spike, hay bale roll-out distribution device, or cube feeder of a
size allowing the truck bed to be used for general purposes is an example of a
vehicle that does not qualify as a farm machine.
(4) Farm trailer--A trailer or semitrailer
designed and whose primary use is as a farm or ranch vehicle. The term does not
include a motor vehicle designed for human habitation, including, but not
limited to, any vehicle designed for sleeping, dressing, lounging, restroom
use, or meal preparation, even though the vehicle may also be used to transport
livestock or agricultural products.
(5) House trailer--This term has the meaning
given in §
3.481 of this title (relating to
Imposition and Collection of Manufactured Housing Tax) referring to Subchapter
T of this chapter (relating to Manufactured Housing Sales and Use
Tax).
(6) Installation or
set-up--Activities associated with the sale of a trailer, as defined in this
section, including, but not limited to, spotting the trailer; preparing the
foundation; placing, leveling, blocking, and anchoring the trailer; connecting
sewer, water, electricity, and other utilities; and installing under skirting,
awnings, and steps.
(7) Mobile
office--This term has the meaning given in §
3.306 of this title (relating to
Sales of Mobile Offices, Oilfield Portable Units, Portable Buildings,
Prefabricated Buildings, and Ready-Built Homes).
(8) Oilfield portable unit--This term has the
meaning given in §
3.306 of this title.
(9) Park model--This term has the meaning
given in §
3.481 of this title.
(10) Primary use--Use of at least 80% of a
motor vehicle's operating time.
(11) Timber machine--A self-propelled motor
vehicle specially adapted to perform a specialized function for use primarily
in timber operations, such as land preparation, planting, maintenance, and
harvesting of trees. The term does not include any self-propelled motor vehicle
specifically designed or adapted for the primary use of transporting timber or
timber products, including a self-propelled motor vehicle designed to transport
cargo and adapted with a cargo-loading device. The term also does not include
field service vehicles, such as those used to fuel or maintain other vehicles
or crew vehicles.
(12) Timber
operations--The production of timber, meaning the activities to prepare the
production site or to plant, cultivate, or harvest commercial timber that will
be sold in the regular course of business.
(13) Timber trailer--A trailer designed for
and used primarily in a timber operation.
(14) Trailer--A vehicle without automotive
power that is designed for human habitation or for carrying property upon a
permanent chassis with wheels, axles, and a towing device, and that is designed
to be drawn by a self-propelled motor vehicle. The term includes, but is not
limited to, semitrailers, vans, flatbeds, tanks, dumpsters, trailers sold
unassembled in a kit, dollies, jeeps, stingers, auxiliary axles, converter
gears, bunkhouses, travel trailers, park models, and house trailers. The term
does not include a unit designed to be towed by a self-propelled vehicle that
meets the definition of moveable specialized equipment in §
3.88 of this title (relating to
Moveable Specialized Equipment and Off-Road Vehicles); mobile offices, as
defined in this section; manufactured homes, as defined by Tax Code, §
158.002; oilfield portable
units, as defined in this section; or portable buildings, prefabricated
buildings, and ready-built homes, as defined in §
3.306 of this title.
(15) Travel trailer or recreational
trailer--A trailer designed for human habitation as temporary living quarters
in connection with recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use that:
(A) is not designed to be used as a permanent
dwelling;
(B) is less than eight
feet six inches in width and 45 feet in length in the traveling mode and
contains plumbing, heating, and electrical systems that may be operated without
connection to outside utilities; and
(C) is not a utility trailer, enclosed
trailer, or other trailer that is not designed for human habitation as its
primary function.
(b) Loss of identity as a motor vehicle.
(1) A trailer is presumed to be permanently
affixed to realty, and therefore an improvement to real property that loses its
identity as a motor vehicle, if:
(A) it is
attached so that it cannot be reasonably reconstructed and made operational for
highway use; or
(B) it is attached
or installed in a manner that meets all governmental standards (if any) for the
installation, including zoning regulations, building codes, federal
regulations, and other requirements applicable to the land on which it is
located; and it is either:
(i) installed on
land owned by the purchaser, if the purchaser intends to incorporate the
trailer as a permanent fixture to the land; or
(ii) installed on land leased to the
purchaser, if the lease contract provides that improvements to the land become
the property of the lessor.
(2) A trailer is presumed to be temporarily
affixed to the real property, and remains a motor vehicle, if:
(A) the owner of the trailer only has
permission to use the land but no contractual right to do so; or
(B) the owner of the trailer has a
contractual right to use the land and also has the right to remove the trailer
at any time or upon the termination of the contract.
(c) Application of motor vehicle
sales and gross rental receipts tax.
