In a 5-to-4 decision, the US Supreme Court held that states retain sovereign immunity from private suits brought by individuals in courts of other states, and therefore, overruled its prior decision in Nevada v. Hall, 440 US 410 (1979). The decision arose from a longstanding dispute brought by an individual taxpayer against the California
Income
Apples to Oranges: Arkansas finds no independent business versus non-business test for expenses
On April 1, 2019, the Arkansas Office of Hearings and Appeals held that a taxpayer could not deduct interest expense for long-term debt used to finance a cash dividend as a non-business expense allocable to Arkansas because there was no corresponding non-business income allocable to the state.
The taxpayer was a corporation based in Arkansas…
Maryland Tax Court Strikes Again: Out-of-State LLCs Liable for Maryland Income Tax
The Maryland Tax Court held that six nonresident Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) wholly-owned by another out-of-state limited liability company owed Maryland income tax despite the fact that the LLCs, as disregarded entities, had no federal income tax liability. Maryland law imposes an income tax “on each pass-through entity that has . . . any member…
Tennessee rules the “true object” of a bundled transaction is nontaxable data analytics services, not remotely accessed software
The Tennessee Department of Revenue issued a letter ruling finding that a taxpayer’s mobile and web data analytics services were not subject to sales and use tax. The taxpayer’s customers installed the taxpayer’s software code, which collected user data about the customers’ websites or mobile applications. The taxpayer then analyzed the data and granted the…
Kentucky Court of Appeals Holds Parent Company Not Includible in Consolidated Return
The Kentucky Court of Appeals held in an unpublished opinion that an out-of-state parent company was not an “includible corporation” as defined by Kentucky law and could not file a consolidated return with its in-state subsidiary. The Department argued that the parent company taxpayer was not an includible corporation because it fell within two exceptions…
More Than Smoke: Oregon Tax Court Holds Cigarette Manufacturer’s In-State Activities Exceeded P.L. 86-272
On February 26, 2019, the Oregon Tax Court held that an out-of-state cigarette manufacturer’s in-state activities violated Public Law 86-272, resulting in the manufacturer being subject to Oregon’s corporation excise tax. P.L. 86-272 prohibits any state from imposing a net income tax on out-of-state taxpayers that generally limit their in-state business activities to solicitation. The…
New Jersey Tax Court Rules Not Taxes Must be Added-Back as Taxes for CBT
On January 31, 2019, the New Jersey Tax Court issued its ruling on whether a taxpayer must add-back intercompany payments to its parent, estimated payments based on tax sharing agreements, as tax payments made to other states. The payments were to reimburse the parent corporation for taxes it paid on behalf of the combined group…
Indiana Department of Revenue Finds Out-of-State Pharmacy Benefit Management Provider Must Include Income from Drug Sales to Indiana Customers in Sales Factor
In a letter of finding, the Indiana Department of Revenue concluded that a pharmacy benefit management provider was required to include in its sales factor receipts from prescription drugs sold to Indiana customers. The taxpayer contracted with insurance companies, retail pharmacies and drug manufacturers to provide health benefit plans and beneficiaries access to discounted prescription…
Too Bad, So Sad – Virginia Supreme Court Upholds COP Apportionment Despite Subjecting the Taxpayer to Double Taxation
The Virginia Supreme Court held that the use of the cost-of-performance method to apportion nearly 100% of the taxpayer’s sales of services to Virginia did not violate the U.S. Constitution, even though over 95% of the taxpayer’s customers were located outside of the state – perhaps an expected result for a services company based in…
Unboxing the New Jersey Tax Court’s Decision in IP Holding Company Nexus Case
The New Jersey Tax Court denied a holding company’s motion for partial summary judgment seeking a determination that the taxpayer lacked nexus with New Jersey and would not be required to file corporation business tax returns. The taxpayer’s only connection to the state of New Jersey was the receipt of royalties from an affiliate doing…