Tax Amnesty Programs
VIRGINIA – A tax amnesty
program has been authorized in Virginia for
60 to 75 days at some time during the fiscal
year of July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010. The
exact dates for this amnesty are not yet known. During
the amnesty the state will waive penalties and
50% of the interest due if qualifying taxpayers
pay the full tax balance. If balance are
not paid during the amnesty program period an additional
penalty of 20% will be assessed.
NEW JERSEY – Legislation
has been passed to establish a 45-day state
tax amnesty period from May 4, 2009 to June
15, 2009. This amnesty applies to
all tax liabilities for returns due on or after
January 1, 2002 and before February 1, 2009. Qualifying
taxpayers will be able to pay the tax due plus
50% of the interest due and will incur no civil
or criminal penalties for the late payment. Failure
to pay tax liabilities during the period will subject
the taxpayer to a 5% penalty in addition to the
other penalties, interest and fees.
ARIZONA – The Arizona
Department of Revenue will begin an amnesty
program on May 1, 2009 and ending on June 1,
2009. If taxpayers pay all
tax balances due during this period the state will
waive penalties and may qualify for reduced interest. Amnesty
is open for the tax periods of January 1, 2002
to January 1, 2008 for taxes filed on an annual
basis.
CONNECTICUT - An amnesty
program will run from May 1, 2009 to June 25,
2009 for eligible taxpayers to avoid penalties
and obtain a reduced interest on taxes due. Any tax period ending on or
before November 30, 2008 is eligible to the amnesty. To
be eligible a taxpayer must have either failed
to file a return or underreported the tax due on
a return. Amnesty is not available to taxpayers
currently under audit or with existing tax bills
outstanding.
ALABAMA – Alabama is
offering a tax amnesty program called “Operation
Clean Slate” running from February 1, 2009 to
May 15, 2009. Qualified taxpayers
who participate will not be subject to penalties
and late fees. |
Stroger's sales tax rollback called a ploy for
re-election
April 15, 2009
/ BY LISA
DONOVAN Staff Reporter
Cook County President Todd Stroger wants to roll
back a portion of the controversial sales tax increase
the county board pushed through last year, a move
hailed as keeping a promise to taxpayers and criticized
as a political chess maneuver leading up to the
2010 elections.
His proposal is to reduce the county portion of
the sales tax from 1.75 percent to 1.5 percent,
taking Chicago’s overall sales tax from its current
national high of 10.25 percent to an even 10 percent.
That saves taxpayers in Cook County 25 cents for
every $100 they spend.
Click here to read the rest of the article
|
Store group urges law to streamline sales tax
Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:48pm BST
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A trade group representing
U.S. shopping centers on Wednesday called on the
U.S. government to enact legislation to prevent
states and local governments from losing sales
tax on Internet purchases.
Citing a study from the University of Tennessee
that predicts local government sales tax revenue
will fall by as much as $12 billion by 2012 due
to the inability to capture Internet sales, the
International Council of Shopping Center Inc called
for a level playing field for online and bricks
and mortar retailers.
Coming at a time when public finances are being
stretched by the recession, the study "does
not bode well for the fiscal well-being of states
and local governments," ICSC senior vice president
of global public policy Betsy Laird said in a statement.
Click here to read the rest of the article
|
Sides dig in on sales tax hike
House Democrats lean toward 6%
April 17, 2009
Small-town mayors, liberal legislators, and deeply
worried advocates for the poor launched impassioned
campaigns yesterday to increase the Massachusetts
sales tax to offset severe budget cuts, but business
groups and residents immediately warned that Beacon
Hill leaders will pay politically if they raise taxes
in the midst of a historic recession.
While legislative leaders remained noncommittal,
nearly three dozen House Democrats met behind closed
doors yesterday to hammer out budget amendments,
with consensus beginning to develop around pushing
a sales tax hike and new local-option taxes. The
tactic most commonly bandied about has been increasing
the state's 5 percent sales tax to 6 percent. Resistance
to the idea was swift and strong.
