INSIDE SALT
INSIDE SALT
In-Depth Coverage of Issues Surrounding State and Local Tax
INSIDE SALT
In-Depth Coverage of Issues Surrounding State and Local Tax
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New York Legislation Proposes to Retroactively Remove FCA Culpability Standard for Tax Law Claims

by , and | Oct 14, 2020 | , ,

With Halloween just a few weeks away, a scary proposal is brewing in the New York State Legislature that should give taxpayers chills. Companion bills Assembly Bill 11066 and Senate Bill 8872 were recently introduced by committee chairs (Assembly Ways and Means Chairwoman Helene Weinstein and Senate Committee on Judiciary Chairman Brad Hoylman). This legislation would substantially expand the scope of the New York False Claims Act (FCA) for claims under the New York State Tax Law by retroactively creating a new tax-specific cause of action that would award single (as opposed to treble) damages, including consequential damages when the taxpayer makes a false statement or record material to their obligation to pay money to state or local governments under the tax law by mistake or mere negligence.

Specifically, the bill would not modify the existing “knowing” causes of action in NY State Fin. Law § 189(1) that, if proven, result in civil penalties, treble damages and consequential damages. Instead, the bill would create a new tax-specific cause of action with strict liability—i.e., no intent requirement that the violation be shown to have been committed “knowingly” (with actual knowledge or deliberate ignorance or reckless disregard for the truth). As a result, inadvertent non-reckless tax mistakes, misunderstandings or mere negligence of the law would result in the taxpayer being subject to a viable claim under the FCA—something that is currently expressly prohibited by law. (See NY State Fin. Law § 188(3)(b) (“acts occurring by mistake or as a result of mere negligence are not covered by this article”).)

To make matters worse, the companion bills (as introduced) would “apply to all false claims, records, statements and obligations concealed, avoided or decreased on, prior to, or after such effective date.” (§ 4; emphasis added.) Thus, if enacted, the bill would open the door to 10 years of backward-looking scrutiny of tax law violations in court by private relators and the New York Attorney General—including years of tax periods that are currently closed under the New York Tax Law or were settled with the New York Department of Taxation and Finance. (See NY State Fin. Law § 192(1) (“[a] civil action under this article shall be commenced no later than ten years after the date on which the violation of this article is committed”).) As a reminder, the FCA would continue to only apply to tax law violations with pleaded damages in excess of $350,000 by persons with net income or sales of more than $1 million in at least one tax year at issue.

Practice Note

As if managing tax audits and potential compliance mistakes administratively was not enough, the introduced New York companion bills would allow a separate parallel path for litigious private parties and the New York Attorney General to enforce the tax law as they see fit in court—creating a framework that is ripe to drag well-intentioned taxpayers through the mud and force them to either defend themselves through costly litigation [...]

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New Jersey Reconsiders Financial Transaction Tax

by and | Sep 21, 2020 | , ,

A troubling New Jersey financial transaction tax proposal, which appeared to be gaining in popularity over the last few months, has reportedly been left out of the 2021 budget deal Governor Phil Murphy struck with legislative leaders last week. The decision to drop the transaction tax from the deal came days after the Wall Street Journal reported that prominent stock exchanges with data centers in New Jersey were prepared to exit the state if the tax plan was adopted. Although the financial transaction tax may be off the table this round, Governor Murphy still likes the idea and we are hearing that the concept is not permanently dead.

S2902/A4402 would impose a financial transaction tax on persons or entities that process 10,000 or more financial transactions through electronic infrastructure located in New Jersey during the year. According to the bill, there are reportedly billions of financial transactions processed daily, and many of those are processed through infrastructure located in New Jersey. The tax would be a quarter of a cent per financial transaction processed in the state and be levied on the processor.

Many well-known New York stock exchanges maintain their electronic infrastructure in New Jersey and have expressed their intention to leave New Jersey before becoming subject to the tax, which they argue harms not only their customers but also ordinary investors because the costs of the tax are passed down from the exchanges to everyone else in the market. Many US stock exchanges already maintain backup facilities in the Midwest. An industry-wide effort to test those Midwestern facilities is scheduled for September 26 to demonstrate their preparedness, and willingness, to relocate.

New Jersey’s financial transaction tax proposal may drive data center businesses out of the state before it is even adopted or formally considered by the state legislature, which teaches a valuable lesson: In a post-coronavirus world, states looking to make up billions in deficits by aggressively taxing businesses that survived the economic crisis risk finding out just how mobile businesses have become.



