Biosciences Information Service v. Commonwealth

516 A.2d 434, 101 Pa. Commw. 384, 1986 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 2631
CourtCommonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 21, 1986
DocketAppeals, Nos. 1701 C.D. 1980 and 1702 C.D. 1980
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 516 A.2d 434 (Biosciences Information Service v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Biosciences Information Service v. Commonwealth, 516 A.2d 434, 101 Pa. Commw. 384, 1986 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 2631 (Pa. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

Opinion by

Senior Judge Kalish,

Biosciences Information Service (BIOSIS) petitions for review of two orders of the Board of Finance and Revenue (Board) which affirmed use tax assessments made by the Department of Revenue (Department) for two tax audit periods.1 In our opinion dated July 12, 1985, we affirmed the Boards orders. BIOSIS filed exceptions, challenging our findings of feet, our failure to make findings of feet, and our conclusions of law. Following reargument before this Court en banc, this Court sustained BIOSIS’ exceptions, and ordered that we issue a new opinion including findings of fact, based on the record, to resolve the legal issues involved.

An appeal from the Board is de novo in this Court. Pursuant to Pa. R.A.P. 1571(f), no record is certified by the Board, and a record is made in this Court. In this case, the parties submitted a partial stipulation of facts. Additionally, an evidentiary hearing was held on November 14, 1984. Based upon the stipulation and our review of the evidence, we make the following findings of fact:

Findings of Fact

1. BIOSIS is a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of the District of Columbia, with its headquarters located at 21st and Arch Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

2. BIOSIS obtains and abstracts biological sciences literature from around the world. The abstracts are compiled and indexed into manuscripts, then bound and delivered to interested institutions and individuals.

[387]*3873. BIOSIS receives, free of charge, publications from around the world dealing with the biological sciences. Many scientists donate their services to BIO-SIS.

4. BIOSIS publishes reference data and maintains the data as part of its permanent library. Additionally, BIOSIS performs searches of the library upon request.

5. Subscribers to BIOSIS publications include government agencies, medical schools, research laboratories, hospitals and individual doctors.

6. BIOSIS charges for its publications, and for computerized searches of its library.

7. BIOSIS also conducts meetings and seminars designed to educate the public regarding the availability and use of reference data in the fields of biological science. BIOSIS does not charge for these seminars.

8. BIOSIS does no research or testing of its own, nor does it write any of the articles which it compiles.

9. The fee charged by BIOSIS for its publications is approximate to the actual costs incurred by BIOSIS to compile the periodicals.

10. During three of the four full years BIOSIS was audited, BIOSIS accumulated a profit. In 1974, BIO-SIS’ excess revenues over expenses was $437,118. In 1976, BIOSIS’ excess revenues over expenses was $56,915. In 1977, BIOSIS’ excess revenues over expenses was $712,146.

11. The Department audited BIOSIS for the periods from January 1, 1974 through October 31, 1977, and from January 1, 1975 through 1978. As a result, BIOSIS was issued tax assessments in the amounts of $196,278.05 and $97,888.03. These assessments related to BIOSIS’ purchase of office equipment and materials such as copiers, typewriters, computers and maintenance items.

12. BIOSIS filed timely petitions with the Board of Appeals of the Department, contesting the assess[388]*388ments. The Board of Appeals reassessed BIOSIS’ use tax liability for the period from January 1, 1974 through October 30, 1977 to $163,232.47. The assessment for the period from January 1, 1975 through June 30, 1978 was reduced to $96,897.51.

13. BIOSIS filed timely petitions for review with the Board of Finance and Revenue, again contesting the assessments.

14. The Board of Finance and Revenue affirmed the assessments.

15. BIOSIS filed timely petitions for review with this Court from the orders of the Board of Finance and Revenue for each of the two audit periods.

Discussion

BIOSIS challenges the two tax assessments on the ground that it is a purely public charity, and thereby entitled to a sales and use tax exclusion. Any organization seeking a tax exemption bears the burden of proving that it is entitled to the exemption. Anastasi Brothers Corp. v. Commonwealth, 455 Pa. 127, 315 A.2d 267 (1974).

Section 204(10) of the Tax Reform Code of 1971 (Code), Act of March 4, 1971, P.L. 6, as amended, 72 P.S. §7204(10) (Supp. 1984-85), provides in pertinent part:

Exclusions from tax
The tax imposed by section 202 shall not be imposed upon
10) The sale at retail to or use by (i) any charitable organization. . . .

In Hospital Utilization Project v. Commonwealth (HUP), 507 Pa. 1, 487 A.2d 1306 (1985), a purely public charity was defined as an entity which:

(a) Advances a charitable purpose;
[389]*389(b) Donates or renders gratuitously a substantial portion of its services;
(c) Benefits a substantial and indefinite class of persons who are legitimate subjects of charity;
(d) Relieves the government of some of its burden; and
(e) Operates entirely free from private profit motive.

Id. at 22, 487 A.2d at 1317.

BIOSIS’ stated purpose is “[t]o advance and further the increase, dissemination and use of the knowledge, principles and techniques involved in theoretical and applied biology. . . .” While this purpose is admirable, it is not a charitable purpose because its beneficiaries are fee-paying clients, not the public-at-large. Hill School Tax Exemption Case, 370 Pa. 21, 87 A.2d 259 (1952).

Moreover, BIOSIS does not donate a substantial portion of its services. The periodicals published by BIOSIS are not gifts for general public use. Although BIOSIS’ publications are made possible through donations of articles by persons in the scientific community, BIOSIS’ clients must pay a fee for the service BIOSIS provides. BIOSIS charges for computer searches of its library, and for subscriptions to its publications.

Our review of the record indicates that the beneficiaries of BIOSIS are not a substantial and indefinite class of persons who are legitimate subjects of charity. The beneficiaries of BIOSIS are primarily various organizations who subscribe to BIOSIS’ periodicals, and request searches of its library. These organizations include agencies of the United States government, universities and hospitals. Universities and research laboratories are administrative entities and not legitimate objects of charity. HUP, 507 Pa. at 22, 487 A.2d at 1317.

[390]*390Furthermore, we do not believe that BIOSIS relieves the government of some of its burden. BIOSIS argues that this case is similar to American Society for Testing and Materials v. Board of Revision of Taxes (ASTM), 423 Pa.

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BIOSCIENCES INFO. SERV. v. Com. of Pa.
516 A.2d 434 (Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)

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Bluebook (online)
516 A.2d 434, 101 Pa. Commw. 384, 1986 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 2631, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/biosciences-information-service-v-commonwealth-pacommwct-1986.