State & Local
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July 25, 2024
NJ Town's Challenge To County Tax Table Can Proceed
A New Jersey town may continue challenging a county's 2024 equalization table, the New Jersey Tax Court ruled, rejecting the county's argument that the town waited too long to make the challenge.
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July 25, 2024
Ohio Church Too Late For Retroactive Tax Refund, Board Says
An Ohio church cannot be refunded for a retroactive property tax exemption for 2014 through 2016 because the state tax commissioner only has the authority to issue refunds for up to three years, the state Board of Tax Appeals ruled.
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July 25, 2024
Ore. Court Won't Toss Law Capping Taxable Home Values
A homeowner's attempt to lower the taxable value of his property was denied by the Oregon Tax Court, which said it did not have the authority to determine whether a law capping annual taxable value increases for some properties was unconstitutional.
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July 24, 2024
Pfizer's Fuel Cells Can't Be Taxed, Conn. Justices Rule
A fuel cell module that powers Pfizer Inc.'s research campus in Groton, Connecticut, is not subject to personal property taxes, the state's high court ruled Wednesday, upholding a lower court decision that allowed FuelCell Inc. to avoid several multimillion-dollar local tax assessments and penalties.
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July 24, 2024
Mich. Tribunal Upholds $4.4M Value For Car Wash
A Michigan car wash was correctly valued at $4.4 million, the state Tax Tribunal said after rejecting the property owner's argument that the value should be reduced due to functional obsolescence.
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July 24, 2024
Book Publisher Settles Gross Receipts Tax Dispute With Ohio
Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing LLC settled its appeal of a nearly $143,000 Ohio commercial activity tax assessment, ending a case in which it alleged that a federal law that limits state taxes on net income protected certain gross receipts from tax.
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July 24, 2024
Ohio Chicken Farm Ruled Overvalued By County
An Ohio chicken farm was overvalued by the local tax board, the state board of tax appeals said, after taking into consideration an appraisal by the owner that valued the property based on its special use as a hatchery.
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July 24, 2024
Nationwide Urges Mich. Court To Stand By Unitary Biz Ruling
The Michigan Court of Appeals properly ruled that insurance companies that are part of Nationwide should file their taxes as a unitary group, the company told the appeals court, saying the state Treasury Department's request for reconsideration should be denied.
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July 24, 2024
NH Extends Business Profits, Enterprise Tax Credits
New Hampshire business profits tax credits and business enterprise credits that were set to expire in 2025 and 2027 were extended under a bill signed by Republican Gov. Chris Sununu.
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July 24, 2024
Affordable Housing Pro Moves Practice To Nelson Mullins
An attorney who specializes in advising clients on completing affordable housing development projects has recently moved her practice to Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough's Pittsburgh office.
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July 24, 2024
New Jersey Joining IRS Free E-File Program in 2025
The IRS' Direct File free electronic tax return filing program will be available in New Jersey in the 2025 tax filing season, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service said Wednesday.
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July 24, 2024
Neb. To Raise Interest Rate On Late Tax Payments In 2025
Nebraska will raise the interest rate assessed on delinquent payments of taxes to 8%, an increase of 3 percentage points, starting next year, the state Department of Revenue said.
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July 24, 2024
Wayfair To Pay Disputed Taxes To Colo. City, Legislators Told
Wayfair agreed to pay some disputed sales taxes to settle a lawsuit with a Colorado city, an attorney for the city told a state legislative panel Wednesday, though he added that a confidentiality agreement restricted what he could say about the deal.
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July 24, 2024
RI Man Correctly Taxed On Unemployment Compensation
The Rhode Island Division of Taxation didn't err in levying additional income tax against a man who didn't report all his unemployment compensation on his state tax return, a hearing officer ruled.
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July 24, 2024
Dentons Brings On Former Big 4 Exec As New Global CEO
Global law firm Dentons, which has made a name for itself by aggressive growth through combinations, has tapped a new global chief executive officer with leadership experience at accounting giant EY, the firm's first change at the top in over a decade.
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July 23, 2024
Pa. Justices Will Hear Pittsburgh's Appeal For Its 'Jock Tax'
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has accepted the city of Pittsburgh's request to review a lower court decision that ended the city's fee on nonresident professional athletes, also known as the jock tax, the court said.
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July 23, 2024
JetBlue Says Fla. Illegally Taxes Miles Flown Outside State
A Florida law that defines what counts as miles flown inside Florida for tax purposes unconstitutionally encompasses territory outside the state's boundaries, JetBlue told a state court.
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July 23, 2024
Mich. Raises Fine For Unreported Property Transfers
Michigan increased a penalty for property owners who fail to notify an assessor's office of a transfer of ownership under a bill signed Tuesday by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
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July 23, 2024
Neb. Gov. Sets Guardrails On Proposed Sales Tax Expansion
Nebraska's governor said his plan to broaden the state's sales tax regime to pay for property tax relief won't tax agricultural items, manufacturing materials, food or services or items exempt in surrounding states.
