The Ohio Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Cincinnati Reds, 5-2, in a tax dispute over whether giveaway merchandise, such as bobbleheads, should be taxed.
The Reds argued that they did not need to pay taxes on merchandise that is given away to game attendees, because the product's cost was factored into the sale of game tickets.
Ohio Tax Commissioner Joe Testa argued that "free" promotional merchandise should be taxed since it was not being sold to fans.
If the Reds were to be taxed for these goods, they would owe $88,000 to The Ohio Department of Taxation.
The court ruled in favor of the Reds, agreeing that the price of the giveaway items was factored into the cost of the tickets sold for each game.
The Reds, therefore, are exempt from paying thousands of dollars in taxes for merchandise since it was considered to be goods bought for resale.
