Features

Why Wayfair Won’t Matter
Supreme Court case raises ‘substantial nexus’ controversy in internet age, capturing attention of tax specialists—and the public

The state tax community is in familiar territory before the Supreme Court of the United States.1 We are in far less familiar territory, however, having captured the attention of nontax professionals, academics, the American public, and even the president of the United States.2 The eyes of the nation are fixed… Read more »

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Tax Reform: An Opportunity for State Tax Credit and Incentives
Make sure you don’t leave valuable benefits on the table

On December 22, 2017, President Donald Trump signed the most comprehensive federal tax reform package in three decades.1 Whereas media reports focused mostly on how tax reform would affect businesses and individuals, to tax professionals it quickly became apparent that reform would spur increased state and local tax credits and… Read more »

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Reforming SALT—Assessing the Impact of Tax Reform on States
Since each state has its own approach to corporate taxation, impacts are likely to vary

Unless you have very recently awakened from a lengthy hibernation (and if you have, we hope it was restful), you are no doubt familiar with the federal tax reform bill known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (hereinafter called “federal tax reform”), the most comprehensive tax legislation passed since… Read more »

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TEI Interview: Douglas Bramhall
TEI gains insight into the new California Office of Tax Appeals

The California Office of Tax Appeals, made effective in July 2017, was created to provide increased transparency and an expedited appeals process for taxpayers in the state. To get an inside look at how the new agency was doing, we interviewed Douglas Bramhall, one of the administrative law judges who… Read more »

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Fair Is Fair—How to Assert For and Defend Against Alternative Apportionment
Alternative apportionment presents opportunities and challenges for taxpayers

The concept of apportionment in state taxation is an exception to the rule that life can be unfair. State apportionment must be fair. A wooden reading of a generally applicable apportionment law may not stand if that law yields an unfair result in a particular case. Alternative apportionment exists to… Read more »

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TEI Roundtable No. 18: The State Tax Policy Function
Whether it’s part of the tax department or part of government affairs, one thing is for sure—it’s getting more complicated every day

These days state tax policy occupies a greater percentage of the professional lives of many TEI members for a variety of reasons. We wanted to dive deep into this phenomenon, so we convened a roundtable of seasoned practitioners in the field, including Ellen Berenholz, executive director of tax policy at… Read more »

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TEI Roundtable No. 17: The View From the Corner Office: What Keeps Them Up at Night?
It’s tax reform, international issues, succession planning, growth versus risk, and dealing with multiple stakeholders and interested parties, including the media—to name just a few

While some might envy the corporate tax vice presidents and senior counsel who occupy the corner office, there’s no denying they have a difficult job, one that is subject to increasing pressures due to changes in tax laws and to increasing media and public interest in tax issues. To get… Read more »

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Nuts, Bolts, and Nuances of the Competent Authority Process
Relief is provided in most cases, but pitfalls and new issues are multiplying

The competent authority procedure is a dispute resolution mechanism available to taxpayers facing cross-border disputes under an applicable tax treaty. The taxpayer may invoke this procedure to require the tax administration’s competent authority function to “endeavor” to resolve the dispute by “mutual agreement” with its counterpart in the treaty partner… Read more »

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Tax-Efficient Supply Chain in Shadow of Tax Reform
GILTI, FDII, and BEAT: they’re not just acronyms—they require reassessing tax consequences of existing supply chain structures

For the past quarter century the same legal framework and economic incentives have driven how multinational corporations structure their supply chains. Relatively high U.S. corporate rates incentivized companies to locate valuable assets and operations in lower-taxed jurisdictions; the United States’ worldwide tax regime incentivized retaining and reinvesting those earnings outside… Read more »

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Anatomy of a Multijurisdictional Dispute
Recent tax reform presents additional considerations

Demands on tax executives have never been higher. Whereas international tax rules have always been complex, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan and now U.S. tax reform introduce new levels of complexity and uncertainty. At the same time, sensational media coverage… Read more »

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