Click here to read the rest of the article
|
Study: Sales-tax hike would kill jobs
by Matthew Benson - Mar. 31, 2009
12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
Increasing the state sales tax to generate an additional
$1 billion for state coffers would hamper consumer
spending and mean the loss of more than 14,000
jobs in the private sector, according to an analysis
released Monday.
The report, commissioned by the libertarian-leaning
Goldwater Institute and completed by the Beacon
Hill Institute at Suffolk University in Boston,
found that the sales-tax hike would cause economic
output in the state to decline by $1.2 billion.
Arizonans would see their after-tax income fall
by $760 million, according to the report, which
would equate to nearly $300 a year per household,
on average |
Gov. Lynch: N.H. should not be tax agent
for Mass.
By Richard Fabrizio
rfabrizio@seacoastonline.com
March 31, 2009 12:21 PM
CONCORD — Gov. John Lynch on Tuesday announced
support of Senate Bill 5, which aims to protect
New Hampshire businesses from having to collect
sales taxes for other states.
“We should not allow Massachusetts to turn New
Hampshire businesses into tax agents for Massachusetts,”
Lynch wrote in a letter of support for SB5 sent
to the Senate Commerce, Labor and Consumer Protection
Committee.
The Massachusetts commissioner of revenue is seeking
to collect taxes for sales in New Hampshire in
a case before the Massachusetts Supreme Court.
Town Fair Tire Centers is a Connecticut corporation
with locations throughout New England including
Portsmouth and Seabrook.
Click here to read the rest of the article |
IRS: New car buyers may be able to deduct
sales tax
Houston Business Journal
Those who buy a new car this year may be able to deduct
state and local sales and excise taxes on the purchase
in their 2009 tax returns next year, according to
the Internal
Revenue Service.
The deduction, part of the federal stimulus package
passed last month, is limited to the state and local
sales and excise taxes paid on up to $49,500 of the
purchase price of a qualified new car, light truck,
motor home or motorcycle.
Click here to read the rest of the article |
Check your books; Maryland going after
millions in back taxes
March 20, 2009
Baltimore Business Journal - by Daniel
J. Sernovitz Staff
As if the recession and credit crunch weren’t enough,
there is another increasing economic threat to Maryland’s
small-business owners: state tax audits.
Faced with a $1.1 billion shortfall in tax revenues,
state Comptroller Peter Franchot has beefed up the
technology and manpower of his office to seek out
Maryland business owners and taxpayers shirking the
state’s 6 percent sales tax.
What that means for employers is that 2009 could be
filled with some expensive, burdensome and surprising
queries from Maryland’s tax man. Most vulnerable are
the state’s small businesses, including bars, restaurants
and convenience stores, and local tax experts say
the audits could uncover anywhere from $100,000 to
$4.5 million in unpaid taxes, interest and penalties
from a single business.
Click here to read the rest of the article
|
Hawaii proposes to collect
taxes on Internet sales
By Mark Niesse
Associated Press Writer / March 2, 2009
HONOLULU—Buying tax-free music, books and electronics
over the Internet would be a thing of the past under
legislation pending before Hawaii lawmakers.
The measure being pushed by Senate Democrats is meant
to force online shoppers of Amazon.com Inc. and eBay
Inc. to pay the state's 4 percent general excise tax,
just like customers who buy the same items in brick-and-mortar
stores. |
State to start charging sales tax on online digital
purchases Oct. 1
By Steven
Walters of the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Feb. 20, 2009
Madison - Wisconsin will collect sales taxes on Internet
downloads of music, games, books, ring tones and other video entertainment
- a decision that angers some who will find the 5% tax added to their credit-card
bills after Oct. 1.
On Thursday, Gov. Jim Doyle signed into law a package
of tax-law changes that included extending the
sales tax to so-called digital downloads.
The District of Columbia and 15 states have similar
laws, although none of those states borders Wisconsin. |
Adult download tax proposal
awaits climax in Albany
BY Stephanie
Gaskell
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Updated Monday, February 16th 2009
This is the best tax you ever had.
