February 9, 2010
What's New?
The Business Activity Tax Simplification Act would establish a clear physical presence standard to apply to online retail transactions and prevent burdening interstate commerce, according to written testimony submitted today by Tax Foundation Tax Counsel Joseph Henchman to the House Judiciary Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee.
Read the full statement, "A Uniform Physical Presence Standard Would Limit Destructive State Efforts to Export Tax Burdens."
Local governments' efforts to collect discriminatory taxes from online travel services amount to a revenue grab from out-of-staters and ultimately harm interstate commerce, according to a new Tax Foundation report.
City officials in 22 states have, with limited success, sought to reinterpret hotel occupancy taxes to apply to amounts paid by consumers for online travel booking services (such as Expedia, Orbitz and Priceline).
Read Tax Foundation Special Report, No. 175, "Cities Pursue Discriminatory Taxation of Online Travel Services."
Colorado legislators are scheduled to vote on a handful of tax proposals today that, if enacted, would lead to double taxation of many products and unfairly punish select industries, according to a new Tax Foundation report.
Two proposals would move the state's tax system in the right direction, according to the Tax Foundation's analysis: a bill to eliminate the state's alternative minimum tax, which would reduce tax complexity without sacrificing a lot of revenue ($5.5 million in FY 2009), and a bill to limit tax credits for fuel-efficient cars.
Read Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact No. 208, "Handful of Proposals Would Push Colorado Away From the Proper Tax Base."
Will tax rates on wages jump at the end of the year? Working minds want to know. But so far we only have rumors that President Obama is considering an extension of all the Bush tax cuts.
Will tax rates on capital gains and dividends jump at the end of the year? Investing minds want to know, but there's no certainty about that either.
Will the U.S. have an estate tax in 2010? What about 2011 and beyond? Elderly people and desperate executors want to know, but Congress can't make up its mind.
Will the small corporate tax rate cuts promoted by Congressman Rangel and Senator Kerry, or the big one supported by manufacturers, gain the support of the Administration? Another question mark. More...
More research and blog posts on the expiration of the Bush tax cuts.
The results of yesterday's referenda on Measures 66 and 67 demonstrate that Oregon voters are willing to increase personal and corporate income taxes—as long as the tax burden falls on someone else.
Oregon voters yesterday upheld Measure 66, which will raise income taxes on high-earners, by a vote of 53.69 to 46.31 percent, and Measure 67, which raised corporate income taxes, by a vote of 53.03 to 46.97 percent. More...
All eyes in Hollywood may be focused on Sunday's Golden Globe Awards, but a new Tax Foundation report highlights a different kind of red carpet: the preferential tax treatment given to film production companies by state governments. Movie production incentives (MPIs) -- such as film tax credits, cash rebates, grants and select tax exemptions -- fail to spur economic growth or raise tax revenue, according to the study.
Read Tax Foundation Special Report No. 173, "Movie Production Incentives: Blockbuster Support for Lackluster Policy." More on film tax credits is available here.
