COMBINED REPORTING ON THE CLOCK IN NEW JERSEY

A bill (S 61) was introduced in the New Jersey Senate on January 12, 2016 that would require combined reporting of the corporation business tax by certain members of unitary business groups. 

According to the media, the version of the bill on New Jersey's legislature website is not accurate. The new version of the bill includes a water's-edge election and language regarding tax havens.

You may recall that a New Jersey think tank recommended New Jersey adopt combined reporting last year. The think tank estimated that New Jersey is losing out on $200 million per year to more than $400 million in tax revenue per year due to multistate corporations shifting profits out of state.

According to a New Jersey Senator, "by closing this loophole, we would end unfair -- and often unscrupulous -- tax avoidance on the part of multi-state (and in many cases multi-national) companies. In short, it's not a tax increase we're after, it's tax fairness."

The bill itself describes combined reporting as an "enhanced compliance tool." The bill also states:

"Most large businesses are structured as a family of corporations, commonly consisting of a “parent” corporation and its subsidiaries. Many corporate tax shelters depend on the relationship, or legal distance, among related corporations. Combined reporting, by effectively treating the parent and most or all of its subsidiaries as a single corporation for state income tax purposes. wipes out the intercorporate transactions that effectuate these shelters.

More than half of the states with corporate income taxes have adopted combined reporting. A major reason for states' growing interest is their recognition of how badly corporate tax shelters that exploit separate reporting are eroding state corporate income tax payments. Corporations have devised a wide variety of strategies to artificially shift profits to out-of-state subsidiaries to reduce their tax liabilities. Combined reporting largely squelches these strategies by enabling a state to tax a fair share of the profit that would otherwise be shifted into a related, out-of-state corporation.

New Jersey has been a leader in combating avoidance techniques by “traditional” means: case-by-case litigation of particular transactions and the development of anti-shelter legislation targeting classes of abusive inter-corporate arrangements. These traditional means are time consuming and labor intensive. Combined reporting, which eliminates most profit-shifting strategies, can be an important component of maintaining a fair and effective state corporate income tax."

State legislatures often use these arguments to persuade other members of the state government to enact combined reporting. However, these efforts can backfire and cause large corporations to leave the state (i.e., Connecticut combined reporting and General Electric).

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. 

INDIANA: THINKING ABOUT COMBINED REPORTING

The Indiana Senate introduced a bill (SB 323) on January 7, 2016 that would require taxpayers conducting a unitary business to file and pay adjusted gross income taxes on the combined income of the unitary group, effective January 1, 2017. 

However, the bill (SB 323) was amended on January 28, 2016 to study combined reporting instead of enact combined reporting. The amended bill requires the legislative services agency to:

1. study the combined reporting approach to apportioning income for income tax purposes; and
2. report the results of the study before October 1, 2016, to the legislative council and to the interim study committee on fiscal policy.

The bill also requires the interim study committee on fiscal policy to hold at least one public hearing at which the legislative services agency presents the results of the study.

As of today, the bill passed the Indiana Senate and has been referred to the House.

THE GREATEST SALT CONSULTANT: "ONE-HIT WONDER"

Question: What makes a remarkable state and local tax consultant or client experience?

Over the next 7 weeks, I will share one of the 7 best practices of being "the Greatest SALT Consultant" or GSC each week. Here is this week's.

Strategic Partner or  “One-Hit Wonder”

My first point, based on years of experience, is that state and local tax consultants should seek to be strategic partners with their clients, not be a “one-hit wonders.” Meaning, the Greatest SALT Consultant (GSC), should be someone that develops strong relationships with their clients. Through those relationships, the GSC will gain a deeper understanding of his or her client’s, or prospective client’s business, and be in a better position to provide practical, customized SALT solutions.

The opposite of the GSC is a “one-hit wonder,” or a SALT consultant that “hits up” clients with the “idea of the day.” This SALT consultant is more focused on meeting his or her personal/firm goals instead of focusing on solving the client’s problem with the most practical solution.

The “one-hit wonder” is here today, gone tomorrow; not only before or after a project, but sometimes even during a project. As a client, you can be “in the dark” as to the status of the project, what the consultant is finding, and what the potential solutions are (this should not happen).

The GSC provides updates throughout the project to the client, and advises them as to changes or alternative solutions that arise.

Have you experienced a "one-hit wonder"?