A state proposal to add a 4% tax for downloading movies
and music will also apply to Internet porn.
Gov. Paterson recently
suggested the so-called iPod tax
to help close a $15 billion budget deficit, but few realized the levy would
also apply to XXX-rated material. |
Poll: Pa. voters oppose sales tax increase, support
cigarette tax hike
Philadelphia Business Journal
Wednesday, February 11, 2009, 2:18pm EST
A new Quinnipiac
University poll finds that seven of 10 Pennsylvania
voters oppose Gov. Ed Rendell's proposal to allow
counties to raise the sales tax by 1 percent.
Rendell's proposal would allow counties to keep
the revenue generated for local government.
Click here to read the full article |
Caps on local ND sales taxes proposed
By The Associated Press - Bismarck
KVLY-TV - Tues., Feb. 10, 2009
The chairman of the North Dakota House's Finance
and Taxation Committee is advocating caps on local
sales taxes.
Rep. Wes Belter's legislation would limit city
sales taxes to 1. 5 percent and put a 1 percent
cap on any county sales tax.
Click here to read the full article
|
Lawmakers consider online sales tax
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
By Nannette Miranda
SACRAMENTO, CA (KGO) --
Many Californians shop online because some sites
allow them to avoid paying the state sales tax,
saving them money. But many do not know by law
they are supposed pay a use tax on their state
income tax forms, equivalent to sales tax, for
online purchases.
Click
here to read the full article |
State lawmaker proposes tax on pornography
By
DREW MIKKELSEN / KING 5 NewsOLYMPIA, Wash.
At
least one Washington state lawmaker thinks pornography
could help the state out of its budget woes.
State Rep. Mark Miloscia, D-Federal Way, wants
to create a sales tax specifically for pornographic
materials like magazines and movies. He's proposed
adding an 18.5 percent tax to the existing sales
tax paid on these items.
Click here to read the full article
|
In sweet shops, response to candy tax proposal is
sour
By John C. Drake Globe Staff / January 30, 2009
Governor Deval Patrick's plan to tax candy and
sodas is worrying store operators, who say it will
further reduce sales at a time of economic decline,
when even children have become price-sensitive
and are cutting back.
Click here to read the full article on Boston.com |
The Incredible Shrinking Internet Sales Tax Loophole
By Rachel Metz AP 01/17/09
The economic mess we're
in is causing states to devise tricky schemes to
allow them to charge sales tax on items sold online.
For the most part, e-tailers are helping, but they
urge the states to make the rules more uniform
and easier to follow.
Click here to read the full article |
Stimulus for Tax Collectors
Internet consumers beware.
The Wall Street Journal JANUARY 15, 2009
America's
state and local governments have a new proposal
for the Obama stimulus plan: Slip in an Internet
sales tax. The National Conference of State Legislatures
estimates that states could wring another $30 billion
out of consumers if Washington will allow them
to force out-of-state Web merchants to collect
sales taxes.
Click here to read the full
article |
Internet sales-tax debate heats up Slumping economy
prompts new laws, further discussion; more school
funding could be at stake
From staff and wire reports
www.eschoolnews.com Thu, Jan 15, 2009
An increasingly
thorny debate being waged among state legislatures
and internet-based retailers could have huge implications
for schools, as the sinking economy threatens to
undermine education programs. With the recession
pummeling states' budgets, many state lawmakers
want to fill the gaps by collecting taxes on internet
sales, which continue to grow even as the economy
shudders. And such proposals are sparking conflicts
with companies that do business only online and
have enjoyed being able to offer sales-tax-free
shopping.
Click here to read the full article |
Internet sales tax eyed as revenue
By Rachel Metz
Associated Press Posted on: Tuesday, January 13,
2009 NEW YORK
Shopping online can be a way to
find bargains while steering clear of crowds —
and sales taxes. But those tax breaks are starting
to erode. With the recession pummeling states'
budgets, their governments increasingly want to
fill the gaps by collecting taxes on Internet sales,
which are growing even as the economy shudders
Click here to read the full article |
Buying on Web to Avoid Sales Taxes Could End Soon
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS -
Published: January 12,
2009
Shopping online can be a way to find bargains while
steering clear of crowds -- and sales taxes.
