Texas Administrative Code › Title 34 - PUBLIC FINANCE › Part 1 - COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS › Chapter 3 - TAX ADMINISTRATION › Subchapter O - STATE AND LOCAL SALES AND USE TAXES › Section 3.297 - Carriers, Commercial Vessels, Locomotives and Rolling Stock, and Motor Vehicles

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) Definitions.
				  The following words and terms, when used in this section, shall have the
				  following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Chapter 160 boat--A vessel not more than
				  115 feet in length, measured from the tip of the bow in a straight line to the
				  stern, other than a canoe, kayak, rowboat, raft, punt, or other watercraft
				  designed to be propelled only by paddle, oar, or pole. The term includes
				  federally documented vessels, sailboats, personal watercraft, and boats
				  designed to accommodate an outboard motor. The term does not include seaplanes.
				  Seaplanes, and canoes, kayaks, rowboats, rafts, punts, or other watercraft
				  designed to be propelled only by paddle, oar, or pole, are not "taxable boats"
				  under Tax Code, Chapter 160 (Taxes On Sales And Use Of Boats And Boat Motors),
				  but are subject to tax under Tax Code, Chapter 151 (Limited Sales, Excise, and
				  Use Tax).
(2) Commercial vessel--A
				  vessel that displaces eight or more tons of fresh water before being loaded
				  with fuel, supplies, or cargo, and that is:
(A) used exclusively and directly in a
				  commercial or business enterprise or activity, including, but not limited to,
				  commercial fishing; or
(B) used
				  commercially for pleasure fishing by individuals who are paying
				  passengers.
(3) Common
				  carrier--A person who holds out to the general public a willingness to provide
				  transportation of persons or property from place to place for compensation in
				  the normal course of business.
(4)
				  Licensed and certificated common carrier--A person authorized through issuance
				  of a license or certificate by the appropriate United States agency or by the
				  appropriate state agency within the United States to operate a vessel, train,
				  motor vehicle, or pipeline as a common carrier. Certificates of inspection or
				  safety do not authorize a person to operate as a licensed and certificated
				  common carrier.
(5) Locomotive--A
				  self-propelled unit of railroad equipment consisting of one or more units
				  powered by steam, electricity, diesel electric, or other fuel, designed solely
				  to be operated on and supported by stationary steel rails or electromagnetic
				  guideways and to move or draw one or more units of rolling stock owned or
				  operated by a railroad. The term includes a yard locomotive operated to perform
				  switching functions within a single railroad yard, but does not include
				  self-propelled roadway maintenance equipment.
(6) Marine cargo container--A container that
				  is fully or partially enclosed; is intended for containing goods; is strong
				  enough to be suitable for repeated use; and is specially designed to facilitate
				  the carriage of goods by one or more modes of transportation without
				  intermediate reloading. The term includes the accessories and equipment that
				  are carried with the container. The term does not include trailer chassis,
				  motor vehicles, accessories, or spare parts for motor vehicles.
(7) Motor vehicle--A self-propelled vehicle
				  designed to transport persons or property upon the public highway and a vehicle
				  designed to be towed by a self-propelled vehicle while carrying property. The
				  term includes, but is not limited to: automobiles; motor homes; motorcycles;
				  trucks; truck tractors; trailers; semitrailers; house trailers or travel
				  trailers, as defined by §
											3.72 of this title (relating to
				  Trailers, Farm Machines, and Timber Machines); park models, as defined by
				  §
											3.481 of this title (relating to
				  Imposition and Collection of Manufactured Housing Tax); trailers sold
				  unassembled in a kit; dollies; jeeps; stingers; auxiliary axles; converter
				  gears; and truck cab/chassis. The term does not include a nonrepairable vehicle
				  and a salvage vehicle, as defined by §
											3.86 of this title (relating to
				  Destroyed and Repaired Motor Vehicles).
(8) Operating exclusively in foreign or
				  interstate coastal commerce--Transporting persons or property between a point
				  in Texas and a point in another state or foreign country. A vessel that travels
				  between a point in Texas and an offshore area or fishing area on the high seas,
				  or between two points in Texas, is not operating exclusively in foreign or
				  interstate coastal commerce.
(9)
				  Railroad--A form of non-highway ground transportation of persons or property in
				  the normal course of business by means of trains solely operated on and
				  supported by stationary steel rails or electromagnetic guideways, including,
				  but not limited to:
(A) high speed ground
				  transportation systems that connect metropolitan areas;
(B) commuter or other short-haul rail
				  passenger service in a metropolitan or suburban area;
(C) narrow gauge shortline railroads,
				  including tourist, historical, or amusement park railroads; and
(D) private industrial railroads operated on
				  steel rails that connect directly to the national rail system of
				  transportation, but not a private industrial railroad operated on steel rails
				  totally inside an installation that is not connected directly to the national
				  rail system of transportation.
(10) Rolling stock--A unit of railroad
				  equipment that is mounted on wheels and designed to be operated in combination
				  with one or more locomotives upon stationary steel rails or electromagnetic
				  guideways owned or operated by a railroad. Examples include, but are not
				  limited to, passenger coaches, baggage and mail cars, box cars, tank cars, flat
				  cars, and gondolas. Rolling stock also includes self-propelled trackmobile rail
				  car movers and roadway maintenance equipment. Rolling stock does not include
				  equipment used for intra-plant transportation or other nontraditional railroad
				  activities and that is mounted on stationary steel rails or tracks but that are
				  not part of, or connected to, a railroad. For example, cranes operated on steel
				  rails or tracks and used to load or unload ships are not rolling
				  stock.
(11) Train--One or more
				  locomotives coupled to one or more units of rolling stock that are designed to
				  carry freight or passengers, are operated on steel rails or electromagnetic
				  guideways, and are owned or operated by a railroad.
(12) Vessel--A watercraft, other than a
				  seaplane on water, used, or capable of being used, for navigation and
				  transportation of persons or property on water. The term includes a ship, boat,
				  watercraft designed to be propelled by paddle or oar, barge, and floating
				  dry-dock.