Sec. 151.1551. REGISTRATION NUMBER REQUIRED FOR TIMBER AND CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL ITEMS. (a) This section applies to an exemption provided by:

(1) Section 151.316(a)(6), (7), (8), (10), (11), (12), or (14);

(2) Section 151.316(b) for tangible personal property used in the production of agricultural products for sale;

(3) Section 151.3162(b) for tangible personal property used in the production of timber for sale;

(4) Sections 151.317(a)(5) and (11) for electricity used in agriculture or timber operations; and

(5) Section 151.3111 for services performed on tangible personal property exempted under Section 151.316(a)(6), (7), (8), (10), (11), or (12), 151.316(b), or 151.3162(b).

(b) To claim an exemption to which this section applies, a registration number issued by the comptroller must be stated on the exemption certificate provided by the purchaser of the item.

(c) A person is eligible to apply for a registration number if the person is engaged in the production of agricultural products or timber for sale or in an agricultural aircraft operation as defined by 14 C.F.R. Section 137.3.

(d) A person who is eligible may apply to the comptroller for a registration number. The application must:

(1) be on a form prescribed by the comptroller;

(2) if applicable, state the types of crops, livestock, or other agricultural products that are produced for sale on the farm or ranch on which the applicant will use or employ the item described by Subsection (a) or state that the item will be used in relation to a timber operation or an agricultural aircraft operation as defined by 14 C.F.R. Section 137.3;

(3) as applicable, state the name and address of the farm, ranch, timber operation, or other business owned or operated by the applicant in relation to which the applicant will use the item; and

(4) contain any other information required by the comptroller.

(e) The comptroller shall develop and implement a procedure by which an applicant may submit an application described by Subsection (d) electronically.

(f) The comptroller by rule shall establish a uniform date on which all registration numbers issued under this section must be renewed, regardless of the date on which a registration number is initially issued. The rules must require registration numbers to be renewed every four years.

(g) The comptroller may not issue a registration number that contains an individual's social security number.

(h) The comptroller, after written notice and a hearing, may revoke the registration number issued to a person who fails to comply with this chapter or with a rule adopted under this chapter. A person whose registration number the comptroller proposes to revoke under this section is entitled to 20 days' written notice of the time and place of the hearing on the revocation. The notice must state the reason the comptroller is seeking to revoke the person's registration number. At the hearing the person must show cause why the person's registration number should not be revoked.

(i) The comptroller shall give written notice of the revocation of a registration number under Subsection (h) to the person to whom the number was issued. The notice may be personally served on the person or sent by mail to the person's address as shown in the comptroller's records.

(j) If the comptroller revokes a person's registration number under Subsection (h), the comptroller may not revive the registration number unless the comptroller is satisfied that the person will comply with this chapter and the rules adopted under this chapter. The comptroller may prescribe the terms under which a revoked registration number may be revived.

(k) Following the revocation of a registration number by the comptroller, the person who held the registration number must, on the next transaction with each seller to whom the person previously issued a claim for exemption with a registration number, notify that seller that the person's registration number is no longer valid. The failure of a person to notify a seller as required by this subsection is considered a failure and refusal to pay the taxes imposed by this chapter by the person required to make the notification.

(l) The comptroller shall develop and operate an online system to enable a seller of an item described by Subsection (a) to search and verify the validity of the registration number stated on an exemption certificate. A seller is not required to use the online system.

(m) An exemption certificate that states a registration number issued by the comptroller to claim an exemption to which this section applies is sufficient documentation of the seller's receipt of the certificate in good faith for purposes of Sections 151.054 and 151.104.

(n) The comptroller by rule shall establish procedures by which a seller may accept a blanket exemption certificate with a registration number issued by the comptroller to claim exemptions to which this section applies.

(o) A use of an item purchased using an exemption certificate with a registration number issued under this section in a manner or for a purpose other than the manner or purpose that qualified the sale, lease, rental, or other consumption of the item for the exemption may result in the revocation of the number.

(p) A person eligible for a registration number who, at the time of purchasing, leasing, renting, or otherwise consuming an item for which the person may otherwise claim an exemption to which this section applies, has not obtained a registration number from the comptroller must pay the tax on the item to the seller at the time of the transaction. The person may then apply for a registration number and, on receipt of the number, may apply to the comptroller for a refund of the tax paid, subject to the statute of limitations. The comptroller by rule shall establish procedures for processing the refund requests. Tax collected by a seller under this subsection is not tax collected in error, and Section 111.104 does not apply to a refund request submitted under this subsection.

Added by Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 225 (H.B. 268), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2011.

Amended by:

Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1274 (H.B. 1223), Sec. 3, eff. September 1, 2013.

Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 236 (S.B. 140), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2015.