But those tax breaks are starting to erode. With
the recession pummeling states' budgets, their
governments increasingly want to fill the gaps
by collecting taxes on Internet sales, which are
growing even as the economy shudders.
Click here to read full article on NYTimes.com
|
Patrick wants Net sales tax created Mass. coffers
would gain $15m per year
By Casey Ross Globe Staff
/ January 6, 2009
Massachusetts Governor Deval
Patrick is pushing lawmakers to expand the state's
ability to collect sales tax on products sold over
the Internet, which could add millions of dollars
in revenue each year and alleviate a severe budget
crisis.
Click here to read the full article
on Boston.com |
Sales tax holiday saved consumers $14.9 million
By
State House News Service Mon Jan 05, 2009 Boston
Massachusetts shoppers saved – and the state
lost – $14.9 million as a result of August’s two-day
sales tax holiday, according to a new Department
of Revenue analysis. The loss of revenue for the
state was $1 million less than expected “due to
reduced economic activity,” according to the report.
On the other hand, the sales tax holiday generated
less than $1.8 million in economic activity, DOR
found, although “the true value of the indirectly
raised revenues is probably much less than this
amount.”
Click here to read the full article |
Tax cases could bring Mass. $1b Courts poised to
rule on where corporations pay
By Casey Ross Globe
Staff / November 4, 2008
Massachusetts courts are
poised to rule on three tax disputes at the crux
of the Department of Revenue's efforts to reclaim
$1 billion from corporations it has accused of
skirting tax laws. The outcome will have major
ramifications, as a massive budget shortfall is
causing Massachusetts to cut staff and services.
Click here to read the full article on Boston.com |
Court to Amazon: Keep Collecting Sales Tax
By Saul
Hansell
If you live in New York and shop at Amazon.com
or other online stores, you are going to have to
keep paying sales tax on what you buy. Amazon,
the country’s largest online retailer, started
collecting sales tax on shipments into New York
last summer to comply with a state law. But it
also sued the state, claiming the law was unconstitutional.
Click here to read the full article on NYTimes.com |
Nickel here, dime there add up for Mass. residents
By Glen Johnson AP Political Writer / January 30,
2009 BOSTON
Gov. Deval Patrick is fond of saying
he opposes broad-based tax increases, but he's
showing no such reluctance toward smaller, more
targeted ones. And add up enough of them, it can
be quite a tab -- or at least more than the growth
of most paychecks these days.
Click here to read
the full article on Boston.com |
State chases sales taxes in N.H. Targets Mass. tire
purchasers
By Jenn Abelson Globe Staff / February
3, 2009
Massachusetts has ordered a tire chain
to charge Bay State residents a 5 percent sales
tax on their purchases in New Hampshire in an unprecedented
move that could have huge implications for consumers
and other merchants. Town Fair Tire Centers, which
is based in Connecticut but has six shops in New
Hampshire and 25 in Massachusetts, is fighting
back with a lawsuit now before the Massachusetts
Supreme Judicial Court that accuses the state of
violating the US commerce clause. If Massachusetts
prevails in the case, which is likely to be heard
next month, it could drive up costs for consumers
and retailers such as Best Buy and Sears that sell
expensive home appliances and other goods in New
Hampshire, which doesn't have a state sales tax.
It also could mean millions of dollars in new tax
revenue for the Commonwealth as it faces a $1.1
billion budget deficit, according to tax analysts.
Click here to read the full article on Boston.com |
Carol Cummings joins REMITATAX
Concord, MA - November 19, 2008
Carol
Cummings joins REMITATAX as the Director of Tax having
over 25 years of experience in public accounting and
taxation, formerly with Coopers & Lybrand and
later in private industry.
>>More |
