State & Local
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September 20, 2024
NY Sales Tax Applies To Use Of Portal Software, Dept. Says
New York state and local sales taxes apply to charges for the use of a web portal host's software by customers and applicants, the state tax department said, finding the charges constitute the sale of prewritten software.
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September 20, 2024
NJ Explains Sales Tax Reduction Phaseout For EVs
New Jersey will subject zero-emission vehicles to a reduced sales tax starting Oct. 1, before increasing the levy in 2025, the state Division of Taxation said as part of an FAQ page released Friday that specified other tax changes.
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September 20, 2024
NJ Resident Owes NY Tax For Remote Work During COVID
A vice president of an investment fund with a New York office owes income tax to that state for days he worked from home in New Jersey during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, a New York administrative law judge determined.
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September 20, 2024
NY Tax Dept. Says Biz's Data Services Subject To Sales Tax
A mobile and web analytics company in New York must collect and remit state and local sales tax for its services, according to the state Department of Taxation and Finance.
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September 20, 2024
NY Auctioneer Can't Lower Tax Bill After Price Drop
An auction house can't exclude payment reductions that are granted to a successful irrevocable bidder from its receipts subject to sales tax, the New York state taxation department said.
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September 20, 2024
IRS Special Trial Attorney Joins Hochman Salkin In California
When Hochman Salkin Toscher Perez PC's newest principal, Sebastian Voth, was studying at Emory University School of Law, a former chief counsel for the Internal Revenue Service told students that the IRS was a great place to start their careers. After 15 years as an IRS attorney, Voth found that the agency was also a great place to work, he told Law360 Pulse in an interview Friday.
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September 20, 2024
La. Tax Agency Expands Informal Payment Plans
Louisiana taxpayers with less than $50,000 in taxes due will be able to pay over five years in an informal installment plan, the state Department of Revenue said in a rule that will increase the current threshold.
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September 20, 2024
Nev. Tax Agency Allows Penalty Waivers Due To Agent Errors
The Nevada Department of Taxation can decide to waive penalties and interest for late payments from a taxpayer if the payment was late because of an error made by a taxpayer's agent, the state tax commission said in an updated regulation.
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September 20, 2024
NY Biz Out-Of-State Email Services Not Taxable, Dept. Says
A New York business that subscribes to an out-of-state email hosting service doesn't need to pay sales tax, the state tax department said, as taxing such services isn't allowed under the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act.
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September 20, 2024
NY Curtain Walls Subject To Sales Tax, Dept. Says
Tax is owed on the sales of curtain walls to a contractor for installation in New York buildings regardless of whether the installations constituted capital improvements to the properties, the state tax department said in an advisory opinion.
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September 20, 2024
NY Tobacco And Vapor Taxes Apply To Man's Product Sales
A New Yorker owes the tobacco excise tax and a 20% supplemental tax on vapor products on his sales of product that are similar to electronic cigarettes, the state Department of Taxation and Finance said.
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September 20, 2024
Miss. Revenue Through Aug. Up $3M From Last Year
Mississippi's revenue collection from July through August exceeded last year's total for that period by $3 million, according to the state Department of Revenue.
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September 20, 2024
Mass. Offering Tax Amnesty In November, December
Massachusetts will grant amnesty in November and December to certain delinquent taxpayers under a program authorized by the Legislature, the state Department of Revenue said.
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September 20, 2024
Ill. Revenue Through Aug. Tops Forecast By $245M
Illinois revenue for the first two months of the 2025 fiscal year totaled $245 million more than estimated, according to the Office of Management of Budget.
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September 20, 2024
Taxation With Representation: Gibson Dunn, Holland & Knight
In this week's Taxation With Representation, CACI International buys Azure Summit Technology, Hotel Engine lands a valuation led by Permira, and Knowles Corp. sells its microphone business to Syntiant Corp.
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September 20, 2024
NY Food Waste Removal Taxable, Department Says
Food waste removal from grocery stores, restaurants and other locations is taxable for a New York contractor because the waste has no value, so the service does not qualify as tax-exempt transportation, the state tax department said.
