State & Local
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June 06, 2024
NRA Can't Undo $6.4M Misconduct Verdict In NY AG Case
A New York judge on Thursday rejected a request by the National Rifle Association and its longtime executives to set aside a jury's $6.4 million verdict that found they misspent charitable funds, saying Attorney General Letitia James provided sufficient evidence for the jurors to rule in her favor.
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June 06, 2024
Vt. Conforms State Law To Fed. Income, Estate Tax Statutes
Vermont conformed its income tax law to federal income tax and estate tax statutes and will allow municipalities to enact local-option taxes without charter amendments that require approval by the state General Assembly under a bill signed by the governor.
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June 06, 2024
Colorado To Study Simplification Of Local Lodging Taxes
Colorado will expand the scope of a task force responsible for simplifying the state's sales and use tax regime to improve the local lodging tax system as part of a bill signed into law by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
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June 06, 2024
Generative AI Poses Novel State Tax Questions, Tax Pros Say
Open questions are swirling around state tax rules for the usage of generative artificial intelligence platforms, including whether they should be treated as canned or custom software, tax professionals said Thursday.
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June 06, 2024
Ind. Tax Court Backs Lower Valuation For Department Store
The value of an Indiana Dillard's store was correctly reduced to about $5 million for tax years 2018 through 2020 by the state tax board after taking into consideration the owner's income approach analysis, the state's tax court ruled.
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June 06, 2024
NY Lawmakers OK Change To Tax Tribunal's Client Rep Rules
New York would allow individuals to choose from an expanded list of representatives in matters before the Tax Appeals Tribunal under a bill passed by the state Legislature that goes next to Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.
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June 06, 2024
Fox Rothschild Brings On Tax Pro From Atlanta Boutique
Fox Rothschild LLP has added an attorney in Atlanta from tax law boutique Wiggam Law to strengthen the firm's taxation and wealth planning department.
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June 06, 2024
Colorado Extends Contaminated Land Cleanup Tax Credit
Colorado will extend its environmental remediation of contaminated land income tax credit for five years under a bill signed by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
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June 06, 2024
NY Senate OKs Bill Expanding Digital Gaming Credit
New York would expand its income tax credit for digital gaming production by lowering the production cost required to qualify and eliminating the in-state production cost threshold under a bill passed by the Senate.
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June 06, 2024
State Digital Tax Rules Lack Consistency, Clarity, Tax Pros Say
Courts have reached different conclusions over whether state definitions of tangible personal property encompass certain elements of the digital economy, underscoring the inconsistent tax treatment of digital transactions and a need for guidance on the issue, tax professionals said Thursday.
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June 06, 2024
Mass. Tax Collections Beat Estimates By $700M Through May
Massachusetts' total tax collections from July through May were $700 million higher than expected, according to the state Department of Revenue.
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June 06, 2024
NJ Corp. Tax Overhaul Regs Expected By Nov., Director Says
New Jersey is on track to release regulations this fall on an omnibus law from last year that changed several provisions of the state's corporate income tax system, the state Division of Taxation's acting director said Thursday.
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June 05, 2024
Citibank Can't Avoid Paying $6M Wash. Biz Tax
Washington's high court won't spare Citibank from a $6 million business tax bill, declining to revisit a ruling that the bank's money-making activities amounted to a physical presence in the state despite not having any local branches open at the time.
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June 05, 2024
Ill. Budget Has Higher Cap On NOLs, Sports Betting Tax Hike
Illinois will extend a cap on corporate net operating loss deductions, increase its sports betting tax and reduce sales tax rebates for retailers under a $53.1 billion fiscal year 2025 budget signed Wednesday by Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
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June 05, 2024
Colo. To Exempt Modular Homes From Sales Tax
Colorado will exempt new modular home sales from state tax under a bill signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis.
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June 05, 2024
Calif. OTA Says Avis Owes $12.6M Tax On Asset Acquisition
An acquisition by car rental company Avis of an indirect affiliate's vehicle management business does not constitute a merger and is therefore subject to tax, the California Office of Tax Appeals ruled.
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June 05, 2024
Colo. To Allow Tax Credit For Employee-Owned Businesses
Colorado will allow new businesses that are employee-owned to claim an income tax credit for business expenses under a bill signed by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
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June 05, 2024
NY Gov. Indefinitely Halts Manhattan Congestion Pricing
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday shelved congestion pricing just weeks before officials were set to implement a fee for vehicles entering Manhattan's busiest corridor, in a dramatic about-face following intense backlash and litigation from residents and business owners grappling with the high cost of living.
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June 05, 2024
Hawaii To Adjust Income Tax Brackets, Up Standard Deduction
Hawaii will adjust its individual income tax brackets and increase its standard deduction to account for inflation and will exempt certain medical services from the state's general excise tax under bills signed by the governor.
