Opinion ID: 76953
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: 2 Between October 1, 1998, and March 31, 2002, taxpayer, ABIG, purchased interstate, international, and (in five states) intrastate long distance service from AT&T. ABIG paid a uniform toll rate for all interstate calls made within the United States, uniform toll rates for all intrastate long distance calls made within the five states in which it purchased service, and toll rates for international calls (other than calls to and from Mexico) that varied only according to which country the calls were being placed. AT&T collected federal excise taxes from ABIG on the services pursuant to § 4252(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code (I.R.C.), and remitted the taxes collected to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). 3 Subsequently, ABIG filed claims with the IRS for a refund of $288,496.10, representing the federal excise taxes collected on services rendered between October 1, 1998, and September 30, 2001. ABIG later filed claims for an additional refund in the amount of $73,267.14 for the taxes on telephone calls placed between October 1, 2001, and March 31, 2002. ABIG sought the refunds, contending that the federal excise tax on long distance telephone calls does not apply to calls for which the rate does not vary based upon the distance of the call.