§ 9743. Organizations not covered

Any sale, service, or admission to a place of entertainment charged by or to any of the following or any use by any of the following are not subject to the sales and use taxes imposed under this chapter:

(1) The State of Vermont, or any of its agencies, instrumentalities, public authorities, public corporations (including a public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another state), or political subdivisions when it is the purchaser, user, or consumer, or when it is a vendor of services or property of a kind not ordinarily sold by private persons, or when it charges for admission to any entertainment; except that sales of alcoholic beverages shall not be exempt from sales tax.

(2) The United States of America, any of its agencies and instrumentalities, insofar as it is immune from taxation when it is the purchaser, user or consumer, or when it sells services or property of a kind not ordinarily sold by private persons.

(3) Organizations which qualify for exempt status under the provisions of 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3) and agricultural organizations, qualified for exempt status under 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(5), when presenting agricultural fairs, field days or festivals, as amended, shall be exempt as follows:

(A) The organization first shall have obtained a certificate from the Commissioner stating that it is entitled to the exemption. The Commissioner shall issue a certificate to any organization which has received federal certification of Section 501(c)(3) status and may issue a certificate to any other qualified organization.

(B) Charges for admission to a place of entertainment by and sales to or uses by such organizations shall be exempt from the tax under this chapter.

(C) Sales other than entertainment charges by qualified Section 501(c)(3) organizations shall be exempt if the organization's gross sales of tangible personal property and services which would be subject to tax under this chapter but for this subdivision, in the prior year, did not exceed $20,000.00.

(D) Sales of fresh cut flowers only, by a qualified Section 501(c)(3) organization, during a single annual sales event not to exceed seven days, shall be exempt.

(4) Sales of building materials and supplies to be used in the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, or repair of: (A) any building structure, or other public works owned by or held in trust for the benefit of any governmental body or agency mentioned in subdivisions (1) and (2) of this section and used exclusively for public purposes; (B) any building or structure owned by or held in trust for the benefit of any organization described in subdivision (3) and used exclusively for the purposes upon which its exempt status is based; and (C) any building or structure owned by any "local development corporation" as defined in 10 V.S.A. § 212(10), and used exclusively for the purposes authorized in 10 V.S.A. chapter 12; provided, however, that the governmental body or agency, the organization, or the development corporation has first obtained a certificate from the Commissioner stating that it is entitled to the exemption and the vendor keeps a record of the sales price of each separate sale, the name of the purchaser, the date of each separate sale, and the number of the certificate. In this subdivision, the words "building materials and supplies" shall include all materials and supplies consumed, employed, or expended in the construction, reconstruction, alteration, remodeling, or repair of any building, structure, or other public work as well as the materials and supplies physically incorporated therein.

(5) Organizations which qualify for exempt status under the provisions of 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(4)-(13) and (19), and political organizations as defined in 26 U.S.C. § 527(e), as the same may be amended or redesignated, other than organizations which qualify for exempt status under the provisions of 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(4) whose bylaws provide for the contribution of their net income to organizations which qualify for exempt status under the provisions of 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3), shall not be exempt from taxation of the sale or use of tangible personal property as defined in section 9701 of this title, but shall be exempt from the sales and use tax upon entertainment charges as defined in section 9701, in the case of not more than four special events (not including usual or continuing activities of the organization) held in any calendar year, and which, in the aggregate, are not held on more than four days in such year, and which are open to the general public. In case the organization holds more than four such special events a year, or such events are held on more than four days in a year, the organization may elect the events or the days to which the exemption provided by this subsection shall apply, by giving prior notice to the Commissioner. This subdivision shall not apply to agricultural organizations governed by subdivision (3) of this section.

(6) A school or municipality; provided, however, that a vendor who is required to register with the commissioner pursuant to section 9707 of this title who receives a share of the proceeds from the sale of property at a school or municipal premises shall collect and remit tax on the total sale price of such sales regardless of who is the direct recipient of the payment. As used in this subdivision, "school" means a school as defined in 16 V.S.A. § 11(7) and (8) and "municipality" means a city, town, unorganized town, village, grant, or gore.

(7) An exemption under subdivision (3) of this section shall not be available for entertainment charges for admission to a live performance by an organization whose gross sales of entertainment charges by or on behalf of an organization for admission to live performances in the prior calendar year exceeded $100,000.00. (Added 1969, No. 144, § 1, eff. June 1, 1969; amended 1971, No. 73, § 40, eff. April 16, 1971; 1973, No. 165 (Adj. Sess.), eff. March 20, 1974; 1983, No. 62, eff. April 26, 1983; 1983, No. 206 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 26, 1984; 1989, No. 222 (Adj. Sess.), § 31, eff. May 31, 1990; 1995, No. 28; 1995, No. 132 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 30, 1996; 1997, No. 50, § 35, eff. June 26, 1997; 2009, No. 1 (Sp. Sess.), § H.44; 2009, No. 160 (Adj. Sess.), § 41; 2011, No. 45, § 36.)