Local Tax – SALT Savvy

“Majority” Rules: California Court of Appeal Rules that Supermajority not Needed to Pass Voter Initiative Tax Measures

July 22, 2020 by Mike Shaikh and Nicole Ford 7 Mins Read

In City & County of San Francisco v. All Persons Interested in the Matter of Proposition C, Dkt. A158645 (Cal. App., June 30, 2020), the California Court of Appeal upheld Proposition C—a voter initiative that created a new local business tax in San Francisco. The court upheld the initiative that was enacted by a simple majority of electors. This ruling answers a question that was been heavily debated since the California Supreme Court’s decision in California Cannabis Coalition v. City of Upland, 3 Cal. 5th 924 (Cal. 2017). That is, do special taxes proposed by voter initiative require a supermajority of voters to pass? This decision expressly narrows the supermajority requirement to only those tax measures proposed directly by local governments and will likely trigger more tax initiatives proposed and passed by citizen groups.

Texas Comptroller’s Office Implements New Sourcing Rule for Internet Sales and Announces End of Internet Access Tax

June 23, 2020 by Stephen Long and Jimmy Lucas 6 Mins Read

As the weather is heating up, the Texas tax front continues to bring hot and exciting developments in the Lone Star State. Two of the latest updates usher in a change to the sourcing of local sales tax for certain internet sales and the end of Texas’s internet access tax. Internet Sales The Texas Comptroller has adopted amended regulations under 34 Tex. Admin. Code § 3.34 relating to the location where an internet order is…

State and Local Tax Responses to COVID-19: Relief from Withholding Requirements for Telecommuting Employees

April 7, 2020 by Bobby Albaral, Ted Bots, Scott Brandman, Maria Eberle, Lindsay LaCava, Stephen Long, David Pope, Mike Shaikh, Mark Yopp, Nicole Ford, Dmitrii Gabrielov, Rob Galloway, Drew Hemmings, Garrett Kinkelaar, Jimmy Lucas, Trevor Mauck, Kelsey Muraoka, Roman Patzner, Katherine Piazza and Michael Tedesco 3 Mins Read

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.

State and Local Tax Responses to COVID-19: States Grapple with CARES Act Conformity; Additional States Extend Tax Filing and Payment Deadlines; State Tax Tribunals Postpone Hearings

April 1, 2020 by Bobby Albaral, Ted Bots, Scott Brandman, Maria Eberle, Lindsay LaCava, Stephen Long, David Pope, Mike Shaikh, Mark Yopp, Nicole Ford, Dmitrii Gabrielov, Rob Galloway, Drew Hemmings, Garrett Kinkelaar, Jimmy Lucas, Trevor Mauck, Kelsey Muraoka, Roman Patzner, Katherine Piazza and Michael Tedesco 9 Mins Read

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.