Paws up for our November SALT Pets of the Month, Ozzie and Harriet! This pair of domestic shorthairs live with Eversheds Sutherland Associate Megan Long, who adopted them from a local humane society.

These kitties are extremely playful and inquisitive. Harriet (with tabby coloring) is particularly fond of playing with the laser pointer and scaling their cat tree. Ozzie (who dons orange fur) loves being held up to take in the breeze by the window. They both enjoy sunbathing, birdwatching, and, of course, Churu treats are the cat’s meow!

At home, Ozzie also likes to watch television with his family, while Harriet enjoys having a chat with them. This dynamic duo of brother and sister have large personalities, with Ozzie being a cuddly people-pleaser and Harriet being a shy but independent and affectionate kitty.

We are excited to add these purrfect additions to the SALT Pet of the Month family!

In the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s 1984 decision in Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council Inc., federal judges became exceedingly deferential to administrative agencies’ interpretations of apparently ambiguously drafted laws. As the impact of Chevron evolved, flaws in its holding became apparent across almost every area of law, including tax.

After 40 years, the US Supreme Court issued the long-awaited reversal of Chevron in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo earlier this year. The overturning of Chevron should not surprise state tax practitioners, who have seen the deference accorded to state revenue departments diminishing. And, state legislatures have begun responding to Loper Bright by enacting laws that require de novo review of — not deference to — administrative agencies in a wide range of cases, including tax.

In their article for Law360, Eversheds Sutherland attorneys Jonathan Feldman and Cyavash Ahmadi provide context and background to the Loper Bright decision and discuss how states played a role in Chevron’s demise.

Read the full article here.

Eversheds Sutherland attorneys Jonathan Feldman, Maria Todorova, Chelsea Marmor and Laurin McDonald will help present an update on significant state tax issues for southeastern states during COST’s Southeast Regional State Tax Seminar on November 14.

Sessions and speakers include:

  • Discussion of State Tax Cases, Issues & Policy Matters to Watch – Maria Todorova, Chelsea Marmor
  • Uniformly not Uniform – Jonathan Feldman, Chelsea Marmor

Register here.

This time last week, our SALT team embraced the spooky spirit for Halloween!

Take a look at some of the cutest and coolest costumes our team conjured up this year.

We’d love to see your SALT family costumes too! Share them with us at SALTonline@eversheds-sutherland.com.

  1. Legal secretary Melissa Bragg’s daughter, Madelyn, took on the day as Thing 2.
  2. Executive assistant Debbie Manders’ grandson, Jamison, commemorated this Halloween as the Invisible Man.
  3. Counsel John Ormonde’s daughters, Audrey and Betsy, celebrated as a pair of dinosaurs.
  4. Partner Charlie Kearns’ daughter, Ella, dressed as Odette, the swan princess.

On November 5, voters cast their ballots to determine who would fill a variety of federal, state, and local offices. Several states also considered tax related ballot initiatives. We describe some of the more significant ballot initiatives and their results.

Sales Tax

There were a few states with ballot initiatives that would exempt items from the state sales tax. For example, South Dakota’s Measure 28 would prohibit the imposition of the sales tax on “anything sold for human consumption, except alcoholic beverages and prepared food.” However, voters overwhelmingly rejected this measure with approximately 70% voting No.

In Nevada, Question 5, which was put forward by the Nevada Legislature, will exempt the sale of child and adult diapers from the sales and use tax. Voters approved this measure with approximately 70% voting Yes. The exemption goes into effect on January 1, 2025 and expires on December 31, 2050.

In California, San Diego County’s Measure G would increase the sales tax by 0.5% and use the additional funding to repair and upgrade infrastructure. As of Wednesday (November 6) afternoon, voters have rejected this proposal with approximately 52% voting No. Similarly, the city of San Diego’s Measure E sought to increase the sales tax by 1%, but it appears voters have also rejected this proposal with approximately 51% voting No.

Income Tax

In Washington, Measure 2109 was on the ballot to repeal the controversial capital gains tax. However, voters soundly rejected the repeal with approximately 63% voting No.

In Illinois, Question 2 requested voter’s opinion on whether the state should raise taxes on higher incomes in order to fund property tax relief. Voters responded favorably with approximately 60% voting Yes. However, it should be noted that Question 2 was an advisory opinion measure which allows government officials to gauge public opinion, but it is not binding.

