Shaking things up in state and local tax
Shaking things up in state and local tax
By Zack Atkins and Tim Gustafson
The Washington State Department of Revenue ruled that an out-of-state baker whose only in-state “presence” was its use of in-state independent commissioned sales representatives to solicit orders had substantial nexus with Washington and therefore was subject to the state’s business and occupation (B&O) tax. The taxpayer contracted with the…
By Eric Coffill
New Oregon Gross Receipts Tax Proposal. On December 14, 2016, the group behind Measure 97 (which was defeated at the November 2016 general election), released a booklet setting forth its 2017 legislative proposals. The document includes the basic structure for a new “$100 Million Business Tax” “and is “calling on the Legislature…
By Chris Mehrmann and Charlie Kearns
A New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department administrative hearing officer found that a seller could not use equitable recoupment as a defense to offset gross receipts (sales) tax assessed on its sales of software licenses. In support of its equitable recoupment argument, the seller maintained that third-party lenders that…
By Chelsea Marmor and Tim Gustafson
The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts issued a franchise tax letter clarifying that “total mileage” for purposes of computing the Texas special apportionment formula for transportation receipts may either include or exclude “empty miles” provided symmetry is maintained between a taxpayer’s numerator and denominator. “Empty miles,” or deadhead miles…
The Kentucky Board of Tax Appeals (Board) has held that Netflix’s digital streaming service is not subject to the state’s telecommunications taxes.
Kentucky’s telecommunications tax regime is comprised of three distinct taxes, each imposed on the provision of “multichannel video programming service” (MVPS). The taxes consist of a gross revenues tax, an…
By Evan Hamme and Tim Gustafson
In a rare Chief Counsel Ruling (the first of 2015), the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) held that the sale of an entire line of business qualified as an “occasional sale” for corporate franchise tax purposes, thus requiring the selling taxpayer to exclude the resulting gross receipts from its…
By Olga Goldberg and Andrew Appleby
The Texas Court of Appeals held that a taxpayer was not entitled to elect the Multistate Tax Compact (MTC) three-factor formula because the Texas franchise (margin) tax is not an “income tax,” as defined in the MTC. Specifically, the court ruled that the franchise tax is not…
A recording of the Sutherland SALT Quick Call: Deciphering Wynne with Professor Walter Hellerstein is now available. In this Quick Call, Jeff Friedman and Professor Hellerstein discuss the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Maryland Comptroller v. Wynne and its implications.
Following Monday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that Maryland’s personal income tax regime is unconstitutional, join Sutherland SALT and Professor Wally Hellerstein, University of Georgia Taxation Law Professor and author of State Taxation, on Thursday, May 21 at 2:00 p.m. EST for a discussion including an analysis and potential implications of the Court’s ruling.
A divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Maryland’s personal income tax regime is unconstitutional. Comptroller of the Treasury v. Wynne, 575 U.S. __ (2015). The Court affirmed the Maryland Court of Appeals in a 5-4 decision and held that Maryland unconstitutionally created the risk of multiple taxation.
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