State & Local
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May 05, 2025
Calif. Couple Lose Tax Fight Over Out-Of-State Credits
The California Franchise Tax Board correctly reduced the amount of out-of-state tax credits it allowed a couple to claim, the state's Office of Tax Appeals ruled, saying they failed to provide evidence to the contrary.
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May 05, 2025
Trump Admin Defends Tariff Power In Toy-Makers' Challenge
President Donald Trump's administration urged a D.C. federal court to deny a request by toy companies to halt global tariffs, arguing the government is authorized to impose trade measures under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
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May 05, 2025
Hawaii Legislature OKs Increase To Transient Lodging Tax
Hawaii would increase its transient accommodation tax and use the additional revenue to fund climate change mitigation efforts in the state under a bill passed by the Legislature and sent to the governor.
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May 05, 2025
Fla. Voters To Decide On Property Tax Exemption For Ag Land
Florida will have voters decide via a statewide ballot measure during the state's next general election on a proposed amendment to the state constitution to exempt property on designated agricultural land from taxes under a House joint resolution approved by lawmakers.
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May 05, 2025
Colo. Senate Approves Employee Biz Ownership Tax Breaks
Colorado would allow new tax breaks, including a $1 million state income tax deduction, to promote employee ownership of businesses under legislation the state Senate approved Monday.
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May 05, 2025
Mass. Income Tax Cap Plan Halted By Legislative Panel
A proposal for a Massachusetts ballot measure to cap the state's income tax rate at 6.25% was stalled by a state legislative panel.
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May 05, 2025
Ariz. Gov. Vetoes Tax Law Change, Warns Of Political Risks
Legislation to mandate that Arizona's tax department notify lawmakers if a proposed new interpretation or application of law would adversely affect taxpayers was vetoed by Gov. Katie Hobbs.
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May 02, 2025
Charter Ineligible For Tech Tax Break, NY Tells Appeals Court
New York's tax agency urged a state appeals court to affirm its determination that Charter Communications Inc. is ineligible for a reduced tax rate offered to certain technology businesses because some members of its combined group didn't have property in the state.
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May 02, 2025
State & Local Tax Takeaways From April
The federal law that shields businesses from a state's tax on net income when their only business activities in that state are soliciting orders of tangible personal property was the focus of significant attention in April. Those events were part of another busy month in the state and local tax world. Here, Law360 presents state and local tax developments to know from the past month.
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May 02, 2025
Alabama Exempts Aircraft, Parts From Sales And Use Taxes
Alabama will exempt qualifying aircraft and aircraft parts from state sales and use taxes under a bill signed by the governor.
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May 02, 2025
Calif. Cannabis Excise Tax To Rise By 4 Percentage Points
The California cannabis excise tax on gross receipts from retail sales of cannabis will increase from 15% to 19% as a part of a law requiring the rate be adjusted every two years, the state Department of Tax and Fee Administration announced Friday.
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May 02, 2025
Mass. Board Knocks $36K Off Senior Condo's Tax Valuation
A Massachusetts senior condominium unit was overvalued by $36,000, the state Appellate Tax Board ruled in an opinion released Friday, saying the owner's comparable sales analysis showed the property's valuation was inconsistent with the other properties.
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May 02, 2025
Miss. Justices Agree Gas Co.'s Freight Charges Not Taxable
The Mississippi Department of Revenue didn't have the authority to tax freight charges paid by a gas transportation company to a third party because they were part of a separate transaction and not the overall purchase, the state Supreme Court ruled.
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May 02, 2025
Mass. Board Upholds Home's Valuation Despite Comparables
A Massachusetts homeowner cannot have the value of her home lowered after failing to account for the differences between her home and the comparable sales she provided, the state tax appeals board said in a ruling released Friday.
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May 02, 2025
White House Budget Seeks $2.5B Cut From IRS Funding
The Internal Revenue Service's budget would be cut by nearly $2.5 billion compared with 2025 under the 2026 budget request released Friday by President Donald Trump's administration.
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May 02, 2025
Arkansas Dept. Says General Revenue Down From Last Year
Arkansas general revenue collection from July through April fell below the same time period last year by nearly $225 million, the state Department of Finance and Administration said Friday.
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May 02, 2025
Taxation With Representation: Goodwin, Haynes Boone
In this week's Taxation With Representation, Merck buys SpringWorks Therapeutics, Novartis AG acquires Regulus Therapeutics Inc., Sabre Corp. sells its Hospitality Solutions business to private equity shop TPG, and TWG Global and Mubadala Capital team up to bolster their investments.
