As I See It...

(KMSP) Burnsville fire officials say they've never heard of so-called firewater could become a fire starter without the aid of a match or spark, but that's exactly what happened when vodka bottles magnified sunlight and started a fire inside Red Lion Liquors.

The store has been in Burnsville since 1978, and it's occupied its current building for the past nine years. They have bulletproof glass to stop burglars and vandals from breaking in, but that couldn't' protect them from a problem that started inside.

"It's the unexpected things that can kind of sucker punch you," said manager Dave Hautman.

Usually, the only kind of sun the staff at Red Lion Liquors have to worry about is a type of Spanish beer, but one of hottest sellers on the floor got a little too toasty when the store was closed last Sunday.

Surveillance cameras captured the slow-starting fire, which began with smoke billowing from a display of vodka bottles. Soon, a small paper sign on top simply melts away.

Eventually, the heat got so intense that the tops popped off of the vodka bottles, spraying streams of steaming liquor. In the end, the display caught fire, sending some flames shooting up to 12 feet in the air.

"We have shades on the windows. We'll pull them down on sunny days to protect the wine on the shelves, never thinking it would ever start a fire," Hautman said.

It turns out that sunlight coming through the window turned the vodka bottles into a magnifying glass, slowly starting the cardboard on fire while a ceiling fan above fanned the flames.

"It was just this freak thing," Hautman said.

Even the Burnsville fire marshal had never seen anything like it.

"It was entertaining," Hautman recalled. "The firefighters were standing next to me like they were watching a new video game. They were going, 'This is so cool!'"

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An MMBA member recently asked about tax exempt sales.

According to the Minnesota Department of Revenue:

Only nonprofit organizations with exempt status with the Minnesota Department of Revenue are eligible to make most purchases exempt from sales tax. 

In order to receive nonprofit exempt status with the Minnesota Department of Revenue, an organization must apply using form ST16, Application for Exempt Status. 

If approved, most purchases are eligible for sales tax exemption with the exception of the following:

* Lodging
* Prepared food, meals, beverages
* Most motor vehicles
* Employee purchases
* Motor vehicle rental tax and motor vehicle rental fee

Solid waste management taxes - which are not sales taxes, but nonprofit organizations with exempt status are not exempt from these taxes.

If an organization has been approved for exempt status with the Minnesota Department of Revenue, then they must present their vendors with a fully completed ST3 form, to claim exemption.  Otherwise, the vendors are required to charge sales tax on sales of taxable items and/or services. 

However please note that sacramental wine is still exempt from sales or use tax under 297A.70, subd. 9:

Subd. 9. Sacramental wine.

Wine for sacramental purposes in religious ceremonies, as described in section 340A.316, is exempt if the wine is purchased from a nonprofit religious organization meeting the requirements of subdivision 4 or from a person authorized to import sacramental wine without a license as provided in section 340A.316.

"Doctor, please help me," says an elderly patient.

"I suffer from silent passage of gas in the evening. Sometimes I have silent passage of gas at unpredictable times - for instance, just now. Doctor, can you help me?"

"Sure I can help you," says the doctor. "But first you need your hearing checked."

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