Noteworthy Cases

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Eversheds Sutherland has filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the 550 members of the Council On State Taxation (COST) on the important issue of whether imposition of certain local special taxes in California requires a two-thirds vote by the California electorate, or a simple majority. City of Fresno v. Fresno Building Healthy Communities…

On August 18, 2020, the New York Supreme Court, Albany County, held that there was no rational basis for New York’s imposition of sales tax on storage services performed in New Jersey that occurred subsequent to the initial sale and pickup of items in New York. The taxpayer, a New Jersey corporation, operated corporate records…

Several California localities filed a complaint alleging that PG&E willfully miscalculated the electricity user’s tax (“Electricity Tax”) causing harm to the cities, their employees and public services. California cities and counties impose Electricity Tax on a percentage of charges for electricity used within the city. For example, the City of Sacramento imposes an Electricity Tax…

The Nebraska Supreme Court held that a telecommunications construction company was liable for sales taxes on both its purchases of construction materials to build telecommunications infrastructure and for its subsequent sales of services installing and constructing the same telecommunications property.

Nebraska law requires a construction contractor to make an election as to whether it will…

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a rail carrier’s authority to challenge the Oregon Department of Revenue’s taxation of its “accounting goodwill” pursuant to the federal Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act, commonly referred to as the 4-R Act.

Oregon imposes tax on real and tangible personal property located in the…

On Aug. 6, the New York Tax Appeals Tribunal held that royalties received from a foreign affiliate are taxable and are not subject to New York’s royalty income exclusion provision under former Tax Law § 208(9)(o)(3).

Prior to its amendment, Tax Law § 208(9)(o)(3) provided for a deduction for royalties received from a related member…

Arizona’s Supreme Court unanimously held that the city of Phoenix’s fee increase on ride-sharing trips at airports are not “transaction-based” fees and therefore constitutional. In 2016, Phoenix’s City Council had amended its City Code to require commercial ground transportation providers to pay a “trip fee” each time drivers picked up passengers from the Phoenix Sky…

The Washington Supreme Court held that a business & occupation (“B&O”) tax deduction contained in RCW 82.04.4311 is limited to payments received from Washington and federal programs, but not payments received from other states’ medical programs. The B&O tax is a gross receipts tax imposed on nearly every type of enterprise, including for-profit and not-for-profit…

On remand from the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, the Maryland Tax Court held that an unauthorized insurance company owned by Macy’s, was exempt from Maryland corporate income tax. During the years at issue, Leadville, a Vermont captive, did not earn any Maryland insurance or reinsurance premiums but had substantial interest income from intercompany loans…

This is the second edition of the Eversheds Sutherland SALT Scoreboard for 2020. Since 2016, we have tallied the results of significant taxpayer wins and losses and analyzed those results. This edition of the SALT Scoreboard includes a discussion of the Mississippi Supreme Court’s decision on agency deference, insights regarding the First Amendment’s application to…