Vending

NY vending association urges lawmakers to extend tax exemption to help survive coronavirus

Image courtesy of iStock.

October 29, 2020

Members of the New York State Automatic Vending Association have sent letters to state lawmakers urging them to sustain the vending product sales tax exemption in order to maintain their businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. The exemption will expire on May 31, 2021 if it is not extended.

The letters said businesses are functioning at rates of 15-20% of normal and vending operators are struggling to keep employees.

Candy, fruit drinks and soft drinks sold for $1.50 or less through a vending machine are exempt form sales tax, according to the association website.

The exemption amount is $2 for candy, fruit drinks, soft drinks and bottled water sold from a machine that accepts forms of payment other than coin or currency, even if it also accepts coin and currency.

In addition to the revenue losses, vending operators need to upgrade technology because customers are moving to chipped credit cards and mobile wallets for payment, and many of the phone carriers are phasing out 3G towers that support magnetic strip credit card swiping.

For an update on how the coronavirus is affecting convenience services, click here.