PHOENIX - Arizona dodged a major financial loss after the state Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling that said diesel fuel used in mining operations should not be subject to sales tax.
Thursday's ruling involved a relatively small refund request by an oil company that supplied a Clarkdale quarry with diesel fuel used in mining trucks and machinery.
But lawyers for the state told the Court of Appeals in November that leaving the ruling intact could trigger more than $100 million in refunds for the state's huge mining industry.
Carter Oil Co. had argued that earlier rulings exempting grease should be extended to fuel.?