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September 20, 2024
Ore. Couple Denied Tax Deduction For Below-Market Rentals
An Oregon couple were correctly denied income tax deductions for expenses related to rental properties, the state tax court said, because they did not charge the renters market rates, disqualifying the rentals as income-producing properties.
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September 20, 2024
NY Sales Tax Doesn't Apply To Woman's Travel Business
A New York woman who runs a travel business does not need to collect sales tax on the fees she charges for her planning and concierge services, the state Department of Taxation and Finance said.
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September 19, 2024
Ch. 7 Trustee Urges Justices To Uphold Return Of Taxes
The bankruptcy trustee of a defunct Utah transportation company warned the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday that overturning a decision forcing the IRS to return tax payments made by company directors to cover their personal debts would encourage shareholder fraud.
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September 19, 2024
Illinois Voters To Weigh In On Nonbinding Income Surtax
Illinois voters will get to weigh in on whether the state should amend its constitution to create a 3% surtax on millionaire income to fund property tax relief, according to a nonbinding measure the Legislature has referred to the November ballot.
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September 19, 2024
Nev. Clarifies Tax Recordkeeping Rules For Escort Services
Nevada will implement a statutory requirement that the full amount charged for and recorded by an escort service must not include deductions for service costs, interest, losses, gratuities or other expenses, according to updated regulations approved by the state tax commission.
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September 19, 2024
Nev. Nixes Regs To Implement Scrapped Insurance Tax Break
The Nevada Tax Commission has approved the repeal of regulations to implement previously enacted legislation that eliminated a credit against the state's general tax on insurance premiums, according to a notice published in the state register.
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September 19, 2024
Calif. Says FDIC's $20M Tax Refund Bid Must Wait
A California tax collection agency asked a New York federal court to throw out Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. claims seeking a more than $20 million tax refund on behalf of the shuttered Signature Bank, saying the agency is entitled to wait for a potential IRS audit to end.
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September 19, 2024
Nev. Board Explains Commerce Tax Filing Break For Small Biz
Nevada no longer requires small businesses that are exempt from commerce tax to file commerce tax returns, the state Tax Commission explained.
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September 19, 2024
Nev. Reg Explains Expansion Of Voluntary Disclosures
More Nevada taxpayers are able to voluntarily disclose their failures to file taxes to the state tax commission under a new regulation.
Expert Analysis
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Reading Between The Lines Of Justices' Moore Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent Moore v. U.S. decision, that the Internal Revenue Code Section 965 did not violate the 16th Amendment, was narrowly tailored to minimally disrupt existing tax regimes, but the justices' various opinions leave the door open to future tax challenges and provide clues for what the battles may look like, say Caroline Ngo and Le Chen at McDermott.
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A Midyear Forecast: Tailwinds Expected For Atty Hourly Rates
Hourly rates for partners, associates and support staff continued to rise in the first half of this year, and this growth shows no signs of slowing for the rest of 2024 and into next year, driven in part by the return of mergers and acquisitions and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, says Chuck Chandler at Valeo Partners.
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Another Crack In The Shield: SALT In Review
From the latest assault on a federal shield against taxing out-of-state businesses to an update on beer taxes, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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States Should Loosen Law Firm Ownership Restrictions
Despite growing buzz, normalized nonlawyer ownership of law firms is a distant prospect, so the legal community should focus first on liberalizing state restrictions on attorney and firm purchases of practices, which would bolster succession planning and improve access to justice, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.
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Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice
The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.
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How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts
As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.
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A Tale Of 2 Trump Cases: The Rule Of Law Is A Live Issue
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision this week in Trump v. U.S., holding that former President Donald Trump has broad immunity from prosecution, undercuts the rule of law, while the former president’s New York hush money conviction vindicates it in eight key ways, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.
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Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron
The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.
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3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron
The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem
The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.
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Less Power To The People: SALT In Review
Starting with a measure that won't appear on the California ballot in November, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule
Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.
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6 Tips For Maximizing After-Tax Returns In Private M&A Deals
With potential tax legislation likely to spur a surge in private business sales, sellers can make the most of after-tax proceeds with strategies that include price allocation and qualified investment options, say Isaac Grossman and Daniel Studin at Morrison Cohen.