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May 02, 2025
Fla. Net Revenue Through March Beat Estimates By $28M
Florida's net revenue collection from July through March exceeded forecasts by $28 million, according to a report from the state's Office of Economic and Demographic Research.
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May 02, 2025
West Virginia Revenues Beat Forecast By $237M
West Virginia's general fund revenue from July through April exceeded estimates by $237 million but lagged behind last year during the same period by $111 million, according to a report by the state Budget Office.
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May 02, 2025
Ala. Couple Can't Deduct Costs Incurred Before Biz Operated
A couple who own a running merchandise business in Alabama can't claim a deduction for business expenses incurred before the business was operational, the Alabama Tax Tribunal ruled.
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May 02, 2025
Michigan Income Tax Rate Cut Triggers Weren't Hit, State Says
Michigan's personal income tax rate will remain at 4.25% for tax year 2025 because revenue triggers that can temporarily reduce the rate weren't hit for the prior fiscal year, the state Department of Treasury said.
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May 01, 2025
PepsiCo Owes $2.1M In Tax Penalties, Illinois Panel Affirms
PepsiCo was correctly assessed $2.1 million in penalties for categorizing Frito-Lay expatriates' compensation as foreign payroll that would allow the company's profits to be excluded from state income tax calculations, according to an Illinois Appellate Court panel.
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May 01, 2025
Uber Needed To Collect Tax Pre-Wayfair, Ga. Panel Affirms
Uber was required to collect and remit millions in sales taxes on behalf of drivers and customers who used its app before the Wayfair decision, a Georgia appellate panel held Thursday, ruling against the ride-hailing company and upholding a trial court decision.
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May 01, 2025
Va. Delays Tax Deadlines For Those Hit By Feb. Flooding
Virginia will allow taxpayers who were affected by winter storms and severe flooding in February until the end of this year to file state tax returns and payments, the Department of Taxation said Thursday.
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May 01, 2025
Colo. Fees Don't Violate TABOR, Appeals Panel Says
The enterprise fees in Colorado's state transportation package passed in 2021 do not violate the state's Taxpayer Bill of Rights, a state appeals court said Thursday, upholding a district court ruling and rejecting a challenge from a conservative group.
Expert Analysis
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How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case
The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.
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Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content
From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.
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Tax Assessment: Recapping Georgia's Legislative Session
Jonathan Feldman and Alla Raykin at Eversheds Sutherland examine tax-related changes from Georgia’s General Assembly — such as the governor’s successful push to accelerate income tax cuts — and suggest steps to take before certain tax incentives are challenged in the state's next legislative session.
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Geothermal Energy Has Growing Potential In The US
Bipartisan support for the geothermal industry shows that geothermal energy can be an elegant solution toward global decarbonization efforts because of its small footprint, low supply chain risk, and potential to draw on the skills of existing highly specialized oil and gas workers and renewable specialists, say attorneys at Weil.
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Bad Ideas That Won't Go Away: SALT In Review
From California's latest move toward a digital ad tax to Kansas' proposed tax credits for film production, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.
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Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance
A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.
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Trump Hush Money Case Offers Master Class In Trial Strategy
The New York criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump typifies some of the greatest challenges that lawyers face in crafting persuasive presentations, providing lessons on how to handle bad facts, craft a simple story that withstands attack, and cross-examine with that story in mind, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System
As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data
Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Kentucky Tax Talk: Budget Focus Cools Tax Reform Efforts
There were some noteworthy tax developments during Kentucky’s legislative session — like the revival of local tax reform and enactment of another tax amnesty program — but major tax initiatives, like those seen in recent years, were largely tabled as legislators focused on establishing the state’s two-year budget, say attorneys at Frost Brown.
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NY Tax Talk: Primary Function Is Key Analysis For Sales Tax
Two sales tax cases recently decided by New York's Appellate Division illustrate why both taxpayers and the state's Department of Revenue subscribe to the primary function test, a logical way to determine whether business transactions are subject to sales tax, say Elizabeth Cha and Jeremy Gove at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Time To Fix NYC's Broken Property Assessment System
A New York appellate court's decision to revive Tax Equity Now New York v. City of New York may force the city to revamp its outdated and unfair real estate tax assessment system, which could be fixed with a couple of simple changes, says Seth Feldman at Romer Debbas.
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Strange Notions Bubble Up: SALT In Review
From an assault on North Carolina's phaseout of its corporate income tax to a court ruling on the taxability of sparkling water in Pennsylvania, RSM's David Brunori offers his thoughts on noteworthy state and local tax news.