(a) A person may bring suit against the state to recover an occupation, excise, gross receipts, franchise, license, or privilege tax or fee covered by this subchapter and required to be paid to the state if the person has first paid the tax under protest as required by § 403.202.
(b) A suit under this section must be brought before the 91st day after the day the protest payment was made, or the suit is barred; provided that with respect to any tax or fee assessed annually but that is required to be paid in installments, the protest required by § 403.202 may be filed with the final annual return and suit for the recovery for any such installment may be filed within 90 days after the final annual return is due.

(c) The state may bring a counterclaim in a suit brought under this section if the counterclaim relates to taxes or fees imposed under the same statute and during the same period as the taxes or fees that are the subject of the suit and if the counterclaim is filed not later than the 30th day before the date set for trial on the merits of the suit. The state is not required to make an assessment of the taxes or fees subject to the counterclaim under any other statute, and the period of limitation applicable to an assessment of the taxes or fees does not apply to a counterclaim brought under this subsection.