Eric D. Carstens
Subscribe to Eric D. Carstens's PostsEric D. Carstens focuses his practice on state and local tax matters, assisting clients with state tax controversy, compliance and multistate planning across all states for a variety of tax types and unclaimed property. Eric engages in all forms of taxpayer advocacy, including litigation, legislative monitoring and audit defense. He works closely with several of the Firm's taxpayer coalitions focused on specific state tax policy issues such as the taxation of digital goods and services and unclaimed property. Read Eric D. Carstens' full bio.
Straight Outta Delaware: JLI Invest S.A. et al. v. Cook et al.
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Aug 25, 2015
Posted In Audits, Constitutional Issues, Delaware, Procedure, Unclaimed Property
As soon as we start to think that Delaware’s unclaimed property practices and administration couldn’t possibly get any more egregious, another lawsuit like JLI Invest S.A. et al. v. Cook et al., Case No. 11274 surfaces. The facts alleged in the complaint highlight the fundamental issue of just how much “protection” state unclaimed property laws provide...
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Uniform Law Commission Completes First Reading of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jul 20, 2015
Posted In Audits, Nationwide Importance, Procedure, Unclaimed Property
On Tuesday, July 14, 2015, at their Annual Meeting the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) completed their first reading of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (RUUPA or the Act). While over half of the sections comprising the current draft of the Act were passed over due to strict time constraints imposed by the ULC President...
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Delaware Senate Passes Unclaimed Property Reform Bill
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jun 23, 2015
Posted In Audits, Delaware, Interest and Penalties, Procedure, Unclaimed Property
On June 18, 2015, a bill (S.B. 141) was unanimously approved by the Delaware Senate that would place limits on the look-back period and permanently extend the Voluntary Disclosure Agreement (VDA) program. This represents the second bill this year that seeks to implement the recommended changes contained in the Unclaimed Property Task Force’s (Task Force)...
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House Judiciary Committee Approves Three State Tax Bills
By McDermott Will & Emery, Arthur R. Rosen, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jun 18, 2015
Posted In Constitutional Issues, Income Tax, Local Tax, Nationwide Importance, Nexus, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
Yesterday, on June 17, 2015, three state tax bills were favorably reported to the United States House of Representatives (House) by the House Judiciary Committee (House Judiciary) after considering each during a half-day markup. The bills that were advanced included: (1) the Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act (Mobile Workforce, H.R. 2315); (2) the...
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Remote Transactions Parity Act Introduced in the U.S. House
By McDermott Will & Emery, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jun 15, 2015
Posted In Audits, Constitutional Issues, Nationwide Importance, Nexus, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
Today, Representative Jason Chaffetz introduced H.R. 2775, the Remote Transactions Parity Act of 2015 (RTPA), in the United States House of Representatives (House). The RTPA addresses the Internet sales tax issue using the structure of the Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA), which passed the Senate in 2013 and was re-introduced earlier this year. Although the RTPA retains...
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Tax Amnesty Hits the Midwest (and Beyond)
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jun 12, 2015
Posted In Arizona, Audits, Income Tax, Indiana, Interest and Penalties, Local Tax, Maryland, Missouri, Oklahoma, Property Tax, Sales Tax, South Carolina, Tax Base, Transaction Taxes
With many state legislatures wrapping up session within the past month or so, there has been a flurry of last-minute tax amnesty legislation passed. Nearly a half-dozen states have authorized upcoming tax amnesty periods. These tax amnesties include a waiver of interest and, in some circumstances, allow taxpayers currently under audit or with an appeal...
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Arizona ALJ: Remote Provider of Subscription Research Service is the Lessor of Tangible Personal Property
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on May 15, 2015
Posted In Alabama, Arizona, Idaho, Nationwide Importance, Sales Tax, Tax Base, Transaction Taxes
In a curious decision out of Arizona, an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found an out-of-state provider of online research services was properly assessed transaction privilege tax (TPT, Arizona’s substitute for a sales tax) based on the logic that the provider was renting tangible personal property to in-state customers. The Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) decision,...
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D.C. Proposes Law to Allow Indefinite Suspension of Limitation Period for Assessment and Collection
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on May 6, 2015
Posted In Audits, District of Columbia, Income Tax, Procedure, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
The Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Support Act of 2015 (BSA), introduced by the Washington, D.C. Council at the request of Mayor Muriel Bowser on April 2, 2015, contains a subtitle (see Title VII, Subtitle G, page 66-67) that would give the Office and Tax and Revenue (OTR) complete discretion to indefinitely suspend the period of...
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Maryland Offers Attractive Amnesty Program – Even for Taxpayers Under Audit!
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Apr 23, 2015
Posted In Income Tax, Interest and Penalties, Local Tax, Maryland, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
Starting September 1, 2015, the Comptroller of Maryland (Comptroller) will offer qualifying taxpayers that failed to file or pay certain taxes an opportunity to remit tax under very attractive penalty and interest terms. The 2015 Tax Amnesty Program (Program) is the first offered in Maryland since 2009, when the state raised nearly $30 million, not...
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Let the Training Begin: MTC Transfer Pricing Audits Draw Near
By McDermott Will & Emery, Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Mar 6, 2015
Posted In Income Tax, Nationwide Importance, North Carolina, Tax Base, Transfer Pricing
Deputy Executive Director Greg Matson (a nice guy at heart) announced this week that the Multistate Tax Commission (MTC) has hired its first transfer pricing training consultant and is scheduled to begin training state auditors. The training, titled “Identifying Related Party Issues in Corporate Tax Audits” will be hosted by the North Carolina Department of...
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