The recent Texas Third Court of Appeals decision in Hegar v. El Paso Electric Company highlights the importance of specificity when seeking Texas state tax refunds. There, the Third Court of Appeals found that the courts lacked jurisdiction over a taxpayer’s Texas sales tax refund suit when the taxpayer failed to specify the precise grounds […]
In its opinion issued May 8, 2020 in EBS Solutions, Inc. v. Hegar, the Texas Supreme Court allowed a taxpayer’s lawsuit challenging a Texas tax assessment to go forward even though the taxpayer had not prepaid the entire assessment before filing suit. (Note: Seay & Traphagan, PLLC represents EBS Solutions, Inc. in connection with this […]
Two recent Texas court opinions address apportionment under the Texas franchise tax, also known as the Texas margin tax. Apportionment is the method by which a taxpayer determines how much of its income (or, in Texas, taxable margin) is taxable to a particular state as opposed to other states. The Texas Supreme Court decided one […]
The Texas Comptroller has announced the extension of the Texas franchise tax filing and payment deadlines due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation. Annual Texas franchise tax reports are now due on July 15, 2020. All Texas franchise taxpayers will receive this extension automatically. Taxpayers may also request additional extensions. Mandatory EFT taxpayers. Taxpayers who the […]
The Texas Supreme Court recently released opinions in three Texas franchise tax/margin tax cases. All three opinions address the applicability of the Texas franchise tax’s cost of goods sold subtraction to costs incurred by taxpayers in specific industries. Below, we discuss the industry-specific rulings in each case, and then consider what the cases, taken as […]
Texas taxpayers should remain vigilant of Texas tax law during social distancing. One easy way to do this is by checking the mail for tax communications with important deadlines. The following are a few examples of time-sensitive notices from the Texas Comptroller. Notice of Tax Due A taxpayer who receives a Notice of Tax Due […]
The Texas Comptroller’s office announced today that it would offer assistance to taxpayers affected by coronavirus (COVID-19). According to a new page on the Texas Comptroller web site, the Texas Comptroller will offer short-term payment plans as well as waiver of penalty and interest for most taxpayers. Such assistance is available for the Texas sales […]
The Texas Supreme Court recently issued its opinion in Graphic Packaging Corp. v. Hegar. It upheld the Third Court of Appeals’s ruling that taxpayers may not choose to use the Multistate Tax Compact’s three-factor apportionment method to apportion their taxable margin under the Texas franchise tax. However, in doing so, it relied on different reasoning […]
The Texas Comptroller announced possible Texas tax deadline extensions of some tax deadlines for those affected by Hurricane Harvey. The Comptroller may grant tax deadline extensions to file state tax returns and pay certain taxes, such as the Texas sales and use tax, of up to 90 days. Such Texas tax deadline extensions are available […]
The Texas Third Court of Appeals recently issued several Texas tax opinions, regarding both Texas franchise tax and Texas sales tax. This blog post summarizes those Texas tax opinions. Texas Sales and Use Tax Cantu Enterprises, LLC v. Hegar, et al. The Third Court of Appeals held that a taxpayer was not entitled to the […]
