South Carolina Goes After Amazon as Marketplace Facilitator | All Internet Retailers and Marketplace Providers Under Attack

WARNING: All Internet retailers and marketplace providers should pay attention.

South Carolina is going after Amazon (the marketplace facilitator) for not collecting sales tax on behalf of the businesses that use the marketplace to sell products to SC residents (see CNBC article, "Amazon faces a tax fight in South Carolina that could change how online sellers do business").

This is a very interesting development since the Multistate Tax Commission is trying to get retailers that sell through marketplace facilitators to collect sales tax (see MTC Voluntary Disclosure initiative).

According to the CNBC article, "South Carolina is arguing that under state law, Amazon is considered the seller because the company controls a large part of the sales process for its third-party merchants."

Each state has different imposition statutes and ability to reach a conclusion that South Carolina is attempting to reach. But as the article suggests, if South Carolina is successful, other states will play the copycat game; OR perhaps South Carolina is the one playing the copycat game, since Minnesota, Washington and Rhode Island recently passed legislation to impose sales tax collection responsibilities on marketplace providers.

Minnesota and Washington laws are already under attack (see BNA articles, "Minnesota Marketplace Law Ripe for Legal Challenge" and "Washington’s Marketplace Sales Tax Law Heading for Battle"). Washington's definition of seller “includes marketplace facilitators, whether making sales in their own right or on behalf of marketplace sellers, and referrers.” Rhode Island describes marketplace providers as "retail sale facilitators." Check out Rhode Island's website for more notices and details.

All of the above is going on at the same time that states are imposing burdensome use tax notice and reporting requirements on retailers that are NOT currently collecting sales tax (because they don't have a legal obligation to do so). Consequently, states are forcing retailers to simply take the easier compliance task of collecting and remitting sales tax (versus complying with use tax notice and reporting requirements). 

It's a whole new world where states are trying to get sales tax revenue from anyone and everyone. Stay tuned.

MTC Voluntary Disclosure Initiative for Online Marketplace Sellers (i.e., Amazon FBA program)

If you sell products via Amazon, and have inventory in Amazon warehouses, please pay attention.

The Multistate Tax Commission is offering a special limited-time voluntary disclosure initiative for online marketplace sellers, in which the following states are participating:

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Colorado 
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Idaho
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Nebraska 
• New Jersey
• Oklahoma
• South Dakota 
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Wisconsin

The States listed above will consider applications for voluntary disclosure received by Multistate Tax Commission (MTC) staff during the time period August 17, 2017 through October 17, 2017 from taxpayers meeting the eligibility criteria.

PLEASE BE CAREFUL and READ ALL OF THE CRITERIA to AVOID UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES.

For all the details, check out the MTC's website.

Many CPA firms and consultants have been publishing alerts regarding this matter (KPMG and Deloitte have some good summaries). The question remains - SHOULD YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT?

MOST participating states have agreed to forego any tax, penalty, and interest for prior periods in return for participating sellers beginning to collect and remit sales and use tax by December 1, 2017, and beginning to file income / franchise tax returns for the 2017 tax year. Consequently, there is no lookback period in MOST cases. This is a reason to do the program. Generally, voluntary disclosure programs require 3 to 4 year lookback periods requiring taxpayers to remit taxes and interest for the previous 3 or 4 tax years.

NOTE:

• Colorado will waive any back tax liability for uncollected sales/use tax. However, Colorado will not waive back tax liability for income tax beyond its normal four-year lookback period. Colorado notes that it already has a small seller income tax nexus exception for sales less than $500,000 into the state. 
• Nebraska will consider waiving back tax liability for uncollected sales/use tax and income tax. 
• South Dakota imposes sales/use tax but does not impose income tax. ↩
• Wisconsin will require payment of  back tax and interest for a lookback period commencing January 1, 2015 for sales/use tax, and including the prior tax years of 2015 and 2016 for income/franchise tax.

I don't care if you consult with me, BUT PLEASE consult a qualified state tax professional before utilizing this program. Good consultants to contact include: Dillon Tax Consulting, Yetter Tax Consulting, PrietoDion Consulting Partners LLC, Gable Tax Group, or Miles Consulting Group.