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Alert: California False Claims Expansion Bill Advances to the Senate

by , , and | Jun 16, 2020 | , , , , , ,

Like the days of the Old West, last week a masked gang held up local businesses demanding their wallets. Unlike the days of the Old West, this was not the hole-in-the-wall gang, but the California State Assembly who, on June 10, 2020, approved AB 2570, a bill that authorizes tax-based false claims actions. If passed, AB 2570 would expand the California False Claims Act (CFCA) to allow private, profit-motivated parties to bring punitive civil enforcement tax-based lawsuits. The bill now heads to the California Senate where its predecessor bill, AB 1270, failed last year.

According to the bill’s author, Assembly Member Mark Stone, there are two key differences between AB 2570 and last year’s AB 1270. First, AB 2570’s definition of “prosecuting authority” has been revised to remove the term “counsel retained by a political subdivision to act on its behalf.” In his comments on the Assembly floor, Stone explained that this amendment was “sought by the bill’s opponents” as it prevents local governments from contracting with private attorneys to bring tax CFCA lawsuits.

Second, AB 2570 mandates that a plaintiff’s complaint must be kept under seal for 60 days and can only be served on a defendant by court order. According to Stone, this second amendment will prevent qui tam attorneys from bringing suit if they send demand letters to the taxpayer before the expiration of this 60-day period.

Although these amendments are minor improvements upon last year’s bill, they are not enough to prevent the rampant abuse that will certainly accompany an expansion of the CFCA. Moreover, as Stone has acknowledged AB 2570 rests on the faulty premise that insider information is generally required to establish a “successful” tax enforcement claim. In his comments to the assembly, Stone stated:

No one questions the ability of the Franchise Tax Board and the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) to skillfully administer the tax law within their respective jurisdictions. This bill, rather, rests on the premise that there are individuals—often current or former employees of a company—who have access to information establishing that tax authorities have been misled as to the amounts owed by the company. These cases are difficult to uncover without the cooperation of an insider because there is no other way to bring the relevant documents and information to light if a company is determined to commit fraud.

However, as evidenced by the states where an FCA has been expanded to tax cases, such as Illinois and New York, very few FCA tax cases involve internal whistleblowers, actual fraud or reckless disregard of clear law. Instead, they typically involve inadvertent errors or good-faith interpretations of murky tax law. As a result, expanding the CFCA to tax claims will only serve to hurt good-faith taxpayers who are already struggling to survive and recover from the economic impacts of COVID-19. Such legislation could force taxpayers to incur enormous costs or pressure them into settlements to make the case go away to avoid the [...]

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California Bill Would Make Taxpayer Information Available to the Public (Seriously!)

by | Jun 15, 2020 | , , ,

A concerning bill is pending in the California Senate. SB-972 would require the California State Controller’s Office (the Controller) to make taxpayer information publicly available. The bill would require that the Controller post on its website a list of all taxpayers subject to the California corporation tax with gross receipts of $5 billion or more and information about each taxpayer, including the tax liability of taxpayer and the amount of tax credits claimed by the taxpayer in the previous calendar year. We are hearing that the California Senate is likely to pass the bill. If the bill does pass in the Senate, it will head to the Assembly.

This bill is surprising (and alarming) because the usual policy of states and tax departments is to protect the confidentiality of taxpayer information. In fact, most states have statutory provisions ensuring that taxpayer information obtained through tax filings and audits is kept confidential, and disclosure is criminal in most states. If SB-972 is adopted, California will be one of the only states (if not the only state) to proactively make taxpayer information public. There does not appear to be a public benefit to releasing this historically confidential information, making the bill’s infringement on taxpayers’ privacy expectations concerning.

We understand that California may be looking to increase tax on corporations (possibly by repealing certain tax credits) as a means to raise revenue, and it seems likely that this bill is related to that goal, or at least embarrassing taxpayers who do not pay significant funds to the state. However, the bill simply goes too far; releasing information that is universally treated as confidential eviscerates taxpayer privacy and should not be permitted. The legislation is simply an effort to weaponize taxpayer information and shame taxpayers based on what they owe or do not owe to the state.