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June 05, 2024
Minn. Justices Back Doctor's Penalty For Frivolous Tax Claim
Minnesota's penalty for filing a frivolous tax claim is constitutional, and the penalty as applied to a nonresident doctor and his wife over nearly $1.2 million in undeclared income is also sound, the Minnesota Supreme Court said Wednesday.
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June 05, 2024
Win May Embolden IRS Use Of Economic Substance Doctrine
The IRS' successful wielding of the economic substance doctrine to characterize multinational telecommunications corporation Liberty Global's sophisticated set of intercompany deals as an abusive tax shelter could encourage the agency to apply similar analysis to even the most basic tax transactions.
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June 05, 2024
Ohio Senate Bill Seeks To Double Film Tax Credit Cap
Ohio would double the amount of film and theater production tax credits it can award annually and eliminate its credit for film and theater capital improvement projects under a bill introduced in the state Senate.
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June 05, 2024
Colo. To Look At Federal Taxable Income As State Basis
Colorado is directing its state auditor to evaluate its use of federal taxable income as the basis for state taxable income under legislation signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis.
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June 04, 2024
Recreational Marijuana To Be On SD Ballot For 3rd Time
Recreational marijuana advocates have successfully put a measure on South Dakota's November ballot, giving state voters a third shot at legalizing the drug just two years after they declined to do so.
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June 04, 2024
Mastercard Owes $7.7M In SC Income Tax Case, ALJ Rules
Mastercard's network, which allows cardholders to buy goods and services and withdraw money, is its income-producing activity, occurs within South Carolina, and thus obligates the company to pay about $7.7 million in taxes, fees and interest, a state administrative law judge ruled in a decision posted Tuesday.
Expert Analysis
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Looking Behind The Curtain Of Residential Transition Loans
As residential transition loans and securitizations of such loans grow increasingly popular, real estate stakeholders should take care to understand both the unique features and potential challenges offered by this novel asset class, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.
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Where Tax Policies Go Wrong: SALT In Review
RSM's David Brunori reviews the worst tax policies employed by state and local governments, then critiques recent tax developments in Oregon, New York and Boston.
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Mallory Opinion Implicitly Overturned NC Sales Tax Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to review Quad Graphics v. North Carolina Department of Revenue, but importantly kicked the legs from under Quad's outcome a week later, stating in its Mallory decision that the high court has the prerogative to overrule its own decisions, says Richard Pomp at the University of Connecticut.
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Delicious In Conn., Less Tasty In La.: SALT In Review
From Connecticut reducing its beer tax to Louisiana retaining its franchise tax, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Review Of Repatriation Tax Sets Justices On Slippery Slope
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to review the constitutionality of the repatriation tax in Moore v. U.S. has implications for many tax rules involving unrealized amounts and could leave the court on the brink of invalidating large swaths of the Internal Revenue Code, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.
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How To Avoid A Zombie Office Building Apocalypse
With national office vacancy rates approaching 20%, policymakers, investors and developers will need to come together in order to prevent this troubling trend from sucking the life out of business districts or contaminating the broader real estate market, say Ryan Sommers and Robyn Minter Smyers at Thompson Hine.
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Ohio Tax Talk: Building On Federal Affordable Housing Credit
Ohio's soon-to-be-implemented low-income housing tax credit could significantly affect the state's affordable housing landscape and influence tax-credit deal financing for these projects, though Senate changes may have dampened the new credit's immense potential, say Raghav Agnihotri and Rachael Chamberlain at Frost Brown.
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Holding These Truths Incontrovertible: SALT In Review
RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news, beginning with "almost irrefutable" observations delivered at a recent tax seminar.
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LA's High-Value Real Estate Transfer Tax Should Be Scrapped
Los Angeles’ recently implemented high-value property transfer tax has chilled the real estate market, is failing to meet revenue expectations and raises significant constitutional concerns, making it a flawed piece of legislation that should be invalidated, says attorney Paul Weinberg.
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Avoiding Negative Tax Consequences In Loan Modifications
Borrowers who may be caught in the dramatic uptick in nonperforming commercial real estate loans should consider strategies to avoid income and capital gains tax that may be triggered by loan modifications, says Aman Badyal at Glaser Weil.
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Chapter 100 Incentives Can Offer Relief For Mo. Solar Projects
Although the Missouri Supreme Court's decision last year in Johnson v. Springfield Solar 1 overturned the state's tax exemption for solar energy systems, solar developers may still be able to use other mechanisms, like Chapter 100 incentives, to offset project costs, say Lizzy McEntire and Anna Kimbrell at Husch Blackwell.
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Now Is The Time For State And Local Sales Tax Simplification
In the five years since the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, state and local governments increasingly rely on sales tax, but simple changes are needed to make compliance more manageable for taxpayers, wherever located, without unduly burdening interstate commerce, says Charles Maniace at Sovos.
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Connecticut Tax Cuts And Missouri Movies: SALT In Review
From income tax cuts in Connecticut to film tax credits in Missouri, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.