A case on appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court from the South Dakota Supreme Court should be on your watch list. It involves Ellingson Drainage, Inc., a general contractor headquartered in Minnesota that specializes in installing...more
As we strive to do annually, here is a summary of the major items of business tax legislation that have been introduced or we expect to be introduced during the 2024 regular session, which began February 6. From a tax and...more
Law firms periodically receive requests for advice from CPAs regarding a client’s need to come into compliance with the relatively new and sometimes confusing “economic nexus” or “Wayfair” rules for selling goods or providing...more
12/6/2023
/ Compliance ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Internet Retailers ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Out-of-State Companies ,
Sales & Use Tax ,
SCOTUS ,
South Dakota v. Wayfair ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Substantial Nexus ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning
In 2021, the Alabama Legislature unanimously enacted an elective pass-through entity tax (PTE Tax) as a workaround to the so-called “SALT Cap,” which was part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The Alabama Electing...more
7/12/2023
/ Alabama ,
Department of Revenue ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
PTEs ,
SALT ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Returns
We summarize here what we believe are the top 5 Alabama tax cases decided in the past year that would interest our CPA readers. Not surprisingly, almost all are Alabama Tax Tribunal rulings, so in those instances we deleted...more
Readers may recall that the Alabama Legislature unanimously enacted an elective pass-through entity tax (PTE Tax) last year as a workaround to the so-called “SALT Cap,” which was part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The...more
6/27/2022
/ Alabama ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Local Taxes ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
SALT ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Returns
Because 2022 is an election year, the start date for the Alabama Legislature’s regular session comes early: Tuesday, January 11. As we do annually, here are some unofficial prognostications on the major items of tax...more
12/17/2021
/ Alabama ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Local Taxes ,
Sales & Use Tax ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Legislation
Earlier this year, Alabama became one of 19 or so states to enact a pass-through entity tax as a workaround to the so-called "SALT Cap" enacted as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which limits the deductibility of...more
11/15/2021
/ Alabama ,
Department of Revenue ,
Income Taxes ,
IRS ,
Local Taxes ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
SALT ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Returns ,
U.S. Treasury
Earlier this year, Alabama became one of 19 or so states to enact a pass-through entity tax as a workaround to the so-called “SALT Cap” enacted as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that limits the deductibility of...more
9/7/2021
/ Alabama ,
Department of Revenue ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Partnerships ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Proposed Rules ,
S-Corporation ,
Shareholders ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions
In August, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service issued final regulations on the deductibility of payments of cash or in-kind donations to certain tax-exempt organizations if the donor receives in...more
12/18/2020
/ Business Entities ,
Donations ,
Donors ,
IRS ,
New Regulations ,
PTEs ,
Safe Harbors ,
Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Exempt Entities ,
Year-End Tax Planning
As we noted in our previous SALT Alert, on October 1 the Alabama Department of Revenue (ADOR) quietly posted a notice on its website and shared it with media outlets that received little notoriety – at least initially. The...more
The Alabama Department of Revenue (ADOR) posted a notice on their website on October 1 that escaped the attention of most media outlets and probably many businesses and their CPAs around the state of Alabama. For the first...more
How is taxable income determined in your state? To what extent is the state income tax base aligned with the federal income tax base?
Alabama levies a corporate income tax on business entities classified as taxable or “C”...more
10/12/2020
/ C-Corporation ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Department of Revenue ,
Exemptions ,
Filing Requirements ,
Franchise Taxes ,
Income Taxes ,
Nexus ,
S-Corporation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Rates
On March 13, 2020, President Trump issued an emergency declaration in response to the ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Recognizing the rapidly evolving state of affairs and the harm to individuals and to...more
3/23/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Income Taxes ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Leave ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Credits
In a case of first impression, an Alabama circuit court recently ordered a taxpayer to pay the auditing fees that a private auditing firm normally would charge to its local government clients. Initially, the court ordered the...more
As previously reported, during the recent legislative session the Alabama Legislature finally resolved the so-called “Moody Issue,” named after the taxpayer victory in Moody v. Alabama Department of Revenue, regarding the...more
6/12/2018
/ Department of Revenue ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Income Taxes ,
Personal Property ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Public Hearing ,
Rental Tax ,
State and Local Government ,
Tangible Property ,
Tax Amnesty ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Penalties ,
Tax Refunds
Gov. Kay Ivey signed House Bill 384, into law last Wednesday, March 28, ending a debate that has lasted for almost a decade over the scope of the individual income tax credit for certain taxes paid to other states. ...more
Many predicted that the 2018 regular session of the Alabama Legislature would be less eventful than in years past since members of the House of Representatives and Senate are up for re-election this year, and most lawmakers...more
3/20/2018
/ Delinquency Status ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Income Taxes ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Local Taxes ,
Municipal Taxes ,
Proposed Legislation ,
SALT ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Amnesty ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Deductions ,
Veterans
To the surprise of many, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the State of South Dakota’s petition for writ of certiorari in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. et al., No. 17-494, on January 12. The case involves the constitutionality...more
2/13/2018
/ Case Consolidation ,
Economic Presence Nexus ,
Internet Retailers ,
Online Sales Tax ,
Out-of-State Companies ,
Overstock.com ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Physical Presence Test ,
Quill ,
Retail Market ,
Retailers ,
SCOTUS ,
South Dakota v. Wayfair ,
State and Local Government
Alabama local governments are combatting revenue losses and concomitant budget issues primarily because of the loss of their sales tax base to online sellers and because of their citizens’ demand for more or increasingly...more
1/29/2018
/ AL Supreme Court ,
Appeals ,
Business Licenses ,
Business Privilege Tax ,
E-Commerce ,
Exports ,
Imports ,
Internet Retailers ,
Municipalities ,
Out-of-State Companies ,
Retail Market ,
State and Local Government ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Appeals ,
Tax Assessment ,
Tax Revenues
The well-respected Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA), the non-profit think tank headquartered at Samford University in Birmingham, recently published its periodic report, How Alabama Taxes Compare, which...more
Two weeks ago, the Baldwin County Circuit Court entered an order dismissing the Alabama Department of Revenue’s (ADOR) appeal from the February 2017 decision by the Alabama Tax Tribunal in Moody v. Alabama Department of...more
The Alabama Legislature adjourned late Friday, May 19, with several tax bills crossing the finish line during the final week (and many on the last day). Both the Education Trust Fund and General Fund budgets were passed by...more
The House and Senate have each met a total of six legislative days thus far. There are therefore 24 legislative days remaining in the 2017 Regular Session. The House will reconvene on Tuesday, February 28 at 1:00 p.m. The...more
2/28/2017
/ Constitutional Amendment ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Dentists ,
Department of Revenue ,
Excise Tax ,
Gross Receipts Tax ,
Legislative Agendas ,
License Fees ,
Lottery ,
Lump Sum Payments ,
Minimum Wage ,
Municipalities ,
Pending Legislation ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Property Tax ,
Sales & Use Tax ,
Sellers ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Deferral ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Tax Preparers ,
Tribal-State Gaming Compacts ,
Water Districts
The 2017 legislative session begins February 7th in Montgomery, and we expect several tax-related proposals to be considered during the session. Our readers may recall that the 2016 session ended with no long-term plan in...more
1/13/2017
/ Department of Revenue ,
Infrastructure ,
Internet Retailers ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Nexus ,
Out-of-State Companies ,
Prison ,
Sales Tax ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Reform