Bloomberg BNA Webinar Underscores Movement of States to Tax New Technologies, At-Home Work Arrangements, and Social Coupon Transactions

ARLINGTON, Va., May 15, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- An annual Bloomberg BNA survey of state tax departments released this month asks senior state tax officials in all 50 states how their jurisdictions are taxing the new technologies and types of transactions that continue to emerge as the U.S. economy shifts from the bricks and mortar of Main Street to the web-based world, which operates mostly independent of state or local borders. The recent Survey findings will be presented in a new Bloomberg BNA webinar, Cloudy with a Chance of Nexus: Analyzing Bloomberg BNA's 2012 Survey of State Tax Departments on May 17, 2012.

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States once believed that a corporation needed a physical presence within their borders before it could be subject to an income-based tax. But new technologies, such as cloud computing, and new transactions such as Groupon and LivingSocial, are challenging the parameters of most states' tax codes, which either have not addressed how these technologies and transactions will be taxed, or do so under outdated provisions.

What constitutes a taxable "economic presence?"

The Bloomberg BNA 2012 State Tax Department Survey  identifies a number of different scenarios that can trigger income tax nexus in different states:

• Sixteen states said having a website on a server physically located within their jurisdiction will trigger income tax nexus.
• Having a substantial number of customers with billing addresses in the state? Fourteen states said yes. That would trigger nexus for the firm.
• Thirteen states would apply sales and use tax to fees paid by in-state customers to remotely access canned or prewritten software that is hosted on a web server.
• Nearly every state agreed that social media coupon companies, such as Groupon or LivingSocial, are not liable for taxes when their coupons are redeemed at in-state retailers or restaurants. But the states were very much divided on the question of whether sales taxes, paid by the end user, should be assessed on the full or the discounted price of the product or service.
• All but six jurisdictions tax an out-of-state employer that permits an employee to telecommute from a home within their borders.
• Twenty-three states said nexus would arise for reimbursing sales staff for the costs of maintaining an in-home office.
• Job fairs or other recruitment activities would trigger income tax nexus in 21 states.
• Thirty-six states said nexus would arise from having employees hire, supervise, or train other employees within their borders.

Cloudy with a Chance of Nexus: Analyzing Bloomberg BNA's 2012 Survey of State Tax Departments takes place May 17, 2012 from 12:30 p.m.– 2:00 p.m., (ET). To register for this webinar and obtain further information about CLE and CPE credits, go to http://www.bna.com/cloudy-chance-nexus-w12884909075/?utm_source=newswire&utm_medium=PR&utm_content=TM&utm_campaign=Webinar-05172012 or (in the U.S.) call 800.372.1033, menu Option 6, then Option 1. The per site fee is just $249 which includes a copy of the 2012 Survey.

To receive automatic, email notification of upcoming BNA webinars that may be of interest to you, go to: http://www.bna.com/emailsignup.htm 

About Bloomberg BNA Webinars 

Bloomberg BNA is the foremost source of tax and accounting research, news, practice tools, and guidance for tax attorneys, CPAs, corporate tax managers, estate planners, and financial accountants.  Designed for today's busy practitioners, our webinars offer the same expertise and relevance that are the hallmark of all Bloomberg BNA resources. In just 60-90 minutes, practitioners gain in-depth knowledge on a current tax or accounting topic from experts in that area — and benefit from practical applications that can be put to work immediately. Conference attendees have the opportunity to ask the speakers questions, and may be eligible to earn CLE or CPE credits — all from the convenience of their own office or conference room.

About Bloomberg BNA             

Bloomberg BNA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bloomberg, is a leading source of legal, regulatory, and business information for professionals. Its network of more than 2,500 reporters, correspondents, and leading practitioners delivers expert analysis, news, practice tools, and guidance - the information that matters most to professionals. Bloomberg BNA's authoritative coverage spans the full range of legal practice areas, including tax & accounting, labor & employment, intellectual property, banking & securities, employee benefits, health care, privacy & data security, human resources, and environment, health & safety. 

SOURCE Bloomberg BNA

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