Rhode Island Re-Issues Proposed Combined Reporting Regulations

Rhode Island has re-issued (updated) proposed combined reporting regulations. A public hearing to consider the proposed regulation will be held on February 22, 2016 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time at the Rhode Island Division of Taxation, One Capitol Hill, Providence, Rhode Island.

Written or oral comments concerning the proposed regulations may be submitted to Michael F. Canole, Rhode Island Division of Taxation, One Capitol Hill, Providence, R.I. 02908 or via his telephone number (401) 574-8729 or e-mail: michael.canole@tax.ri.gov. by February 22, 2016. 

The following is a high-level summary (from the preamble of the proposed regulations). 

Staying the Same

The Division of Taxation has carried forward a number of elements of Regulation CT 11-15 into the new proposed regulations:  

For example:

• Definitions of certain key terms – including “combined group” and “common ownership” – remain the same or substantially the same as in the prior regulation.
• The basic approach to determining the composition of a combined group is largely the same.
• Water’s edge” treatment is mandatory.
• The basic approach to determining the unitary business remains the same – relying largely on tests set forth in certain U.S. Supreme Court cases.
• For Rhode Island combined reporting purposes, an affiliated group is still able to elect to use the same members that the affiliated group includes in filing its federal consolidated return.
• A tracing protocol applies to net operating losses (NOLs).
• A tracing protocol applies to tax credits.
• The combined group still must appoint a designated agent. The agent is required to act on behalf of the combined group in its own name in all matters related to the combined return.
• For a combined group filing on extension, the extended due date will be seven months after the normal filing deadline. Thus, for a combined group whose return is due March 15, the deadline will be October 15.

Differences

The proposed regulation differs from the pro forma regulation in a number of ways,
partly due to changes in statute.

For example:

• While “water’s edge” treatment continues to be mandatory, and the basic approach to determining the composition of a combined group is largely the same, the following regulation incorporates a definition of the term “tax haven” to reflect the definition in statute. As a result, certain corporations may or may not have to be included in the combined group.
• Under the regulation for pro forma combined reporting, corporations had to apportion income using two methods that are named for seminal California court cases: the Joyce and Finnigan methods. As the following regulation spells out, only the Finnigan method is now used for apportionment by entities that are treated as C corporations for federal income tax purposes.
• When the prior regulation was promulgated, three-factor apportionment applied, using sales (total receipts), property, and payroll. However, for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, a single factor – sales (total receipts) – is used for apportionment purposes by entities that are treated as C corporations for federal income tax purposes, whether or not part of a combined group.
• When the prior regulation was promulgated, the sales factor forapportionment purposes was determined by C corporations using the cost-of-performance method. However, for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, market-based sourcing is used by entities treated as C corporations for federal income tax purposes, whether or not part of a combined group, in place of the cost-of-performance method.
• For Rhode Island combined reporting purposes, an affiliated group of corporations uses the same members that the affiliated group includes in filing its federal consolidated return. However, effective for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, once the election is made, it must continue for five years, including the year the election is made. (For purposes of pro forma combined reporting, the election was binding for two years.)
• The prior regulation asked affected taxpayers to calculate a deduction, related to their balance sheets, in accordance with Financial Accounting Standard 109 (FAS 109).  However, the deduction is not prescribed by statute for purposes of Rhode Island mandatory unitary combined reporting.
• When the prior regulation was promulgated, a corporation’s Rhode Island tax was the greater of the franchise tax or the corporate income tax, and the corporate income tax rate was nine percent (9%). For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, the franchise tax is repealed and the corporate income tax rate is seven percent (7%).
• The following regulation clarifies that, for purposes of combined reporting, gross receipts include, among other things, gross income from intangible personal property as well as from the performance of services.
• The following regulation makes clear that “captive insurance companies” taxed under RIGL Chapter 27-43 should not be included in a combined return.

To view more details and follow the status of the regulations, go to Rhode Island's combined reporting web page.

Update: Nevada Commerce Tax

Nevada recently published a Commerce Tax Registration Process Informational Chart. It is a flow-chart that can help your corporation determine if they need to register.

If your corporation is organized or incorporated in Nevada, it will be registered automatically. All other corporations should make the determination based on answering a nexus questionnaire. 

At the end of March, beginning of April, corporations will receive a "Welcome to Commerce Tax" letter (how nice). The letter will have your corporation's Tax ID number on it. Go to the chart for additional details.

Also, check out Nevada's website or my previous posts on the Nevada Commerce Tax.