State & Local
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June 27, 2024
NY Historic Building Rehab Tax Credits Apply Per Structure
New York's $5 million tax-credit cap for rehabilitation projects of historic properties is applied on a per-structure basis even if multiple structures are included on a single application, the state Department of Taxation and Finance said in a declaratory ruling.
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June 27, 2024
Google Tells Md. Court Digital Ad Tax Violates Federal Law
Maryland's first-in-the-nation digital advertising tax violates a federal law protecting electronic commerce from discriminatory treatment as well as the U.S. Constitution, Google told the state's tax court during oral arguments Thursday.
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June 27, 2024
AG Says Trump Recusal Bid Relies On 'Distortion Of Facts'
New York's attorney general says Donald Trump is relying on a "distortion of facts" in seeking to oust the judge who ordered the former president to pay $465 million in penalties in his civil fraud case.
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June 27, 2024
Conn. Lawmakers OK Tax Changes For Cars, Insurance Biz
A Connecticut proposal to retool the state's motor vehicle tax regime in a bid to head off a potential tax increase, as well as change assessments on insurance companies, was passed by the state House on Thursday and next goes to the governor.
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June 27, 2024
Mich. Lawmakers OK Flexibilty For Remote Tribunal Hearings
The Michigan Tax Tribunal would be allowed to hold remote hearings for residential property and small-claims matters at one party's request under a bill passed Thursday by the state Legislature.
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June 27, 2024
Mich. Senate OKs Fix For Potential Double Tax On Deliveries
Michigan would allow certain marketplace facilitators of deliveries to deduct sales tax that they paid to sellers to avoid potential double-taxation issues under a bill approved by the state Senate.
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June 27, 2024
Ex-Skadden Tax Head And M&A Pro Joins Freshfields In NY
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has added the former head of the tax practice at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP as a partner this week, who brings to the role experience in deals like 21st Century Fox's $71 billion acquisition by Disney and the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint.
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June 27, 2024
Fla. County Owes Tax To Other County, Fla. Justices Rule
The Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday that counties are not immune from being taxed on properties they own in other counties, affirming a decision that said Pinellas County cannot claim sovereign immunity to duck taxes on property it owns in neighboring Pasco County.
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June 27, 2024
Ind. Tax Doesn't Apply To Practice's Supplement Purchases
An Indiana medical practice should be refunded sales tax paid on purchases of dietary supplements because the practice was able to prove the purchases were made for resale, the state Department of Revenue ruled.
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June 27, 2024
Ind. Biz Wrongly Taxed For Sales To Leasing Co., Dept. Says
An Indiana furniture retailer was wrongly assessed additional tax for sales it made to a leasing company, the state Department of Revenue said in a letter of finding.
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June 26, 2024
Conn. Senate OKs Changes To Tax On Cars, Insurance Cos.
Connecticut would change how it values and taxes motor vehicles, exempt some businesses from interest on certain tax underpayments and change the calculation of assessments on insurance companies under emergency-certified omnibus legislation the state Senate passed Wednesday at the start of a special session.
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June 26, 2024
Repatriation Tax Ruling May Sway State Wealth Tax Debates
The U.S. Supreme Court's upholding of the federal repatriation tax could indirectly affect state tax policy discussions, including by influencing consideration of wealth taxes and encouraging states to keep potential due process issues in mind when enacting tax legislation.
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June 26, 2024
Fiserv Co. Challenges Fla. Tax Sourcing Rules
Fiserv entity Checkfree asked a Florida state court to throw out a $4 million corporate income tax assessment, arguing that revenue from its payment facilitation services should be sourced out-of-state where the services are performed.
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June 26, 2024
5th Circ. Affirms Block On ARPA Tax Rule For Texas, La., Miss.
A Texas federal judge properly ruled that the federal government could not enforce a provision in the American Rescue Plan Act that prohibits states from using pandemic aid to offset tax cuts, the Fifth Circuit said.
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June 26, 2024
Maine's Revenue Through May Lags Estimates By $50M
Maine's revenue collection from July through May missed budget estimates by roughly $50 million, according to the state Department of Administrative and Financial Services.
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June 26, 2024
Wis. Revenues Through May Outpace Last Year By $232M
Wisconsin general revenue collection from July through May was $232 million higher than the same period last fiscal year, according to the state Department of Revenue.
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June 26, 2024
Idaho Tax Revenue Through May Down $36M From Forecasts
Idaho's revenue collection from July through May was $36 million lower than predicted, according to the state Division of Financial Management.
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June 26, 2024
Neb. Gov. Signals July Start To Property Tax Special Session
Nebraska's governor announced his intent to call the state's unicameral Legislature into a special session starting July 25 to focus on what he described as a worsening property tax crisis.
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June 26, 2024
Ariz. General Revenues Through May Up $314M From Forecast
Arizona's general revenue collection from July through May was $314 million higher than was forecast, according to the state Joint Budget Committee.