In Oregon, Measure 118 would have imposed a controversial 3% minimum tax on corporations with Oregon sales exceeding $25M and would have funded rebates of up to $1,600/year to all Oregon residents. However, the measure was widely opposed by both conservative and progressive groups and voters soundly rejected the measure with almost 79% voting No.

Finally, in California, San Francisco’s Proposition M will make a variety of changes to the city’s business taxes including changing the rates for the gross receipts tax, the homelessness gross receipts tax, the overpaid executive gross receipts tax, and the administrative office tax. Voters agreed with enacting these changes with almost 70% voting Yes.

Property Tax

In North Dakota, Measure 4 would have eliminated most property taxes, making North Dakota the only state without property taxes. However, it also would have required the state to make annual payments to local governments to compensate for the lost property tax revenue. Ultimately, voters decided to keep the property tax, with almost 64% voting No.

Administrative

In Georgia, Amendment 2 will create the independent (i.e., judicial branch) Georgia Tax Court. This court will replace the Georgia Tax Tribunal, which is part of the executive branch. Appeals from the Georgia Tax Court will be to the Georgia Court of Appeals.  This amendment passed with 52% voting Yes.

Calling all trivia fans! Don’t miss out on a chance to show off your SALT knowledge!

We will award prizes for the smartest (and fastest) participants.

This week’s question: Which recently-introduced bill in Ohio would allow a state income tax deduction for overtime wages?

E-mail your response to SALTonline@eversheds-sutherland.com.

The prize for the first response to today’s question is a $25 UBER Eats gift card. This week’s answer will be included in our SALT Shaker Weekly Digest, distributed on Saturday. Be sure to check back then!

Eversheds Sutherland SALT Counsel John Ormonde is pleased to help cover the latest developments in California tax at the 2024 Annual Meeting of the California Tax Bar and Tax Policy Conference. On November 7, John’s panel will explore the California OTA precedential process, including:

– Nomination of cases
– Precedential designation
– Removal of precedential status

Additionally, the panel will guide taxpayers and tax practitioners on how to get involved in designating or removing precedential status. For more information and to register, click here.

The first challenge to New York’s corporate franchise tax regulations is already in high gear: Paychex Inc. v. Department of Taxation and Finance. Although New York’s corporate tax reform took effect January 1, 2015, it took the department almost a decade to adopt the regulations. For many years, the draft regulations received comments and concerns, especially regarding the potential retroactive application.

In this installment of NY Tax Talk, a quarterly column in Law360 focused on recent developments in New York tax law, Eversheds Sutherland attorneys Liz Cha and Chelsea Marmor provide context to Paychex Inc.’s complaint and review the potential implications of the court’s final decision.

Read the full article here.

Calling all trivia fans! Don’t miss out on a chance to show off your SALT knowledge!

We will award prizes for the smartest (and fastest) participants.

This week’s question: Which state’s legislature recently introduced a bill that would exempt energy-saving products and services from the sales and use tax?

E-mail your response to SALTonline@eversheds-sutherland.com.

The prize for the first response to today’s question is a $25 UBER Eats gift card. This week’s answer will be included in our SALT Shaker Weekly Digest, distributed on Saturday. Be sure to check back then!

This week, Eversheds Sutherland Tax is proud to be a platinum sponsor of Tax Executives Institute’s 2024 Annual Conference, taking place in San Antonio, TX, from October 27-30. SALT Partners Liz Cha and Jeff Friedman will delve into pivotal topics shaping the future of tax, including navigating tax department leadership in a changing world and the evolving landscape of taxing intangible assets like data and digital goods.

Additionally, SALT attorneys Charlie Kearns and Jeremy Gove will present during the 31st Annual Paul J. Hartman SALT Forum in Nashville, TN. This premier event offers industry professionals, practitioners, and state revenue employees a unique opportunity to explore significant national developments and trends in state and local taxation. Charlie and Jeremy will share their insights on oddball taxes and sales factor apportionment issues.

At the Electronic Transactions Association’s Payments Compliance Conference, SALT Partners Michele Borens, Charlie Kearns, and Maria Todorova will discuss how payments companies should navigate changes related to state sales tax laws.

Finally, SALT Partner Jeff Friedman will review significant, unusual and interesting SALT cases and developments during the 2024 Western States Association of Tax Administrators (WSATA) Annual Meeting on October 30 in Palm Springs, CA.