When states push the limits of tax policy, litigation often follows.
In an article for Bloomberg Tax, Partner Jeff Friedman, along with University of Connecticut School of Law Professor Richard Pomp, examines two Utah proposals – a targeted advertising tax and a tax on online providers of material that is “harmful to minors” – and explains why these measures may invite constitutional challenges rather than meaningful revenue.
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 a prize for the smartest (and fastest) participant.
This week’s question: Californians are currently considering a ballot initiative that would ban which two types of taxes?
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!
The Texas Supreme Court rejected a taxpayer’s refund claim asserting that its sales of bunker fuel (fuel for large, ocean-going vessels) delivered to foreign-registered ships at Texas ports were not delivered or shipped to a buyer for ultimate use or consumption in Texas. The taxpayer argued that the comptroller’s administrative rules making the transfer point determinative were invalid because the phrase “buyer in this state” in Texas Tax Code § 171.103(a)(1) referred to the ultimate destination of the goods and not the place of transfer. Noting that the statutory text refers to delivery or shipment to a buyer “in this state” and contains no reference to use, consumption, or market location, the Court held that the statute unambiguously adopts a “place-of-delivery” or “place-of-transfer” rule, sinking the taxpayer’s claim.
NuStar Energy, L.P. v. Hancock, No. 24-0037 (Tex. Mar. 13, 2026).
Members of our SALT team will be sharing timely, practical insights at three upcoming programs focused on key developments impacting businesses navigating today’s complex tax landscape.
On Monday, March 23, SALT Partners Michele Borens, Jeff Friedman, and Tim Gustafson are pleased to join the TEI Virginia Chapter’s March meeting, where they will provide updates on important state and local tax developments affecting businesses nationwide.
Speakers and topics include:
In addition, join Partner Todd Betor on Wednesday, March 25 at 11:00 a.m. EDT for a practical webinar exploring how businesses can effectively use tax risk insurance amid increasing tax complexity and uncertainty.
Todd will be joined by additional members of our global tax team and will help discuss:
Learn more and register here.
Finally, on March 26, Partner Jeff Friedman will present Constitutional Limitations on State Taxation as part of TEI’s virtual State and Local Tax (SALT) Essentials Course.
Learn more about the course, and how to register, here.
Calling all trivia fans! Don’t miss out on a chance to show off your SALT knowledge!
We will award a prize for the smartest (and fastest) participant.
This week’s question: Which East Coast city recently proposed a retail delivery fee on orders delivered within city limits?
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!
In this episode of the SALT Shaker Podcast, Partners Jeremy Gove and Chelsea Marmor examine a pivotal moment in any state and local tax controversy: whether to take the next step after a tax assessment has been issued.
Jeremy and Chelsea walk through the key factors they consider when deciding whether to challenge an assessment following an audit. They emphasize that the decision is rarely straightforward and often requires balancing several considerations, such as financial significance, procedural nuances, confidentiality protections, and the forum’s independence and expertise.
Their conversation concludes with a focus on litigation readiness, underscoring why building a strong evidentiary record during the audit stage is critical to preserving options and positioning a case for success beyond the administrative level.
In closing, they wonder if buying a “mystery” book at the bookstore is overrated or underrated.
For questions or comments, email SALTonline@eversheds-sutherland.com. Subscribe to receive regular updates hosted on the SALT Shaker blog.
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Members of our SALT team are pleased to participate in Tax Executives Institute’s (TEI) 2026 Midyear Conference, taking place March 16–18 at the Grand Hyatt Washington, DC.
The annual conference brings together in‑house tax professionals and advisors from across industries for timely discussions on corporate and state tax developments. This year, SALT partners will present on several panels addressing key issues impacting multistate businesses, including state tax policy trends, gross receipts taxes, digital taxation, and sourcing challenges.
Speakers and panels include:
We’re pleased to support TEI and look forward to engaging with tax professionals throughout the conference.
The New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, affirmed a decision of the Tax Appeals Tribunal, which determined that a company’s charges for a proprietary technological platform, referred to as a “vendor management system” (VMS), constituted licenses to use prewritten computer software that were subject to sales tax. The company matched clients with suppliers of contingent and temporary labor and provided services associated with the management, retention and invoicing of the labor. To provide the services, the company used the VMS, access to which was controlled by agreements with each client and each labor supplier. The company maintained that it was not selling software licenses, but that it was providing nontaxable services to customers through its VMS platform. The court rejected the company’s argument, finding that various client agreements demonstrated that the company provided its customers the “right to use” software and, accordingly, a license to use software within the meaning of the New York sales tax law. The court also upheld the Tribunal’s determination that the use of the VMS software was “central” to the company’s services, rather than incidental, concluding that there were no grounds to disturb the Tribunal’s determination that the license provided by the company was the “core function of the transactions at issue,” rendering them subject to tax as a sale of tangible personal property.
Calling all trivia fans! Don’t miss out on a chance to show off your SALT knowledge!
We will award a prize for the smartest (and fastest) participant.
This week’s question: The Multistate Tax Commission is currently working on which of the following uniformity projects?
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 year’s Georgia’s legislative session is quickly progressing and the General Assembly has proposed significant legislation addressing income and property tax reform. Last Friday, March 6, 2026, was “Crossover Day” – the 28th legislative day of 40 total legislative days – marking the deadline by which all bills must have passed one legislative chamber to cross over for consideration by the other chamber. Although there is an opportunity for tax provisions to be added to other bills later, bills that have not passed one chamber prior to crossover are generally dead for this session. Georgia’s Constitution provides that “[a]ll bills for raising revenue…shall originate in the House…”, so the majority of tax bills still alive for the year now go over to the Senate for final passage before the end of the session. However, as indicated in our alert, the Senate has drafted and passed a number of bills related to revenue which have now passed over to the House. The final legislative day, Sine Die, or the 40th legislative day is on April 2, 2026.
Read the full legal alert here.
