By Sahang-Hee Hahn and Andrew Appleby

Effective September 1, 2013, Texas will refund state sales and use taxes paid by providers of cable television, Internet access or telecommunications services on tangible personal property used in their businesses. On June 14, 2013, Governor Rick Perry signed H.B. 1133 into law, authorizing such refunds. Under the new

During the Multistate Tax Commission’s Annual Conference and Committee Meetings in San Diego on July 22, 2013, the Income and Franchise Tax Uniformity Subcommittee discussed its effort to redesign the financial institution apportionment rules. In addition, the Sales and Use Tax Uniformity Subcommittee will move forward in drafting a model nexus statute. 

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By Sahang-Hee Hahn and Jack Trachtenberg

The Missouri Department of Revenue determined that an out-of-state provider of mail systems products had nexus for sales and use tax purposes due to the selling activities of dealers in the state. The taxpayer sold products that enabled customers to centralize the distribution and collection of their mail and

By David Pope and Jack Trachtenberg

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has determined that a financial services firm is not subject to the New York State sales and use tax because the product being sold by the taxpayer constitutes a single, integrated, nontaxable service.  The taxpayer provides its clients with investment

By Saabir Kapoor and Andrew Appleby

The Colorado Department of Revenue (Department) determined that sales tax does not apply to a subscription fee for an interactive stock screening service. The taxpayer, a financial news and research organization, offered proprietary web-based stock screening tools to customers for a monthly subscription fee. To determine whether the subscription

By Suzanne Palms and Andrew Appleby 

The Michigan Court of Appeals held that a taxpayer was not liable for additional single business tax (SBT) and use tax because the taxpayer was making sales of tangible personal property at its Michigan facility rather than performing a service. The taxpayer’s business activities at issue consisted of

By Scott Booth and Prentiss Willson

The Vermont Supreme Court held that coupon books distributed monthly, within a free weekly newspaper and also separately distributed on news racks, were not “component parts” of the newspaper, and thus were not exempt from Vermont sales and use tax as newspapers. Vermont exempts newspapers and tangible personal property

By Jessica Kerner and Pilar Mata

In an Advisory Opinion, the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance held that a taxpayer developing a data center for Internet services is eligible for the State’s sales and use tax exemption pertaining to Internet data centers. In order to qualify for the exemption, the tangible

We recently launched the Sutherland SALT Digital Economy Forum, which provides comprehensive state tax resources regarding the taxation of the digital economy. Following is a summary of recent digital economy administrative guidance, noteworthy cases and legislation. If you would like to learn more about the Sutherland SALT Digital Economy Forum or any of the issues covered here, please contact us.

Sales, Use and Other Transaction Taxes

Administrative Guidance

  • Massachusetts Soliciting Comments on Software Directive. On February 7, the Massachusetts Department of Revenue issued a draft directive that addresses the application of the Massachusetts sales and use tax to sales of software and computer-related services.
  • Wisconsin Updates Guidance Regarding the Sales and Use Tax Treatment of Computer Hardware, Software, and Services; Addresses Cloud Computing. On January 25, 2013, the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) updated its software guidance for sales occurring on and after October 1, 2009. While the taxability conclusions and destination-based sourcing regime remain largely unchanged, the DOR expressly addressed software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and infrastructure as a service (IaaS).
  • Missouri DOR: Computer Software May Not Be Eligible for Manufacturing Exemption. The Missouri Department of Revenue (DOR) recently determined that a company’s software programs were not eligible for the manufacturing equipment exemptions from sales and use tax because the software was not directly used in the manufacturing process.

Continue Reading Digital Economy Update: Administrative Guidance, Noteworthy Cases and Legislation