Within a 24 hour period, the Mississippi House of Representatives introduced and passed a bill to repeal the individual income tax, but at a cost of massive increases in sales taxes imposed on business inputs. H.B. 1439 would phase out the individual income tax by gradually increasing the personal exemption over an undefined period of … Continue Reading
The Mississippi House of Representatives passed HB 1142 to extend the state’s 3.5% contractor’s tax to residential construction and to require builders to obtain a material purchase certificate (“MPC”) in order to pull a local building permit. Under current law, the contractor’s tax only applies to commercial construction, and the ordinary 7% sales tax applies … Continue Reading
For several years Mississippi has attempted to pass legislation to authorize offers in compromise allowing taxpayers to pay less than the full amount of finally determined taxes due by them. The Mississippi Constitution prohibits any release or extinguishment of any obligation or liability to the state, except for the compromise of certain doubtful claims. On … Continue Reading
Years ago the Mississippi Legislature “borrowed” certain sales, use and payroll tax collections from a subsequent fiscal year to close a then-current year budget gap. Because Mississippi has a June 30 fiscal year end, the legislation required certain taxpayers having a monthly tax liability of $50,000 or more to accelerate 75% of their June tax … Continue Reading
In a Monday press conference on Facebook Live, Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves laid out an ambitious plan to eliminate the state’s individual income tax in the upcoming legislative session starting in January. The tax, levied at a maximum rate of 5%, was trimmed in 2016 when the Legislature eliminated the 3% tax bracket levied on … Continue Reading
This morning the Mississippi Department of Revenue issued a notice reversing course and setting Mississippi’s income tax filing deadlines for July 15 to coincide with the federal due dates. This applies to individual, corporate and fiduciary returns, and covers return extensions as well as estimated payments for both Q1 and Q2. We now have an … Continue Reading
Mississippi Department of Revenue reminds taxpayers that income tax returns are due May 15 and the state does not follow federal dates. For additional information, please contact John Fletcher and Bob Box from our team in Mississippi. … Continue Reading
Reposted from Mississippi Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann’s Facebook page: COVID-19 Update: By agreement of Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann and Speaker of the House Philip Gunn, the Mississippi Legislature will reconvene the 2020 legislative session on Monday, May 18. The Legislature recessed its 125-day session temporarily on March 18, following the governor’s issuance of a state … Continue Reading
The Mississippi Secretary of State’s office has now issued its new Remote Notarization Order Guidance following Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves’ Executive Order 1467, which modified the in-person requirement for notarization temporarily. According to the new Remote Notarization Order Guidance, effective immediately, and continuing throughout the period of the State of Emergency Proclamation as declared by … Continue Reading
This afternoon the Mississippi Department of Revenue issued a notice containing updated information related to multiple extended filing deadlines and audit procedures. Among the changes are the following: Income and franchise tax filing deadlines remain extended to May 15 (no change from prior notice) Sales and use tax return filing deadlines remain unchanged, but interest … Continue Reading
Jones Walker SALT Team member John Fletcher recently presented at the Council on State Taxation’s Sales Tax Symposium in Atlanta, Georgia. John’s panel, “Hot Topics – East of the Mississippi” covered litigation and legislative issues for companies with extensive operations east of the Mississippi River. Topics included the controversial recent trend by states to impose … Continue Reading
JW SALT Team member, John Fletcher, published an article in the Mississippi Business Journal on how the US Supreme Court hearing of South Dakota vs. Wayfair will affect internet industries and small businesses in Mississippi. The Court wrestled over whether it should abandon or uphold its longstanding physical presence requirement and, if oral arguments were any indication, … Continue Reading
“Substantial economic presence” nexus standard formally embodied in regulation. As expected after recently having filed an economic impact statement, the Mississippi Department of Revenue on November 1 filed its final remote seller use tax regulation with the Secretary of State. The new regulation will be effective December 1, 2017, and contains numerous changes from the … Continue Reading
Files Questionable Economic Impact Statement with Secretary of State On Tuesday, the Mississippi Department of Revenue filed an economic impact statement with the Secretary of State addressing its proposed regulation adopting use tax economic nexus standards and remote seller collection obligations. Readers may recall the Department issued the proposed regulation in January and held a … Continue Reading
In October 2016, the Mississippi Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Mississippi Department of Revenue v. AT&T Corporation, concluding the state’s dividend exclusion statute violated the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. The statute, Miss. Code Ann. Section 27-7-15(4)(i), unconstitutionally discriminated against interstate commerce by excluding from Mississippi gross income any dividends received … Continue Reading
In response to the impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, parts of the United States have been declared as major disaster areas by the federal government. As a result, numerous states have enacted delayed filing and payment periods for individuals and businesses located in these major disaster areas. Louisiana has joined this growing list with … Continue Reading
Department of Revenue Now Authorized to Hire Auditors and Expert Witnesses on Contingency Fees $1,000,000 Appropriation to Fund Contingency Contracts RFPs Quickly Issued for Transfer Pricing Audits and Underreported Cash Sales The Mississippi Legislature recently authorized the Department of Revenue to hire third party tax auditors and expert witnesses and to pay them contingency fees … Continue Reading
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant announced Tuesday afternoon on Facebook that he would call a special session of the Mississippi Legislature to begin June 5. The 2017 regular session ended earlier this year without having approved 2018 fiscal year budgets for the Department of Transportation or the Attorney General’s office, and the special session is intended … Continue Reading
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant has announced the appointment of Herb Frierson as the Commissioner of the Department of Revenue for Mississippi effective July 1, 2016. Prior to being appointed Commissioner, Mr. Frierson served as a Republican member of the Mississippi House of Representatives, representing District 106. In his future role as Commissioner, Mr. Frierson will oversee the Mississippi … Continue Reading
State & Local Tax Partners, Jesse R. “Jay” Adams, III, William M. Backstrom,Jr., John F. Fletcher, and Kimberly Lewis Robinson, were all quoted in the recent Bloomberg BNA article, “Corporate Taxpayers Face Changes in Louisiana, Mississippi, Attorneys Say.” The partners discuss how legislative sessions in 2014 and 2015 and some notable cases have brought significant changes … Continue Reading
Ready, set, hut! The Jones Walker LLP State & Local Tax team is back with a day-long program on October 8, 2015, titled SALT Gameday: Key Plays in State & Local Tax. The team will tackle some big issues in the morning, including state and local tax procedure and the legislative developments in Louisiana and … Continue Reading
The Mississippi Supreme Court last week in Vincent J. Castigliola, Jr. v. Mississippi Department of Revenue, No. 2013-SA-001574-SCT (April 30, 2015), reversed a lower court judgment which had upheld the Department of Revenue’s imposition of use tax upon the out-of-state purchase of a yacht by a Mississippi resident. In doing so the Court provided taxpayers with very … Continue Reading
The Hinds County Chancery Court on March 20th invalidated the nexus-based restrictions contained within Mississippi’s dividend exclusion statute, finding the provisions violated the Commerce Clause. A copy of the Court’s Order can be found here. The Mississippi Department of Revenue and the taxpayer, AT&T, had stipulated that the statute, Miss. Code Section 27-7-15(4)(i), exempts from a … Continue Reading
Bill Backstrom was recently quoted in a Law360 article entitled State Tax Cases to Watch in 2015. In the article, Bill, a partner in Jones Walker’s New Orleans office and the Tax & Estates practice group leader, discusses the need for clarity in tax reporting positions following the decision in Vodafone Americas Holdings Inc. v. Farr, which is currently … Continue Reading
