Washington Tax Decisions

A firm that provides legal services to a parent petitions for correction of an assessment of B&O tax on payments received as personnel expense reimbursements from its parent on the grounds that the employees were employed by the parent company. . . . Taxpayer's petition is denied.

A taxpayer appeals the assessment by the Department of REET on the quit claim transfer of his 50 percent ownership in residential property to his former spouse who owned the other 50 percent. The taxpayer contends that the transfer was between tenants in common and pursuant to a court order, exempting the transfer from REET. Taxpayer's petition is denied.

A taxpayer protests the denial of a High Technology Sales and Use Tax Deferral because either the otherwise qualifying machinery and equipment was used at a location not specified in the deferral application or the expenses were for tenant improvements, which were also not specified in the original application. Taxpayer’s petition is denied.

Taxpayer petitions for the correction of a REET assessment, claiming that the change in ownership in a LLC, which resulted from the distribution of an inheritance, did not constitute a REET-taxable transaction. Taxpayer's petition is granted.

A taxpayer seeks an extension to file its annual survey to qualify for a high technology tax credit after the Department disallowed the taxpayer’s use of the credit and issued an assessment. Taxpayer also requests the penalties imposed in the assessment be waived. Taxpayer's petition is denied in part and granted in part.

A [retail] store chain protests the assessment of retail sales tax and retailing B&O tax due on disallowed bad debt deductions. Holding: The taxpayer is not entitled to the bad debt deductions. Petition denied.

A medical marijuana management company protests the Department's assessment of retail sales tax and retailing B&O tax arguing that it was a management company only providing management services to a collective garden, and that neither party made retail sales. Taxpayer also argues that even if there were retail sales, those sales are exempt either as sales of drugs pursuant to a prescription or sales of medicines of a botanical origin. We deny the petition.

An out-of-state bakery objected to the imposition of B&O tax on sales of baked goods delivered to its Washington customers, arguing that it lacked nexus and that its goods were not received in Washington. The assessment is sustained.

A married couple protests the assessment of REET on the transfer of real property to the parents of one of the spouses in exchange for forgiveness of a loan. We conclude that the forgiveness of a loan is consideration and the transfer constitutes a sale for REET purposes. The assessment is affirmed.

A former . . . manufacturer that claimed the Washington Customized Employment Training Credit on its combined excise tax returns, but then failed to file the required annual survey by the due date, protests the Department's assessment of B&O tax to recover the amount of the tax credit claimed. We deny Taxpayer's petition.