Hvt, Inc. v. Pamela Law

Summary

The court held that vehicle-registration renewal fees paid directly by lessees to the Department of Motor Vehicles are part of the lessor's taxable gross receipts under the sales-tax statutes. Because the lessor retained the legal responsibility to register and reregister the vehicles, the lessees' payments relieved the lessor of that obligation and constituted a financial benefit that could not be deducted as an expense. The court affirmed the trial court's partial summary judgment for the commissioner.