20 State Tax & Business Developments You May Want to Know - August 14, 2017

The following are state tax and business developments I have curated since August 9th, and posted in the LEVERAGE SALT LinkedIn group:

1. Cook County’s Sweetened Beverage Tax effective August 2, 2017; first returns due September 20, 2017

2. State Rundown 8/9: And Then There Were Three

3. Are You Prepared for Oregon’s Move to Market Sourcing?

4. Delaware releases amended draft unclaimed property regulations

5. Foxconn Deal Will Put Wisconsin in Red for At Least 25 Years

6. New York Broker-Dealer Tax Stance Likely to Spark Pushback

7. Mississippi’s Sales Tax Regulatory Smorgasbord Continues—Internet Sellers and Commercial Contractors on the Menu!

8. Dark Property Theory: A balanced review of key components used in property tax appeals

9. When Incentives Matter, Oklahoma’s a Safe Bet

10. Big Data, Big Moves, Big Merger

11. Higher Taxes In a High Tax State Are Highly Problematic

12. Oklahoma Emergency Rules Implement Upcoming Three-Month Amnesty Program that Begins September 1

13. State conformity to federal provisions - Exploring the variances

14. MTC National Nexus Program Now Offering Online Marketplace Seller Voluntary Disclosure Initiative

15. New Rhode Island Law Requires Implementation of 75-Day Amnesty Program Providing for Potential 100 Percent Penalty Waiver and Reduced Interest Due

16. District of Columbia Budget Legislation Codifies Unincorporated Business and Franchise Tax Rate Reductions

17. Minnesota Supreme Court Affirms that Foreign Disregarded Entity Income and Apportionment Factors are Properly Included in Combined Return

18. New York Releases New Guidance for Receipts Factor Methodology for the Owners of SMLLCs That Are Registered Broker-Dealers

19. Pennsylvania DOR Holds that Certain Online Information Retrieval Products Constitute Taxable TPP

20. New Rhode Island Law Contains Economic Nexus Provisions, Information Reporting and Notice Requirements

The above represents 'general curating' of state tax developments into one spot. If you still feel overwhelmed by the volume of state tax developments, please consider my 'custom curating' service. Meaning, clients hire LS to daily curate state tax developments relating to a specific industry, state(s), tax type and issue. You can make it as granular as you prefer. This allows you to reduce information overload, and only get the information you need to help your clients or company. This service is provided on a fixed-fee or subscription basis. Contact me at strahle@leveragesalt.com.

PROVIDE REAL VALUE. NOT NOISE.

If you've been paying attention, which I'm sure you have, I am constantly changing my website and thinking of ways to market, re-market, re-package or change the way I present my services and myself. This is the life of a solo state tax consultant. I am always thinking. Always learning. AND I can implement changes whenever I want - maybe sometimes hastily, but I would rather be innovative and try things, then to be stuck in the trap of 'that's the way we have always done it,' or changes take time to get approved by layers of bureaucracy and by the time they get approved all momentum and enthusiasm about the change is long gone.

Life is too short to be the same as everybody else, and that is exactly what we have in the public accounting and law firm world. Everybody is the same. The same boring websites. The same descriptions. The same strategic visions. The same services. The same message. The same hot topics. Every firm is trying to be the first to write about a hot topic, or the first to go in-depth about a topic. I should know. I spend my days daily reviewing state tax developments and writing about them. I also conduct research for clients and attempt to provide insight and actionable, innovative, intelligence (I just made that term up, you can feel free to use it). 

There is so much 'noise' in the world. So much knowledge and information being spewed on the internet and social media, while you are just trying to do your job. The question is - what do you need to know to do your job? How can you best help your company or your client? Are you going deep enough into the details of the law, cases, etc. to find true value? Or are you just scratching the surface, going from meeting to meeting, running around with your head cut-off, waiting for lightning to strike? 

Life is too short to be boring. Too short to not take the risk to be creative. 

BE AUTHENTIC. BE REAL. DON'T TRY TO BE SOMETHING YOUR NOT.

What is your firm good at? What are you good at? How can you be different? How ARE you different? 

Be different. Be creative. Provide REAL VALUE, NOT NOISE.

27 State Tax & Business Developments You May Want to Know - August 9, 2017

The following are state tax and business developments I have curated since August 2nd, and posted in the LEVERAGE SALT LinkedIn group:

1. Michigan enacts Good Jobs for Michigan incentive program

2. California extends partial sales and use tax exemption for manufacturing and research and development equipment

3. Finishing SALT: Inside SALT’s Monthly Recap

4. Strategies for Managing State Debt

5. State Rundown 8/2: Legislative Tax Debates Wind Down as Ballot Initiative Efforts Ramp Up

6. Where States Get Their Money

7. Marketplace Seller Past Taxes Potentially Pardoned Under Plan

8. Board of Tax Appeals Decision a Real CATastrophe for Georgia-Based Wholesaler

9. California Appellate Court – Stock in a company that was integral to taxpayer’s business may be converted to nonbusiness investment prior to its sale

