By: Bonnen of Brazoria (Senate Sponsor - Hinojosa) H.B. No. 3484
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 18, 2015;
May 18, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on Finance;
May 22, 2015, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 11, Nays 1, one present not
voting; May 22, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 3484 By: Hinojosa
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the application of sales and use taxes to certain food
items.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 151.314, Tax Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b-1), (c-2), and (h) and adding Subsection
(c-4) to read as follows:
(b-1) For purposes of this section, "snack items" means
[includes]:
(1) breakfast bars, granola bars, nutrition bars,
sports bars, protein bars, or yogurt bars, unless labeled and
marketed as candy;
(2) snack mix or trail mix;
(3) nuts, but not including pine nuts or [unless]
candy-coated nuts;
(4) popcorn; [and]
(5) chips, crackers, [or] hard pretzels, pork rinds,
or corn nuts;
(6) sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds;
(7) ice cream, sherbet, or frozen yogurt; and
(8) ice pops, juice pops, sorbet, or other frozen
fruit items containing not more than 50 percent fruit juice by
volume.
(c-2) The exemption provided by Subsection (a) does not
include the following prepared food:
(1) food, food products, and drinks, including meals,
milk and milk products, fruit and fruit products, sandwiches,
salads, processed meats and seafoods, vegetable juice, and ice
cream in cones or small cups, served, prepared, or sold ready for
immediate consumption [in or] by restaurants, lunch counters,
cafeterias, delis, vending machines, hotels, or like places of
business or sold ready for immediate consumption from pushcarts,
motor vehicles, or any other form of vehicle;
(2) food sold in a heated state or heated by the
seller; or
(3) two or more food ingredients mixed or combined by
the seller for sale as a single item, including items that are sold
in an unheated state by weight or volume as a single item, but not
including food that is only cut, repackaged, or pasteurized by the
seller.
(c-4) For purposes of Subdivision (c-2)(1), if a grocery
store or convenience store contains a type of location listed in
that subdivision, the store is considered a like place of business
for purposes of that subdivision, but only in relation to items sold
at that location.
(h) The exemption provided by Subsection (a) does not apply
to a snack item if the item is sold through a vending machine or is
sold in individual-sized portions. For purposes of this
subsection, an individual-sized portion is a portion that:
(1) is labeled as having not more than one serving; or
(2) contains less than 2.5 ounces[, if the package
does not specify the number of servings].
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act does not
affect tax liability accruing before the effective date of this
Act. That liability continues in effect as if this Act had not been
enacted, and the former law is continued in effect for the
collection of taxes due and for civil and criminal enforcement of
the liability for those taxes.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
* * * * *