The State and Local Tax Committee is responsible for TEI’s educational and advocacy efforts for U.S. state and local tax issues.
The committee monitors state and local tax developments throughout the country, files amicus briefs with state and federal courts on impending state and local tax issues, and files comment letters addressing various legislative and administrative proposals.
The committee has also developed an extensive set of policy statements reflecting TEI's position on important administrative and procedural issues. These statements facilitate advocacy by providing formal position papers TEI's members can use when communicating with taxing agencies. Finally, the committee regularly conducts liaison meetings with state and local taxing authorities to discuss tax-enforcement and policy matters in those jurisdictions.
TEI Supports Alabama Legislation Establishing Independent Tax Tribunal
On January 17, 2014, TEI submitted a letter in support of Alabama legislation (SB 74) that would establish a pre-payment, independent tribunal to hear appeals of tax assessments and other matters administered by the Alabama Department of Revenue, as well as certain taxes levied by or on behalf of counties and municipalities. TEI has long supported independent state tax tribunals, and the ABA Model Act is consistent with the Institute's Policy Statement on Independent State Tax Tribunals.
TEI Urges Alabama Department of Revenue to Abandon Proposed Nexus Regulation
On June 10, 2013, TEI submitted comments to the Alabama Department of Revenue on its proposed local sales tax regulation governing seller collection responsibilities. The Institute's letter noted that the proposed regulation would create a more complicated system for determining and complying with sales and use tax obligations in Alabama, and urged the Department to abandon the proposed regulation and retain the existing well-established single nexus threshold for state and local sales taxes.
TEI Comments on the Multistate Tax Commission's Section 482 Project
On March 4, 2013, TEI submitted a memorandum to the Multistate Tax Commission (MTC) urging it to abandon a proposed project aimed at creating model regulations governing the use of state statutory authority to adjust income and expenses between related parties (i.e., transfer pricing).
TEI Supports Legislation Establishing Independent Tax Tribunals in Alabama
On February 19 and 20, 2013, TEI submitted letters in support of legislation in Alabama (HB 264 and SB 223) that would establish a pre-payment, independent tribunal to hear appeals of tax assessments and other matters administered by the Alabama Department of Revenue, as well as certain taxes levied by or on behalf of counties and municipalities. TEI has long supported independent state tax tribunals, and the ABA Model Act is consistent with the Institute's Policy Statement on Independent State Tax Tribunals.
TEI Files Amicus Brief in Alabama's Kimberly-Clark Business/Nonbusiness Income Case
On October 26, 2012, TEI filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in a case involving the characterization of income from the sale of assets as apportionable business income versus allocable nonbusiness income for state tax purposes, Kimberly-Clark v. Alabama Department of Revenue. The Institute's brief urged the high court to reverse lower court decisions in Alabama holding that gain from the sale of property used in a taxpayer's unitary business constituted nonbusiness income allocable in full to Alabama.
TEI Issues Policy Statement on Independent State Tax Tribunals
On February 1, 2012, TEI issued a policy statement setting forth the Institute's position encouraging all states to establish pre-payment, independent tax tribunals presided over by individuals possessing a strong knowledge of the tax law.
TEI Supports the ABA's Model State Tax Tribunal Statute
On February 14, 2012, TEI submitted a letter to the American Bar Association expressing the Institute's strong support for the ABA's Model State Administrative Tax Tribunal Act. TEI has long supported independent state tax tribunals, and the ABA Model Act is consistent with the Institute's Policy Statement on Independent State Tax Tribunals.
The comments were prepared under the aegis of TEI's State and Local Tax Committee, whose chair is Howard E. Grindle. Daniel B. De Jong of the Institute's legal staff coordinated the development of the Institute's comments.
TEI Supports Legislation Establishing Independent Tax Court in Alabama
On February 14, 2012, TEI submitted a letter in support of legislation in Alabama (HB 105) that would establish a pre-payment, independent tribunal to hear appeals of tax assessments and other matters administered by the Alabama Department of Revenue, as well as certain taxes levied by or on behalf of counties and municipalities.
TEI Supports Federal Conformity Legislation in Wisconsin
On October 5, 2011, Tax Executives Institute submitted the following comments to key leaders of the Wisconsin legislature, endorsing legislation to conform Wisconsin's tax law to federal provisions relating to the income tax exclusion for employer-provided health care insurance, which were changed by the 2010 health care reform law.
TEI Issues Policy Statement on Use of Contingency Fee Auditors
On August 15, 2011, Tax Executives Institute released a policy statement setting forth the Institute's position on contingency fee audits. The statement urges jurisdictions to renounce the use of contingency fee auditors for all types of taxes, fees, and unclaimed property audits.