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Alert: California False Claims Expansion Bill Preparing to Advance

by , and | May 8, 2020 | , , ,

The revived False Claims expansion bill in California, A.B. 2570, is on the agenda to be heard by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on May 11 at 10:00 am PDT. The proposal would authorize tax-based false claims actions, allowing private, profit-motivated parties to bring punitive civil enforcement lawsuits—an abusive practice that is prohibited under current law consistent with the vast majority of other states with similar laws. A nearly identical bill sputtered out last summer but has now been revived, as our colleagues covered in February:

AB 2570 is replete with problematic provisions, including: (1) the imposition of a separate statute of limitations that will arguably trump any shorter limitations periods imposed by the Revenue & Taxation Code (See Cal. Gov’t Code § 12654(a) which permits claims under the CFCA to be pursued for up to 10 years after the date the violation was committed, compared to standard three or four years for tax audits); (2) a more lenient burden of proof for elements of an alleged violation; and, (3) extremely punitive damages—violators are subject to treble damages (i.e., three times the amount of the underreported tax, interest and penalties), an additional civil penalty of $5,500 to $11,000 for each violation, plus the costs of the civil action to recover the damages and penalties including attorney’s fees.

Few of these cases will involve internal whistleblowers, actual fraud, or reckless disregard of clear law. Instead, the cases in Illinois (a state that has adopted false claims expansion to tax) usually involve inadvertent errors or good-faith interpretations of murky tax law. With the party bringing the case able to keep up to 50% of the proceeds, the only winners in the proposal is the cottage industry of money hungry plaintiffs’ attorneys that will descend and harass good-faith taxpayers in an effort to pad their own pockets.



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State Tax Incentives, Clawbacks and COVID-19

by | Apr 28, 2020 | ,

Through various state and local tax incentives, many businesses have committed to grow their employee count or make substantial capital expenditures. Not surprisingly, companies may fall short on delivering those objectives in the short run. Long-terms plans may also need to change drastically. Companies should carefully consider the terms of their agreements with states to identify whether:

  • Employment targets will be met;
  • Investment targets will be met; and
  • Clawbacks or other damages are a possibility.

If clawbacks are possible, force majeure provisions in incentives agreements should provide protection. When agreements do not specifically contain a force majeure provision, businesses and governments should work together to renegotiate or amend those agreements in a way that protects local business’ long-term viability in a region.



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Déjà Vu – Marketplace Model Debate May Resume Again

by , and | Apr 20, 2020 | , , ,

The debate over state marketplace laws may resume again, after the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) announced it has set up a committee to study whether to draft a uniform state law on online sales tax collection, focusing on marketplaces. The study committee is chaired by Utah Sen. Lyle Hillyard. The lead staffer (“reporter”) will be Professor Adam Thimmesch of the University of Nebraska College of Law. The members of the committee are listed here and information to sign up to be notified of developments is available here.

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The Digital Advertising Tax Trend Continues: New York Introduces Another Bill

by and | Apr 15, 2020 | , , ,

On April 13, S. 8166 was introduced in the New York Senate, which would expand the sales tax base to include receipts from the sale of digital advertising services. The bill would dedicate the revenue raised to student loan relief.

As introduced, “digital advertising services” would be broadly defined as “advertisement services on a digital interface, including advertisements in the form of banner advertising, search engine advertising, interstitial advertising, and other comparable advertising services which markets or promotes a particular good, service, or political candidate or message.” (With the exception of the added last clause, the definition of “digital advertising services” is identical to the definition in the digital advertising tax legislation recently passed by the Maryland General Assembly. The definition differs from the previously introduced New York digital ads tax (S. 8056) in that it is not limited only to targeted advertising.) “Digital interface” would also be defined very broadly as “any type of software, including a website, part of a website, or application, that a user is able to access.”

If enacted, the law would take effect on the 30th day after enactment, and would sunset five (5) years after the effective date.

 



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DC and New Jersey Join Mississippi in Disregarding Coronavirus-Caused Remote Work for Tax Purposes

by and | Apr 14, 2020 | , , , , , , ,

As part of our open letter to state tax administrators urging relief of undue tax administration burdens in light of COVID-19, we urged the disregarding of remote work for tax purposes. The public health necessity for businesses to close central operations and direct employees to work from home should not be used as an “opportunity” to create nexus for affected businesses.

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Iowa Responds to McDermott’s Call to Drop Unnecessary or Dangerous Tax Administration Requirements

by and | Apr 14, 2020 | , , , , , ,

In late March, we wrote an open letter to state tax administrators requesting that they take steps to relieve undue tax administration burdens in the wake of the COVID-19 situation. We gave five suggestions, including postponing deadlines for tax filing and payment, waiving requirements to use hard-copy documents or checks, suspending accrual of interest on assessments during mandatory closures, directing revenue agencies to resolve outstanding controversies, and disregarding remote work for tax purposes.

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