Who is the 'villain' of state taxation?
Unfortunately, there isn't just one villain. The villain is made up of several items. Here are a few:
- unintended consequences of 'grey' legislation
- regulations that alter the intention of statutes
- computer generated notices that cause corporations to pay instead of challenge
- retroactive law changes to allow states to avoid paying refunds
- state budgets that can't balance without imposing unconstitutional taxes
- wasteful government programs that make it necessary to raise taxes
- companies not paying what they may legally owe because of bad tax policy and legislation
- companies being penalized for legally lowering their taxes
If there is a 'villain,' who is the hero?
We are the hero. By working together (corporate tax departments, state tax consultants and government officials / employees), we can create acceptable tax policy and legislation that balances state budgets in a constitutional manner, and causes corporations to pay what they legally owe without overreaching or unintended consequences.
When we don't work together, the villain gets stronger. The complexity grows. The unintended consequences of our actions go deeper. Being the hero requires cooperation. Do we have what it takes?