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June 26, 2024
Ore. Tax Court OKs Deduction For Horse Boarder's Biz Costs
The owners of an Oregon horse boarding facility that lost money for eight years operated it with a profit motive, the state tax court ruled, allowing the couple a tax deduction for the business expenses sustained.
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June 25, 2024
Hawaii Adopts Fines For Excise, Rental Tax Reporting Failures
Hawaii will impose fines for failures to comply with the reporting requirements of the state's general excise tax and transient accommodations tax laws as part of a bill signed by the governor.
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June 25, 2024
Hawaii Allows Tax Dept. To Serve Subpoenas Outside State
Hawaii authorized its Department of Taxation to serve administrative subpoenas outside the state under a bill signed by the governor.
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June 25, 2024
Newsom Defends Calif. Tax Policy In State Of State Speech
Gov. Gavin Newsom vigorously defended his state's fiscal policy Tuesday, declaring that California is not a high-tax state despite having the nation's highest overall individual income tax burden and highest gas tax.
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June 25, 2024
Bristol-Myers Fights NJ City's $4.6M Fee On Campus Upgrade
Bristol-Myers Squibb asked the New Jersey Tax Court to reverse the state's upholding of a $4.6 million nonresidential development fee on renovations to buildings on a 91-acre campus, arguing the improvements were excluded from the levy.
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June 25, 2024
Hawaii Conforms To Fed. Code For Income, Estate Tax
Hawaii conformed its income tax and estate and generation-skipping transfer tax laws to the federal tax code as amended through 2023 under a bill signed by the governor.
Expert Analysis
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Va. Tax Nixed, NJ Shoplifter Targeted: SALT In Review
From a tax declared unconstitutional in Virginia to a New Jersey prosecutor's attempt to include sales tax in a shoplifting charge, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Midterm Cannabis Results Remind That Progress Is Not Linear
It may appear odd that the majority of state proposals for adult-use cannabis failed in November’s midterm elections when legalization is polling at an all-time high, but history moves in fits and starts, and there are clearly still some blind spots and hidden variables affecting voter perceptions, say Whitt Steineker and Mason Kruse at Bradley Arant.
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Wash. B&O Tax Proposal Is A Step In The Right Direction
The Washington Tax Structure Work Group’s proposal to swap the state’s problematic business and occupation tax for a Texas-style margins tax is far from a perfect solution, but it has opened the door for a long-overdue conversation about B&O tax changes that would provide much-needed administrative relief, says Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig.
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This Year's Top 10 Developments In State And Local Tax
Attorneys at Grant Thornton rank the 10 biggest state and local tax issues of 2022, including the adoption of state pass-through entity taxes, Maryland's digital advertising tax and American Rescue Plan Act litigation.
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What To Expect In 2023: SALT In Review
Starting with predictions for the coming year, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Texas Tax Talk: What To Know About The Prefiled Bills
Many of the Texas tax bills prefiled ahead of the state's January 2023 legislative session predictably reduce property tax, but it remains unclear how online sales tax sourcing will be addressed, and an expiring school district property tax incentive program will be reimplemented, say Matt Larsen and Alison Andrews at Baker Botts.
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Tax Cuts In Both Dakotas: SALT In Review
From tax-cut proposals in the Dakotas to a New Mexico artist who tried to represent himself, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Kentucky Tax Talk: Where Art Thou Kentucky Amnesty?
Attorneys at Frost Brown unpack the reasons why Kentucky's tax amnesty program never got off the ground this year, why implementation in 2023 won't be impeded by similar hurdles and how administration of the program may affect other Department of Revenue services once it gets going.
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5 Proof Of Domicile Takeaways From Calif. Tax Appeals Ruling
The California Office of Tax Appeals' recent Beckwith decision, which boiled down to a dispute over when a taxpayer moved from Tennessee to California for income tax purposes, provides valuable lessons on the evidence needed to establish the ties and intent that underlie tax domicile and residence, says Eric Coffill at Eversheds Sutherland.
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The Tax Comity Doctrine And Other Oddities: SALT In Review
From the little-known tax comity doctrine to governments' continuing pursuit of streaming services, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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State AGs Are Realizing Power Of False Claims Statutes
State attorneys general appear to be ramping up investigations, prosecutions and interventions using long-underappreciated state and municipal false claims statutes, and early indications signal an increasing focus on cybersecurity misrepresentations, private equity firms' misconduct and securities fraud, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Foreign Tax Credit Proposal Is Some Help, But More Is Needed
New foreign tax credit regulations proposed by the U.S. Treasury Department provided some measure of relief on cost recovery and royalty withholding, two of the most troublesome aspects of the 2021 final foreign tax credit regulations, but the final regulations are still harmful to many taxpayers, making litigation inevitable, say attorneys at Fenwick.
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Expect Seamless Transition To Controversial Ariz. Flat Tax
The unexpectedly early implementation of Arizona's new 2.5% flat income tax rate in January should be a painless and welcome change for individual taxpayers, even as the long-term impact on state and local economies is the subject of debate, say Karen Jurichko Lowell and Pat Derdenger at Lewis Roca.