N.Y. Tax Law § 523 — Fuel use tax

§ 523. Fuel use tax. (a) Imposition. There is hereby imposed on and\nafter January first, nineteen hundred ninety-six a tax on fuel use for\nthe privilege of operating any qualified motor vehicle upon the public\nhighways of this state.\n (b) Rate of tax. The tax imposed by this section shall be at a\ncomposite rate determined by adding together (1) a fuel tax component\nwhich shall be equal to the applicable rate per gallon in effect under\nthe taxes on motor fuel and diesel motor fuel imposed by article\ntwelve-A of this chapter and (2) a sales tax component, which shall be\nequal to the sum of (A) a state sales and compensating use tax\nsubcomponent, equal to the applicable rate per gallon in effect under\nthe sales and compensating use taxes on motor fuel and diesel motor fuel\nimposed by sections eleven hundred five and eleven hundred ten of this\nchapter as described in subdivision (m) of section eleven hundred eleven\nof this chapter plus (B) a local sales and compensating use tax\nsubcomponent, which shall be the lower of (i) the lowest applicable rate\nper gallon in effect under the sales and compensating use taxes on such\nfuels in effect in any county of this state imposing a local sales and\ncompensating use tax on a cents per gallon basis pursuant to the\nauthority of subpart B of part one of article twenty-nine of this\nchapter, or (ii) the equivalent rate per gallon based on the highest\nrate applicable to the receipts from the sale of a gallon of motor fuel\nor diesel motor fuel in effect in any locality of this state imposing a\nlocal sales and compensating use tax on a percentage rate basis on the\nsale of motor fuel and diesel motor fuel pursuant to the authority of\nsubpart B of part one of article twenty-nine of this chapter. Provided,\nhowever, that the total rate per gallon applicable to the receipts from\nthe sale of a gallon of such fuels imposed under clause (ii) of\nsubparagraph (B) of paragraph two of this subdivision shall not exceed\nthree percent. Such equivalent rate per gallon under clause (ii) of\nsubparagraph B of paragraph two of this subdivision shall be determined\nas provided in subdivision (d) or (m) of section eleven hundred eleven\nof this chapter and the schedules prescribed by the commissioner\npursuant to such subdivision (d), and shall be based on the average\nprice per gallon (including all federal and state and any local taxes\nincluded in such price or imposed on the use or consumption of such\nfuels upon which the state and local sales and compensating use taxes\nare computed but determined without the inclusion of any state or local\nsales tax on receipts from sales of such fuels) paid by the carrier\nduring the reporting period for all motor fuel and diesel motor fuel\npurchased for use in its operations either within or without this state.\nFor purposes of clause (ii) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph two of this\nsubdivision, the price for motor fuel and diesel motor fuel purchased by\nsuch carrier shall be deemed to be the prevailing price for motor fuel\nand diesel motor fuel, as established by the commissioner each calendar\nquarter pursuant to this section, applicable to the reporting period.\nThe commissioner shall for each calendar quarter establish a prevailing\nprice for motor fuel and diesel motor fuel based on the prices being\ncharged on any given day during the first fifteen days of the previous\ncalendar quarter at a minimum of ten selected truck stops widely\nscattered throughout the state. The tax imposed by this section shall be\ncomputed by multiplying such composite rate by the amount of motor fuel\nor diesel motor fuel, as the case may be, used by a carrier in its\noperations within this state during each reporting period. The amount of\nmotor fuel and diesel motor fuel used in the operations of any carrier\nwithin this state shall be determined by dividing the number of miles\ntraveled in this state subject to tax under this section by the average\nmiles per gallon for the type of fuel. Where the records of any carrier\nare inadequate or incomplete, the qualified motor vehicles of a carrier\nfiling returns shall be deemed to have consumed, on the average, one\ngallon of diesel motor fuel for every four miles traveled or one gallon\nof motor fuel for every three miles traveled unless substantial evidence\ndiscloses that a different amount was consumed; provided, however, that\nif the commissioner enters into a cooperative agreement pursuant to\nsection five hundred twenty-eight of this article and such agreement\nprescribes a different average miles per gallon deemed to be consumed,\nthe commissioner shall prescribe such different average.\n