Washington Tax Decision (WTD) Publication Comment Pilot Program

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When a taxpayer seeks review of a tax assessment or tax refund denial, the Department issues a determination on that review to that specific taxpayer. The Department publishes some of these determinations as Washington Tax Decisions (WTD) under RCW 82.32.410. Determinations can be recommended for publication by anyone, both in and outside of the Department. Once recommended, the proposed WTD goes through an internal Department review process. It is also sanitized to remove any language that could identify who the taxpayer is in the WTD.

The Department is starting this pilot program to allow stakeholders to comment on proposed WTDs before they are published. The proposed WTDs provided below have already been sanitized. After receiving feedback from you, the Department will decide whether to publish the proposed WTD or make edits to it before publishing. To receive notification on WTD Publication Comment activity, sign up for email or text notifications.

Please note this is a pilot program, and the Department may decide to end it if we are not receiving comments or if the comments provided do not help improve the quality of the WTDs published.

Examples of edits/comments we are looking for:

We welcome comments and proposed edits you believe will make the proposed WTD a better final product. Here are examples of comments or proposed edits that are helpful:

Information you believe would still identify the taxpayer and needs further sanitization.
Edits you believe improve the legal accuracy of the proposed WTD. We cannot make substantial edits so please limit your edits to what is essential to make the proposed WTD clearer.
Removing discussion you think is irrelevant or distracts from the analysis that has more publication value.
If you believe the proposed WTD reaches the incorrect result, please explain why and provide legal authority for your recommendation.
Proposing a footnote to clarify a point that could be confusing to taxpayers who will rely on the WTD.

Comments and edits we ask that you not provide:

Edits that effectively change the outcome of the proposed WTD.
Edits that alter key holdings in the proposed WTD. If you want to propose edits that alter a holding in the proposed WTD, consider objecting to publication of the proposed WTD and explaining why this is necessary.
If you are aware of the taxpayer to whom the proposed WTD was issued, please provide comments that avoid revealing who that taxpayer is as these comments are disclosable for public records purposes.
Please avoid substantial edits to the proposed WTD. If you feel those edits are necessary, explain why.

Proposed WTDs for October 2024

Draft Det. No. 22-0098: Brief Description
Taxpayer protests the disallowance of a claimed real estate excise tax (“REET”) exemption for gifts of membership interests that amount to a controlling interest transfer.[[1]] We deny Taxpayer’s petition with respect to the gift exemption, because the transfers included a proportionate amount of entity debt, and the transfer of such debt constitutes consideration.
Draft WTD
View draft
Draft Det. No. 22-0129: Brief Description
Taxpayer protests the Department’s assessment which included adjustments due to disallowed deductions. Taxpayer took deductions for sales of marijuana products exempt from taxation under RCW 82.08.9998, which exempts from retail sales tax sales of marijuana products to persons with recognition cards. Although Taxpayer did not keep copies of recognition cards, Taxpayer asserts it met the recordkeeping requirements of RCW 69.50.375(3)(e) and WAC 314-55-080 and argues the Department’s requirement to keep a copy of each buyer’s recognition card contravenes the statute and rule. RCW 69.50.375 and WAC 314-55-080 set forth the requirements a licensed marijuana retailer must comply with to be issued a medical marijuana endorsement, not the Department’s recordkeeping requirements for the tax exemption under RCW 82.08.9998. We deny the petition.
Draft WTD
View draft
Draft Det. No. 22-0057: Brief Description
A taxpayer disputes additional use tax and penalties assessed on his use of an aircraft in Washington state, arguing that use tax on the aircraft should be based on the local tax rate at the location where he first briefly landed, rather than the higher local tax rate in the home location where he regularly hangars the aircraft. . . . We deny the petition.
Draft WTD
View draft

Public comment period

The Department requests comments and stakeholder feedback related to these proposed WTDs no later than October 31, 2024. After a review of the feedback, if any, the Department will consider the appropriate next steps in the process.

How to make a public comment

If you wish to make a public comment or have questions, please contact the Administrative Review and Hearings Division at DORARHDWTD@dor.wa.gov.