Shaking things up in state and local tax
Shaking things up in state and local tax
The New Jersey Division of Taxation recently named John Ficara as its new director, who will perform in an acting capacity until confirmed by the Senate.
In their article for State Tax Notes, Sutherland attorneys Leah Robinson and Open Weaver Banks interview Mr. Ficara to discuss his new role, what drew him to government…
By Hanish Patel and Marc Simonetti
In a Chief Counsel Ruling, the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) ruled that, for purposes of determining its sale factor, a financial information provider should source the sales of its information services based on where the taxpayer’s customer receives the benefit of the service, and not where the ultimate…
Applying the “true object” test to the taxpayer’s web-based services, the Tennessee Department of Revenue ruled that charges for granting access to the taxpayer’s website for purposes of obtaining information would not be subject to sales tax. While the access to web-based services is tax-exempt as a sale of…
By Charles Capouet and Charlie Kearns
The Georgia Department of Revenue released a letter ruling stating that a taxpayer’s health-related information service was not subject to sales and use tax. The service includes a web portal to provide health information and track the user’s personal results and the in-person performance of an annual biometric health…
By Mike Kerman and Andrew Appleby
The Louisiana Court of Appeals held that a paperboard products manufacturer was entitled to refunds of sales tax it paid on purchases of chemicals it used in the manufacturing process under the “further processing” exclusion. The chemicals met the exclusion’s three-part test because they: (1) were identifiable components of…
Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit issued its opinion in Direct Marketing Association v. Brohl, reversing the district court’s order granting summary judgment. The Tenth Circuit held that Colorado’s notice and reporting requirements imposed on non-collecting retailers did not violate the dormant Commerce Clause because they neither discriminated against, nor …
By Stephen Burroughs and Tim Gustafson
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court denied a freight company’s Commerce Clause challenge to the application of an unapportioned use tax on its vehicles purchased out-of-state but used in Massachusetts. The company used its trucks to deliver freight in multiple states, but the court upheld taxation of the vehicles’ full…
By Nicole Boutros and Jeff Friedman
The Director of the Arizona Department of Revenue affirmed an Administrative Law Judge determination that a taxpayer must pay the Transaction Privilege Tax on sales of access to the taxpayer’s subscription-based online research service. The Director reasoned that these sales were taxable as rentals of tangible personal property—and not…
By Zack Atkins and Eric Coffill
A Virginia trial court held that royalties paid to related members that are reported to, but not taxed by, other states do not qualify for the exception to the state’s corporate income tax addback statute. In granting summary judgment in favor of the Virginia Department of Taxation, the court…
By Ted Friedman and Carley Roberts
The West Virginia Office of Tax Appeals (OTA) ruled that an out-of-state corporation, with no physical location or employees in West Virginia, owed sales and use tax on sales of garage equipment in the state. The OTA determined that the corporation had nexus with West Virginia based on its…
