Shaking things up in state and local tax
Shaking things up in state and local tax
By Olga Goldberg and Marc Simonetti
The California Superior Court struck down a regulation that imposed a de facto ban on contingent fee arrangements between businesses and consultants applying for the California Competes tax credit. The Court ruled that the regulation improperly exceeded the scope of the related statute. Ryan U.S. Tax Services, LLC v.
By Charles Capouet and Charlie Kearns
The Kentucky Supreme Court held that the interpretation of inheritance tax statutes by the Kentucky Board of Tax Appeals was not entitled to Chevron deference. Deference is given only to an administrative agency’s interpretation of the statutes which it administers. The Board is merely a reviewing tribunal; it is…
By Samantha Trencs and Madison Barnett
The Rhode Island Supreme Court held that a wind turbine owned by a non-utility private party was exempt from personal property tax under a manufacturing exemption because the turbine converted wind into electricity. The court rejected the taxing authority’s argument that the turbine was ineligible for the exemption because…
By Mike Kerman and Maria Todorova
The Illinois Appellate Court held that a property tax exemption for nonprofit hospitals which provided certain services or subsidies equal in value to their estimated property tax liabilities was facially unconstitutional because it did not require exclusive charitable use of the property, as prescribed under the Illinois Constitution. Carle …
By Michael Penza and Todd Lard
The Wyoming Board of Equalization (BOE) held that purchases of chemicals by an electric utility operating coal-fired electric generation plants were subject to sales tax because the utility was not a manufacturer or a processor. The Board found that the utility was not a manufacturer because it did not…
By Nick Kump and Scott Wright
The Missouri Supreme Court held that a dance school was subject to sales tax on its charges for dance lessons as fees paid to a place of amusement, entertainment or recreation. The court reasoned that even though the school had a primary purpose of teaching students how to dance…
By Ted Friedman and Jonathan Feldman
The Utah Supreme Court held that optional liability waiver fees paid by customers along with lease-to-own rental payments were not subject to sales and use tax. Customers that choose to pay this extra fee are not required to reimburse the corporation for any loss if the goods are damaged…
The Michigan Department of Treasury issued a Notice announcing that it will no longer impose sales or use tax on certain prewritten computer software accessed electronically and associated online services. The Notice comes on the heels of the Michigan Court of Appeals decision in Auto-Owners Insurance Company v. Department of Treasury and the Michigan Supreme …
By Stephen Burroughs and Jonathan Feldman
The Indiana Tax Court granted summary judgment to Columbia Sportswear USA Corp., (“Columbia”), determining that: (1) Indiana’s alternative apportionment statute did not permit the Department to equitably adjust Columbia’s tax base; and (2) Indiana’s standard sourcing rules clearly reflected Columbia’s Indiana source income because transfer pricing studies supported Columbia’s…
On December 31, 2015, the California Supreme Court closed the book on California’s Multistate Tax Compact election saga, unanimously holding that the Compact is not a binding contract among its members and the State was not bound by its provisions before the State’s repeal of the Compact in 2012.
Citing the Multistate Tax Commission’s amicus…
