Many employees are now telecommuting due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In our previous blog post, we discussed employers’ potential withholding issues as a result of employees working remotely. In this blog post, we will discuss potential nexus and apportionment issues due to employees working remotely.
With many employees now telecommuting due to the COVID-19 outbreak, employers could face additional state income tax withholding requirements if their employees telecommute from a different state than the one in which they typically work. However, a few states are starting to announce temporary withholding relief in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
States and local jurisdictions continue to grapple with novel tax issues in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. On Friday, March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”), a $2 trillion federal stimulus package to provide fiscal relief in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. The CARES Act includes numerous tax relief provisions. States will need to consider whether, and how, they will conform to the federal provisions.
The World Health Organization has officially declared the coronavirus outbreak to be a pandemic. In addition to the cost on human life, the rapid spread of COVID-19 has left a trail of economic damage affecting business revenues. COVID-19 has caused complete or partial shutdown of factories, supply chain disruptions, and labor shortages, and has impacted demand in certain industries. This impact will also be felt by U.S. state, and local governments.