Comptroller's Office  Policies and Procedures Manual
Effective: 01/01/2000	Revised: 06/01/2013

CMP 108: Sales Tax

To define university sales transactions subject to Arizona sales tax

Arizona Administrative Rules and Regulations, R15-5-101 to R15-5-2237

Arizona Department of Revenue

University policy

The university has one Arizona sales tax license covering all taxable sales. Sales tax payments to the Department of Revenue are compiled by the Comptroller's Office. Departments desiring to sell goods or services should contact the Comptroller's Office to determine whether these sales are taxable and, if taxable, for the procedures to be followed.

Responsibility for making inquiries to the Comptroller's Office for sales tax determinations and collection of taxes rests with each university department. The Comptroller's Office’s responsibility is to facilitate the overall sales tax process and provide guidance to departments.

The university is subject to Arizona sales tax; however, this sales tax does not apply to interdepartmental transactions and sales that are casual or inconsequential at the university level. The sales areas subject to sales tax are listed in the table below.

State Sales Tax Categories		Tax Rate
Tax Area	Definition	effective 6/1/10	effective 6/1/13
Advertising	State of Arizona exempt as of December 31, 1985. City of Flagstaff rate is charged.	1.721%	1.721%
Amusements	Admissions to movies, athletic events, concerts, plays, etc., are considered amusements other than for activities or projects of bona fide religious or educational institutions. Essentially, this provision exempts amusement sales for which NAU is the sponsor or promoter.	7.725%	6.725%
Printing	Sales of printing applies to job printing, engraving, embossing, and copying.	7.725%	6.725%
Retail	Retail sales include tangible personal property, except textbooks sold by the NAU Bookstore.	7.725%	6.725%
Publishing	Publishing revenues include sales of newspapers, magazines, or other periodicals, including gross income from subscriptions.	7.725%	6.725%
Rental of Personal Property	Includes rental or leasing of any tangible personal property.	7.725%	6.725%

Goods purchased for resale can be exempt from state sales at the time of purchase.

In order to take advantage of the state sales tax exemption at the time of purchase, departments must collect state sales tax at the time of the retail sale. Additionally, the department must remit the state sales tax collected at the time of the retail sale through the university-wide monthly tax return prepared by the Comptroller's Office.

For additional information on Sales Tax, refer to the Contracting and Purchasing Services Sales and Use Tax Web Page.