The lengthy saga of the meal tax debacle could reach an end soon with students getting a refund for meal taxes paid since last fall.House bill 189 is awaiting the Governor’s signature to become law. The bill provides the University with an exemption from collecting sales tax on meal plans in the future and makes the University exempt from $724,000 in meal taxes owed from the last three years.During the fall 2008, spring 2009 and summer 2009 semesters, the University assessed a 4 percent sales tax on the price of meal plans.Because the bill would make the University exempt from collecting these taxes, students will receive a refund equalling 4 percent of the amount they paid for their meal plans since fall 2008. If the Governor approves the bill, this refund should take place no later than July, said Donna Torres associate vice chancellor for Accounting and Financial Services.The average refund would be $37 for each semester a student purchased a meal plan.Typically, the University has been exempt from paying sales tax on meal plans. The meal plan tax debacle began when the exemption was suspended from August 1988 to June 2009 by a new law.  During this time, the University should have been charging sales tax on meal plans. However, the suspension of the exemption was “missed” by Accounting and Financial services, Torres said.This oversight resulted in the University owing $724,000 in back taxes over the last three years. “[The exemption] was the source of confusion on our part because we didn’t know it had been overridden, neither did many other higher education institutions and neither did elementary and secondary education that have also been informed they owe the back taxes,” Torres said.HB 189 is retroactive in a sense that the University would no longer be responsible for these back taxes, Torres said.”We are now more mindful of the legislative session, and we have a legislative liaison that keeps us informed of legislation that affects every facet of the University,” Torres said.Jason Droddy, the University’s legislative liaison, said the oversight happened, “before his time,” but blames it on the complicated nature of all the incoming legislation.Despite repeated inquiries, the governor’s press office were unable to provide an update on HB 189’s status as of press time. The bill has not been included on any list of bills to be vetoed or bills that will be made law without a signature released by the Governor’s press office.”Something like this I can’t imagine he is not going to approve,” Torres said.Droddy said the legislation may not be signed yet because it was sent to the governor at the very end of the session.”I don’t have any reason to believe it won’t pass because it also effects K-12 schools and some hospitals,” Droddy said. “Also [it should pass] because of the great amount of legislation that was introduced on this topic.”The bill was sent to the governor on June 25 and will automatically take law without his signature 20 days after it was submitted unless vetoed.When asked if the Office of Accounting and Financial services had a plan for if the bill got vetoed Torres said, “We have no reason to believe it will not pass.” Droddy said if the bill does get vetoed, the University would the assess a 1 percent tax on meal plans. The University would also have to pay the $724,000 in back taxes, and students would get no refund of the 4 percent tax collected since fall 2008.—-Contact Xerxes A. Wilson at [email protected]