On June 15, the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill 102, the Taxpayer Transparency and Fairness Act of 2017, which divests the California State Board of Equalization (BOE) of several key functions and creates two new government agencies—the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration and the Office of Tax Appeals—to perform many of the BOE’s
sales tax
New York Sales Tax Price of Being a Member of the Club
By Alla Raykin and Jonathan Feldman
In an Advisory Opinion, the New York Department of Taxation and Finance concluded that fees paid to a social club by non-members for certain activities (tennis lessons, children’s camp, basketball court use, etc.) are not subject to tax, although membership fees that provide access to the same activities are…
Tennessee Federal Court Holds That State Sales Tax on Railroad Carriers Does Not Violate the 4-R Act
By Liz Cha and Eric Coffill
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee held that Tennessee’s sales tax on railroad carriers for the purchase or use of diesel fuel was not discriminatory under the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 (4-R Act) even though it did not similarly apply…
Georgia DOR Rules that Sales to Out-of-State Purchasers Are Subject to Sales Tax When Delivered to In-State Assembly Facility
By Chris Lutz and Andrew Appleby
In Georgia Letter Ruling SUT-2016-24, the Georgia Department of Revenue ruled that sales of software equipment delivered to a Georgia assembly facility on an out-of-state customer’s behalf were subject to Georgia sales and use tax. In the ruling, the taxpayer sold technology solutions, which were comprised of licenses of…
Not So Fast: Tennessee Chancery Court Prohibits Department of Revenue from Enforcing Sales Tax Collection By Out-of-State Retailers
By Eric Tresh and Liz Cha
On April 10, 2017, a Tennessee Chancery Court ordered that the Tennessee Department of Revenue is temporarily prohibited from enforcing a regulation that requires out-of-state retailers making annual sales in excess of $500,000 to collect and remit sales tax. The Order arises out of a dispute between the Plaintiffs…
US Supreme Court’s Ruling Bolsters Taxpayers’ First Amendment Right To Pass Through Fees (and Taxes)
A recent US Supreme Court decision on surcharges strengthened taxpayers’ First Amendment rights when deciding how they present pass-through fees and taxes to their customers.
- The Supreme Court held that a New York statute prohibiting a seller from imposing a credit surcharge was a speech regulation, subject to heightened scrutiny, because it regulates how retailers
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Maybe Next Season? Georgia Tax Bills Collapse in Last Day of Session
The Georgia General Assembly passed significant tax legislation impacting selected industries, but failed to pass a number of broader tax bills:
- Passed legislation impacts telecommunications, film production and music production companies and causes the review of all income and sales and use tax exemptions.
- Stalled legislation included the reduction of the individual income tax rate,
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It’s Not So Electric: Telecommunications Provider’s NYS Electricity Purchases Not Exempt Sales for Resale
By Nicole Boutros and Scott Wright
A New York State Division of Tax Appeals administrative law judge (ALJ) determined that a telecommunications provider’s electricity purchases were not exempt from sales tax as sales for resale. In so doing, the ALJ rejected the taxpayer’s assertion that it resold electricity by incorporating it into its telecommunications services…
Bringing Broadband to the Boonies: Charge for Expanding Cable Network Exempt from New York Sales Tax
By Evan Hamme and Tim Gustafson
The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance issued an advisory opinion exempting from New York state sales tax a charge the petitioner paid to a cable company to cover the cable company’s costs to expand its cable network to bring broadband Internet to the petitioner’s rural location.…
Sale of Customer Reports Are Subject to Sales Tax in New York
By Samantha Trencs and Eric Tresh
The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance issued an advisory opinion concluding that a detailed report of customer behavior that includes both client-specific and industry-related information is a service subject to sales and use tax. Tax Law § 1105(c)(1) imposes sales and use tax on information services…