(1) A
retail sale of a trailer is a taxable sale of a motor vehicle. Motor vehicle
sales or use tax is due on the total sales price including charges for all
accessories attached at the time of sale and for transportation prior to the
sale. The rental of a trailer is also a taxable transaction. Gross rental
receipts tax is due on the gross receipts charged on the rental of a motor
vehicle, including a trailer. Charges for transportation after the sale
(transportation from the place of sale to the delivery or set-up site) and
charges for installation or set-up after the sale are not subject to
tax.
(2) A retail sale, use, or
rental of a farm machine or a farm trailer is not subject to the motor vehicle
sales and use tax or gross rental receipts tax if the primary use of the
machine or trailer is for an exempt purpose. For the purposes of this
subsection, use for an exempt purpose means use on a farm or ranch in the
production of food for human consumption, grass, feed for any form of animal
life or other livestock, or agricultural products to be sold in the regular
course of business. The use of a farm machine or farm trailer to transport
persons or property to or from competitions, shows, or rodeos, or for any other
similar use, is not use for an exempt purpose.
(3) Farm trailers are also exempt from motor
vehicle sales and use tax and gross rental receipts tax if the primary use of
the trailer is by the original producers in processing, packing, or marketing
their own livestock or agricultural products. Use in processing, packing, or
marketing agricultural products by an agricultural cooperative or gin is not
exempt, unless the cooperative or gin can prove the cooperative or gin itself
is the original producer of all agricultural products being processed, packed,
or marketed, and that those functions are performed at a location operated by
the cooperative or gin.
(4) A
retail sale, use, or rental of a timber machine or a timber trailer is not
subject to motor vehicle sales and use tax or gross rental receipts tax if the
primary use of the timber machine or timber trailer is in timber
operations.
(5) A retail sale, use,
or rental of an oilfield portable unit, as defined in this section, is not
subject to motor vehicle sales and use tax or gross rental receipts tax. An
oilfield portable unit that would otherwise be subject to motor vehicle sales
and use tax, such as a trailer, becomes a taxable motor vehicle any time the
unit ceases to be used exclusively as an oilfield portable unit. The tax is the
obligation of the owner of the oilfield portable unit based on the owner's
current book value of the unit multiplied by the current tax rate cited in Tax
Code, §
152.021(b).
The tax should be remitted directly to the comptroller using Form 14-112, Texas
Motor Vehicle Sales/Use Tax Payment. Tax due on diverted units that are held
for motor vehicle rental should be submitted on Form 14-117, Texas Motor
Vehicle Rental Tax Return. For more information regarding the taxation of
oilfield portable units, refer to §
3.306 of this title.
(d) Claiming exemption.
(1) Farmers, ranchers, agricultural
producers, and timber operators must register with the comptroller and obtain a
Texas Agriculture and Timber Exemption Registration Number. This registration
number must be stated on the exemption certificate described in this subsection
and on the Application for Texas Certificate of Title/Tax Statement (Form
130-U) filed with the County Tax Assessor-Collector at the time of titling
and/or registration. In addition, a person claiming the exemption for a farm or
timber machine has the burden to show, at the time the vehicle is titled and/or
registered, that the vehicle has been properly adapted or modified to qualify
for the exemption.
(2) All persons
engaged in the business of selling or renting agricultural and timber items
that are exempt from the motor vehicle sales and use tax or gross rental
receipts tax as described in this section must obtain from all purchasers:
(A) A completed Texas Motor Vehicle Tax
Exemption Certificate for Agricultural/Timber (Form 14-319) or a completed
Motor Vehicle Rental Exemption Certificate (Form 14-305 Back) for qualifying
motor vehicle rentals;
(B) a copy
of the Ag/Timber Registration Number Confirmation letter issued by the
comptroller (Form 01-926); or
(C) a
blanket exemption certificate or the Ag/Timber Registration Number Confirmation
letter (Form 01-926) covering all motor vehicle purchases or rentals, provided
that the motor vehicles being sold or rented are only of a type or quantity
that would not generally be used except on a farm or ranch or in timber
operations. When a person sells or rents both taxable motor vehicles and motor
vehicles that may qualify for exemption under this section, the seller may
either obtain an exemption certificate for each motor vehicle that qualifies
for exemption or obtain a blanket certificate at the time the purchaser makes
an initial exempt purchase or rental and keep that certificate on file. When
subsequent exempt purchases or rentals are made, the invoice must be stamped
with the words "exempt agricultural purposes," and the purchaser must sign the
invoice.
(3) All persons
engaged in the business of selling, renting, or leasing agricultural and timber
items must retain a copy of the documents described in paragraph (2) of this
subsection at their principal place of business for at least four years from
the date of the transaction.
Notes
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