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July 23, 2024
Tax Foreclosure Kickback Suit Too Late, Mich. County Says
A Wayne County, Michigan, treasurer has argued in Michigan federal court that a putative class action accusing the county and other parties of engaging in a tax foreclosure and kickbacks scheme is time-barred.
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July 23, 2024
Ariz. Justices OK Use Of Power Deal In Plant's Valuation
An Arizona power plant's income from a power purchase agreement may be considered in the income analysis of the valuation of the property, the state Supreme Court said, sending the matter back to the state tax court.
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July 23, 2024
Winston & Strawn Adds MoFo Tax Pro As Partner In NY
Winston & Strawn LLP has added a transactional tax specialist from Morrison Foerster LLP as a partner with the firm's transactions department and tax practice in New York.
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July 23, 2024
No Victims, No Fraud, Trump Says In $465M Judgment Appeal
Donald Trump has appealed the $465 million judgment against him, arguing that the New York attorney general exceeded her authority in her civil fraud suit against the former president because the statute in question does not apply to victimless transactions.
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July 23, 2024
Ariz. Court OKs Hospital District Tax For Legal Costs
A property tax levied to fund an Arizona hospital district's expenses including legal fees was properly authorized and did not require approval by voters, the Arizona Tax Court said, rejecting a suit by a local taxpayer.
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July 23, 2024
Alaska Creates Tax Credits For Cos.' Child Care Expenses
Alaska established a tax credit for expenditures made by businesses to operate child care facilities for employees' children under a bill that became law without the governor's signature.
Expert Analysis
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Drinking And Driving: SALT In Review
From several proposed tax breaks related to vehicular considerations to one that would aid bourbon distillers in Kentucky, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Kentucky Tax Talk: Trouble With The Incentive Oversight Bill
The potential retroactivity of a bill to increase the transparency and General Assembly oversight of Kentucky’s tax incentive programs would be problematic for businesses that received awards in recent years, despite the legislation being aimed toward future development, say attorneys at Frost Brown.
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Justices' MoneyGram Opinion Could Spur State Legislation
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision that federal law governs the escheatment of over $250 million in unclaimed MoneyGram checks provides clarity for some issuers, but aspects of related common law remain uncertain and states may take the opportunity to pass multistate escheatment legislation, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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Justices Leave Questions Open On Dual-Purpose Atty Advice
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent dismissal of In re: Grand Jury on grounds that certiorari was improvidently granted leaves unresolved a circuit split over the proper test for deciding when attorney-client privilege protects a lawyer's advice that has multiple purposes, say Susan Combs and Richard Kiely at Holland & Hart.
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Biz Purchases In Nebraska, Lobsters In Maine: SALT In Review
From a proposed tax exemption on business purchases in Nebraska to an attempt to punish lobster boycotts in Maine, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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High Court Ax Of Atty-Client Privilege Case Deepens Split
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent dismissal of In re: Grand Jury as improvidently granted maintains a three-way circuit split on the application of attorney-client privilege to multipurpose communications, although the justices have at least shown a desire to address it, say Trey Bourn and Thomas DiStanislao at Butler Snow.
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Comparing NY And NJ Reverse False Claims Statutes
Michael Horn and Lilli Wofsy at Archer & Greiner examine the New York and New Jersey False Claims Acts that give private parties a right to file suits alleging failure to pay the government money, and important distinctions between these state statutes and the federal law that could protect companies facing lawsuits amid substantial incentives for private litigants.
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Ohio Tax Talk: Amnesty Or Voluntary Disclosure?
Ohio's governor recently signed legislation to allow a two-month tax amnesty if the revenue is needed, but considering Ohio's current tax surplus and the fact that many taxpayers would be precluded, those owing back taxes should consider whether voluntary disclosure remains a better option, say Raghav Agnihotri and Rachael Chamberlain at Frost Brown.
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Property In Pa. And Corporate Income In Mo.: SALT In Review
From the latest attempt to do away with Pennsylvania's property tax to an assault on Missouri's corporate income tax, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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The Forces Defining Sales Tax Policy And Compliance In 2023
In the coming year, expect to see tax policymakers grapple with the complexity of state and local tax compliance, cryptocurrency, metaverse transactions, and more, says Scott Peterson at Avalara.
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Start The Revolution Without Me: SALT In Review
From a sweeping push toward taxing the rich to a proposed tax review board in Indiana, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Atty-Client Privilege Arguments Give Justices A Moving Target
Recent oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in a case regarding the scope of the attorney-client privilege appeared to raise more questions about multipurpose counsel communications than they answered, as the parties presented shifting iterations of a predictable, easily applied test for evaluating the communications' purpose, say Trey Bourn and Thomas DiStanislao at Butler Snow.
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States Must Align Distribution Age Rules With Secure 2.0
To prevent unintended escheatment of retirement benefits, states will need to undertake legislative efforts to amend unclaimed property standards that conflict with the Secure 2.0 Act's required minimum distribution age increases, says Michael Giovannini at Alston & Bird.