Stephen P. Kranz
Subscribe to Stephen P. Kranz's PostsStephen (Steve) P. Kranz is a tax lawyer who solves tax problems differently. Over the course of his extensive career, Steve has acquired specific skills and developed a unique approach that helps clients develop and implement holistic solutions to all varieties of tax problems. He combines strategic thinking with effective skills for the courtroom, the statehouse and the conference room. Read Stephen Kranz's full bio.
MTC Puts Designs on Increasing State Transfer Pricing Revenues
By Diann Smith and Stephen P. Kranz on Feb 6, 2015
Posted In Income Tax, Transfer Pricing
This past December, the Multistate Tax Commission’s (MTC) transfer pricing advisory committee and its project facilitator Dan Bucks recommended what it calls the “preliminary design” approach for a proposed Arm’s Length Adjustment Services (ALAS) program. While still subject to approval, states already anticipate that the program will increase their state transfer pricing revenues. The MTC...
Continue Reading
New Market-Based Sourcing in DC: Major Compliance Date Problem Fixed… For Now
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Feb 5, 2015
Posted In Allocation/Apportionment, District of Columbia, Income Tax, Massachusetts, Tax Base, UDITPA
The Problem On September 23, 2014, the District of Columbia Council enacted market-based sourcing provisions for sales of intangibles and services as part of the 2015 Budget Support Act (BSA), as we previously discussed in more detail here. Most notably the BSA adopts a single sales factor formula for the DC franchise tax, which is...
Continue Reading
Arizona’s 2015 TPT Amendments Have 99 Problems, but Origin Sourcing ain’t One
By McDermott Will & Emery, Diann Smith and Stephen P. Kranz on Jan 29, 2015
Posted In Arizona, Constitutional Issues, Nexus, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
Actually, there are really only two issues, but they are big issues. Arizona’s Transaction Privilege Tax has always been an anomaly in the traditional state sales tax system. Contrary to some commentators, however, the recent amendments do not, and could not, impose an origin tax on Arizona retailers for remote sales delivered out-of-state. That is...
Continue Reading
Rate Reduction for D.C. QHTC Capital Gains to Begin… in 2019
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Jan 23, 2015
Posted In Allocation/Apportionment, District of Columbia, Sales Tax
Investors keeping a close eye on pending legislation (the Promoting Economic Growth and Job Creation Through Technology Act of 2014, Bill 20-0945) promoting investments in D.C. Qualified High Technology Companies (QHTC) will be happy to know it passed—but not without a serious caveat. While the bill was originally set to allow investors to cash in...
Continue Reading
The New “Click-Through”?: New York Budget Proposal Requires Marketplace Providers to Collect Tax
By McDermott Will & Emery and Stephen P. Kranz on Jan 22, 2015
Posted In Constitutional Issues, Nationwide Importance, New York, Nexus, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
On January 21, Governor Cuomo delivered his State of the State address, along with proposing the new budget. The budget has a number of new tax proposals. One of those proposals would have a significant impact on e-commerce companies. Part X of the budget proposal amends the sales tax statutes to require marketplace providers to...
Continue Reading
Three Strikes…Tax on Cloud Computing Out in Michigan?
By McDermott Will & Emery, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Dec 3, 2014
Posted In Michigan, Sales Tax, Transaction Taxes
If the Department of Treasury (Treasury) was hoping that the Michigan courts would simply overlook the previous two cloud computing losses this year in Thomson Reuters (previously covered here) and Auto-Owners (discussed here), they appear to have been mistaken. Last Wednesday’s Court of Claims opinion in Rehmann Robson & Co. v. Department of Treasury marked...
Continue Reading
Beleaguered D.C. Taxpayers Achieve Another Success in Ongoing Challenges to the Methodology Used in the District’s Transfer Pricing Audit Program
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Nov 20, 2014
Posted In District of Columbia, Income Tax, Nationwide Importance, Procedure, Transfer Pricing
On Friday, November 14, 2014, an administrative law judge (ALJ) issued three identical orders granting the taxpayer’s motion for summary judgment in Hess v. OTR, Shell v. OTR and ExxonMobil v. OTR. In these orders, the ALJ determined that based on an early ruling that the challenged methodology was fatally flawed, the Office of Tax and...
Continue Reading
Extraordinary Turnout and Discussions at ULC Unclaimed Property Drafting Meeting
By Diann Smith and Stephen P. Kranz on Nov 10, 2014
Posted In Delaware, Nationwide Importance, Unclaimed Property
Failing to attend last week’s Uniform Law Commission’s (ULC’s) Drafting Committee meeting to revise the 1995 Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (the Act) was worse than missing the 2012 Extravakranza. On November 7 and 8, 2014, the Who’s Who of the Abandoned and Unclaimed Property world (AUP for insiders needing abbreviations for texting) met in Washington,...
Continue Reading
A Very Scary Time of the Year: MTC Joint Audit Selection
By Diann Smith, Eric D. Carstens and Stephen P. Kranz on Oct 23, 2014
Posted In Alabama, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Income Tax, Kentucky, Nationwide Importance, New Jersey, Transfer Pricing
With both Halloween and the Multistate Tax Commission (MTC) Income Tax Audit selection nearing, taxpayers should prepare themselves for the possibility of being spooked in the near future. On Thursday, October 30, from 2-4 pm EST, the MTC Audit Committee—including representatives from the 22 states participating in the upcoming round of joint income tax audits—will...
Continue Reading
Tennessee SaaS Ruling Highlights Telecommunications Concerns for SaaS Providers
By Stephen P. Kranz on Oct 20, 2014
Posted In Sales Tax, Tennessee
The Tennessee Department of Revenue recently released Letter Ruling No. 14-05, in which it considered whether certain cloud collaboration services are subject to the state’s sales tax. At a high level, the provider’s services are provided in a typical Software as a Service (SaaS) form: (1) the provider owns the hardware and software used to...
Continue Reading
