Shaking things up in state and local tax
Shaking things up in state and local tax
By Jonathan Feldman and Hanish Patel
The Georgia Department of Revenue issued a proposed regulation amending the use of direct pay permits for state and local sales and use taxes. The proposed regulation would cause all current permits to expire on December 31, 2016, and require all current holders to reapply and agree to certain…
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 Andrew Appleby
A South Carolina administrative law judge (ALJ) determined that cell phone insurance is not subject to South Carolina sales tax even though the wireless provider sells it with taxable communication services.
Alltel provided its wireless customers with an option to purchase insurance for the loss, theft or damage to…
By Zachary T. Atkins and Open Weaver Banks
In a closely followed case, a Florida district court of appeal held that a proposed assessment is not an assessment for statute of limitations purposes. The Florida Department of Revenue generally has three years to “determine and assess” any tax, penalty or interest due. The Department has…
Illinois enacted a direct placement tax on non-admitted insurance in 2014. However, there is a strong movement in Illinois to repeal or narrow the tax. Tennessee has now legislatively expanded its direct placement tax on non-admitted insurance, falling in line with many other states, including Illinois. Previously, Tennessee imposed a direct placement…
By Michael Penza and Timothy Gustafson
The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) issued an information letter explaining that a trust is taxable in California if any of the following three conditions are met: (1) the trust has income from California sources; (2) a trustee is a resident of California; or (3) a non-contingent beneficiary is…
By Stephen Burroughs and Open Weaver Banks
The South Carolina Department of Revenue requested public comment on a draft Revenue Ruling and a draft Revenue Procedure that detail how it will prospectively apply alternative apportionment to multistate taxpayers. This represents the Department’s second attempt at drafting alternative apportionment guidance (previous coverage). The Ruling describes…
By Charles Capouet and Madison Barnett
The Florida Department of Revenue determined that a Florida data center’s power fees are not subject to gross receipts tax but may be subject to sales tax. The taxpayer operates a colocation data center and purchases electricity to power the data center from a utility. The taxpayer’s customers have…
By Charles Capouet and Open Weaver Banks
The Alabama Department of Revenue has proposed an amendment to the state’s rental tax regulation. If finalized, the regulation would tax the rental of “digital transmissions,” such as “on-demand” movies, television programs, streaming video, streaming audio and other similar programs, regardless of the method of transmission or the…
By Charles Capouet and Timothy Gustafson
The South Carolina Administrative Law Court found that South Carolina does not source sales of services with a strict cost of performance method. The taxpayer, a broadcasting corporation, provides access to digital television entertainment via satellite dishes across the United States, including South Carolina. On audit, the South Carolina…
