the Villain of State Taxation

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?

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.)