10. Texas Comptroller Revises Its Policy on Business Loss Carryforwards

11. New York City Tax on Rents Causing Trouble

12. Delaware Department of Finance Issues a Revised Proposed Reporting and Examination Manual

13. Minnesota Supreme Court - Disregarded foreign entity included in domestic owner’s combined group for pre-2013 years

14. CORPORATE CLOSE-UP: WHEN IS OWNERSHIP OF A SUBSIDIARY’S STOCK INTEGRAL TO A TAXPAYER’S TRADE OR BUSINESS?

15. Rhode Island Adds Requirements for Remote Retailers

16. Rhode Island Authorizes Tax Amnesty Program

17. Oregon Repeals Functional Test for Apportioned Income

18. Oklahoma Tax Amnesty Rules Issued

19. Ohio’s Commercial Activity Tax Applies to Forward Contracts

20. August 04, 2017 Illinois Appellate Court Issues Decision on Temporary Storage Exemption

21. Eversheds Sutherland SALT Shaker: July 2017 Digest

22. Finishing SALT: Inside SALT’s Monthly Recap

23. MTC Offers 16 State Marketplace Seller Amnesty Initiative

24. Pennsylvania Letter Ruling Holds Information Retrieval Products (online research services) Subject to Sales Tax

25. Rhode Island Issues Sales Tax Notice to "Retail Facilitators"

26. Check out Rhode Island's Site for Various Sales Tax Notices to Remote/Online Retailers/ Facilitators/Referrers, etc.

27. State sourcing income rules and considerations for hedge and private equity funds

The above represents 'general curating' of state tax developments into one spot. If you still feel overwhelmed by the volume of state tax developments, please consider my 'custom curating' service. Meaning, clients hire LS to daily curate state tax developments relating to a specific industry, state(s), tax type and issue. You can make it as granular as you prefer. This allows you to reduce information overload, and only get the information you need to help your clients or company. This service is provided on a fixed-fee or subscription basis. Contact me at strahle@leveragesalt.com.

25th Anniversary, 22 Year Career, High School Senior, 4 Year Old Firm, Building Something New

My wife and I are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary tomorrow (August 8th). We celebrated it over the weekend with a little get away in downtown Nashville. I set up the whole weekend to surprise my wife. We stayed in a fancy hotel and had a nice dinner. I had 25 long-stem red roses delivered to the room. It was a great weekend. 

In addition to being married for 25 years, I have been doing state taxes for 22 years. That sounds crazy. I used to look at people who had been in their career long and be like, "wow," you must really know your stuff. Now I am one of those. Crazy how time flies. Speaking of time, my oldest daughter will be a senior in high school which starts this week. We are busy talking about college options and whether college is still a good investment. I have lots of opinions on this, but will hold that for another day. 

As far as LEVERAGE SALT, LLC goes. If you have been following along, I started the LEVERAGE SALT blog in 2009. I started the LEVERAGE SALT LinkedIn group in 2012 and LEVERAGE SALT, LLC in 2013. Consequently, I have been on my own for 4 years. That even sounds like a long time to me. Needless to say, I have been more successful than I could have thought when I started LS, LLC. I have made more money and had more freedom than ever before. During that time, my family and I moved ourselves from Richmond, Virginia to Nashville, Tennessee and totally renovated a house on 16 acres. We built my wife's dream home. Crazy stuff. I don't say this stuff to brag. I say this stuff to tell you my story and let you know that life is too short to not go for what you want. What are you waiting for? Permission? 

Running your own firm, especially by yourself, can be lonely at times. I find myself wanting to work at a firm again just to have more interaction. However, once you have the money, the freedom is something you can't put a price on. 

One of the things I love about having my own firm is that I can implement ideas quickly. Perhaps sometimes too quickly. Regardless, I am continually thinking of new ideas, opportunities, ways to help state tax professionals do more, get more done, etc. without the bureaucracy of large firms. 

At my core, I love analyzing court cases, rulings, daily developments and writing about them. I also love handling controversy - I call it, "research with a purpose." You may have noticed that I am attempting to build a state tax controversy innovation center. The goal of the Center is to serve and promote state tax controversy professionals across the country by building a mastermind network, knowledge sharing publication, CPE, and various tools. 

I want to thank you for reading my blog. Following along on my crazy story. I hope you find my blog useful and my story helpful. 

Please connect with me on LinkedIn. Send me an e-mail. Subscribe to the blog. Join the LinkedIn group. I would love to hear your story. I may start promoting and sharing stories of other tax professionals on my blog in the near future. Lots of ideas. Lots of plans. 

Have a great week!