City of Sioux City v. Iowa Department of Revenue & Finance

STREIT, Justice.'

“Life is like a sewer — what you get out of it depends on what you put into it.” 1 The City of Sioux City claims what you put into a sewer determines if sales tax should be paid on it. The city presents the question: Do “sewage services” include the collection of rainwater? The Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance says “yes.” It collected five years of back sales taxes on gross receipts for rainwater collection services provided to nonresidential commercial operations from Sioux City. The city requested a refund arguing the term “sewage services” includes only the vile…