State Tax 'Think Tankers'

Who will be the next generation of state tax 'think tankers'? 

We have had great leaders in the SALT profession, you know the group of thought leaders, national tax office prognosticators, prolific professors that tell us what each case means, that tell us the impact proposed legislation will have. They are the ones that tell us what legislation is 'good' and what legislation is 'bad.' They speak at every seminar. They write the articles we read. They handle the big cases. They provide advice to the largest corporations. They are the ones we look up to. 

We have enjoyed their leadership for decades. My question is, who is next? Who will lead us in the future? Will it be you? Will it be someone else?

Those of you who work tirelessly in large corporate tax departments, are you holding onto a wealth of knowledge that needs to be released? Are you looking for an outlet? Are you wanting the opportunity to raise your hand and voice?

Those of you who are learning the ropes in a large firm. Are you looking for an opportunity to speak your mind? To share your thoughts? To express what you are learning?

We all have visions of the future. Aspirations. Dreams. To make those dreams come true, we all have the same requirement - we must start where we are. 

We don't know who will be the next state tax 'think tankers.' But one thing we do know, it could be you.

When Will Your State Make Tax Law Changes?

If you are looking for some insight into 'when' your state will make tax law changes in 2016, I have provided a link to Multistate Associates schedule of state legislative session dates, and a Map of Current Legislative Sessions.

Let me know if you have any questions or any insights into what changes your state may make. Some of the hot topics or possibilities seem to be a continuation of prior years, depending on what your state has enacted in the past:

1. Imposing nexus on remote retailers for sales tax collection purposes
2. Market-Based Sourcing for apportionment of services
3. Combined Reporting
4. Single-Sales Factor apportionment
5. Tax Haven legislation
6. Transfer Pricing 
7. Addback legislation for related party expenses
8. Sales taxation of services
9. Credits and Incentives

Building the Innovation Nation

I provided a link to this site (govtech.com) yesterday in the LEVERAGE SALT LinkedIn group and got feedback that it was an interesting site. To help ensure you didn't miss it, I thought I would post a link via this blog as well.

WE ARE WHAT WE ALLOW

"We are what we allow" - if you watch Grey's Anatomy, then you may know I got this quote from last week's show. When Dr. Grey made the comment, I was like 'yes,' we are what we allow. If we allow others to treat us small, then we will be small. If we allow others to define who we are and what we do, then we will become that version of ourselves.

We have a choice. We have a daily decision. Are we going to be what we want to be? Or will we allow others to decide who we will be and how they treat us?

In regards to working in the state tax profession, whether you work in a corporate tax department, the Big 4 or a small regional firm, people in your department or partners will try to define who you are. They will treat you a certain way. You need to decide if you are okay with how they are treating you. Are you who you want to be? Is how they are treating you interfering with who you want to become? Just say no. Stop it today. Decide for yourself.

In regards to state taxation, corporations can get ran over by auditors, by unconstitutional laws, by unreasonable compliance deadlines and notices. Will you sit by and let it go on? Or will you stand up? Will you fight? Will you take action? Will your company defend itself? Will your company lobby for better policy? Will you take your audit issues to appeals? 

We are what we allow.

Peace.

THE GREATEST SALT CONSULTANT: MEASURING EFFORT

The Greatest SALT Consultant (GSC) does not use timesheets to manage staff. The GSC measures staff by results (and intangibles), not effort. 

Timesheets are a “crutch,” or replacement for poor project management and poor people management. There are other, more useful tools to manage projects and people (their called managers). Other tools could be a “SCORECARD” and “Project Management Report.”

Example “SCORECARD:”

• Pull your weight (complexity of work / volume of work / meeting deadlines for assigned work)
• Willingness to help others near deadlines (shifting of work / unassigned work)
• Identify tax process improvement ideas
• Identify tax savings ideas
• Work product requires less review time
• Positive attitude

What do you think?

If you are a client, are you paying for effort or results?

If you are a tax professional, are you measuring and managing effort or results? 

This is Part 3 of a Part 7 series. (Go here to read Part 1 and Part 2.)

THE GREATEST SALT CONSULTANT: WHAT ARE YOU SELLING?

The Greatest SALT Consultant (GSC) sells knowledge and solutions to improve cash flow and profit margin, and reduce the costs of doing business. The GSC does not sell time.

How you might ask? Through the identification of SALT issues and opportunities applicable to a client’s business, the GSC can:

• Mitigate exposure to assessments of back taxes, penalties or interest;
• Reduce audit assessments of taxes, penalties and interests;
• Obtain refunds of overpaid taxes;
• Stop payment of taxes not legally owed;

Example:
Scenario (a): GSC conducts 8 hours of research to answer your question.

Scenario (b): GSC conducts 1 hour of research to answer your question.

Which scenario is worth more to the client?

Answer: several factors determine the value of what GSC is providing in both scenarios, but the value is not based on how long it took GSC.

Would you want to buy a house that was built in six weeks or six months?

Or do you just want a house built to your specifications by a builder that keeps you informed and stays on schedule and on-budget? (note: the schedule and budget was agreed to upfront)

P.S.

I know some arrangements call for an hourly-billing arrangement due to an open-scope project, retainer agreement, etc. The point is, the value of what the GSC provides is not based on time, but based on the knowledge, guidance, solutions the GSC provides.

(this is PART 2 in a 7 part series) - Part 1 was last week.