The bill amends Section 44-18-30 of the General Laws in Chapter 44-18, which deals with sales and use tax exemptions. It introduces a new title for the section and maintains a list of exempt items, including sales beyond the state's constitutional power, newspapers, school meals, and containers. It exempts sales to charitable, educational, and religious organizations, details the tax exemption process for contractors working with these organizations, and exempts gasoline, airplane fuels, and items used in manufacturing. The bill also clarifies exemptions for food and food ingredients, drugs, motor vehicles sold to nonresidents, and special adaptations for vehicles for persons with disabilities. It provides a use tax credit for specially adapted motor vehicles and outlines exemptions for heating fuels, electricity, gas, manufacturing machinery, trade-in values of motor vehicles, precious metal bullion, commercial vessels, and clothing and footwear sales.

Furthermore, the bill exempts sales of boats to nonresidents, farm equipment used for commercial farming, youth activities equipment sold by nonprofits and schools, U.S. and state flags, motor vehicles sold to certain veterans, textbooks, hazardous waste recycling materials, food items paid for by food stamps, transportation charges by motor carriers, and coins with numismatic value. It also exempts materials for farm structures, telecommunications services, boats or vessels for winter storage or repair, jewelry display products used out of state, interstate toll-free calls used by banks, materials for reconstructing manufacturing facilities after a disaster, floral processing supplies, horse food products, non-motorized recreational vehicles sold to nonresidents, and sprinkler and fire alarm systems. The bill includes a new exemption for any portion of a motor vehicle lease payment that corresponds to tangible personal property tax or similar taxes, effective immediately upon passage.

Statutes affected:
266: 44-18-30