Key Takeaways
- Tax Legislation
- Transfer Pricing
- Kenneth Kies
- CTA
- In the Courts
- Take Your Dog to Work Day
Tax Legislation
Trump’s tax bill has become a battlefield for tobacco giants – Jacob Bogage, Washington Post:
The version of the legislation that the House passed last month included language to claw back a $12 billion tax break that tobacco producers — most of them in North Carolina — use to make their products cheaper to export. The version of the legislation the Senate is considering would leave the tax break untouched.
Senate GOP Tempers House Plan to Repeal Energy Tax Credits – Erin Schilling, Bloomberg ($):
The draft bill the Senate Finance Committee released this week would phase out tax credits for wind and solar beginning next year, favoring tax breaks for technologies that can provide round-the-clock power, such as geothermal and nuclear.
The phaseout would provide more flexibility than the House-passed bill, which would only grant clean electricity investment and production tax breaks to projects that begin construction within 60 days of the law’s enactment and are placed in service by 2028.
Senate GOP seeks to reward oil drillers amid deep cuts to wind and solar – Evan Halper, Washington Post:
The massive bill eliminates large swaths of federal funding for wind, solar and other green energy initiatives, reversing many of the Biden-era initiatives aimed at developing clean sources of fuel. At the same time, lobbying efforts by petroleum companies to win benefits from the oil-friendly administration and its allies appear to have paid off.
EU Businesses Call for Quick Solutions to US ‘Revenge Tax’ – Saim Saeed, Bloomberg ($):
Businesses are suggesting various options for the EU to avoid retaliation, including carving out an exemption from the minimum tax for US companies, softening its impact, or scrapping it altogether.
The US measure, new tax code Section 899 in the major tax bill Congress is considering, ramps up pressure on the European Union to change its tax regime at a time when it’s already working to prevent billions in potential tariffs on goods exported to the US.
Senate’s Revenge Tax Splits Super BEAT, Penalty Tax Triggers – Jonathan Curry, Tax Notes ($):
The Senate made a variety of changes that soften the blow of section 899 relative to the House-passed version of the proposal, but one key, overlooked change in the Senate’s version is that the withholding tax penalty would be triggered only by undertaxed profits rules, not by digital services taxes, according to Jason Yen of EY.
U.S. Bill’s Retaliatory Tax Might Disrupt Markets, EU Says – Elodie Lamer, Tax Notes ($). “The European Commission said in a presentation to member states that section 899 of the United States’ proposed One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) could lead to financial market disruptions, among other negative consequences.”
The U.S. is giving up on taxing inheritances – Jeff Stein, Washington Post:
Under current law, estates pay tax only on transfers above $13.99 million for single filers and $27.98 million for married couples. Those thresholds, doubled by President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax law, are scheduled to fall by roughly half at the end of 2025. But in the tax bill before Congress, both the House and Senate versions would raise the exemption starting next year to $15 million for individuals and $30 million for couples, then set them to adjust for inflation in the future.
Senate Tax Bill Excludes IRS Whistleblower Reforms – Tyrah Burris, Tax Notes ($). “Senate Republicans excluded IRS whistleblower program provisions from their draft tax bill because they likely would have violated the rule requiring every provision in a reconciliation bill to have a budgetary impact, a spokesperson for Senate Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said.”
Transfer Pricing
Transfer Pricing Rules Land on Business Deregulation Hit Lists – Caleb Harshberger, Bloomberg ($):
Many objections to the rules have been, or will be, hashed out in court, but President Donald Trump’s rare invitation to submit lists of items for removal or change may be an expedited way for taxpayers to get what they want.
Kenneth Kies
Thune Files Motion Setting Up Vote on Treasury Tax Nominee Kies – Katie Lobosco, Tax Notes ($). “Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D, filed a motion to advance President Trump’s pick for Treasury assistant secretary for tax policy, setting up a vote in the chamber to confirm the nomination of Kenneth Kies.”
CTA
Mich. Housing Co-Op Suit on Hold After Disclosure Exemption – Nate Beck, Law 360 ($). “A Michigan federal judge hit pause on a lawsuit from a group of housing cooperatives to escape requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act after the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network said it would give U.S.-based entities a break from the rules.”
In the Courts
Mushroom Farm Faces $6M Tax Liens Tied to Fraud Case – Kat Lucero, Law 360 ($). “A defunct Pennsylvania mushroom farm failed to pay the outstanding balance in a payroll tax fraud case that sent its owner to jail last year and owes more than $6 million worth of tax liens, the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal court.”
Tax Court Rejects IRS Deficiency Case Over Address Error – Kat Lucero, Law 360 ($). “The U.S. Tax Court dismissed a lawsuit over a 2020 tax deficiency notice, saying Wednesday the case lacked jurisdiction because the IRS failed to prove that the agency fulfilled its obligation to find the taxpayer's last known address to mail the correspondence.”
Incorrect Address Dooms IRS Deficiency Notice in Tax Case – Mary Katherine Browne, Tax Notes ($). “The IRS isn’t entitled to a presumption of proper mailing after it sent a notice of deficiency to an incorrect address, the Tax Court found.”
What Day is it?
Its my favorite day, and my every day, its National Take Your Dog to Work Day!
