"Pied-à-terre" tax; warning shot; Section 122 tariffs; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers.
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Viruses are back!
Don't Mess With Taxes : Apparently, we're never going to be done with the coronavirus. The deadly hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship has lots of us flashing back to 2020. The COVID-19 cases five years ago among Diamond Princess passengers was the high-profile introduction for most of us to COVID-19. U.S. and world health officials say that unlike COVID, the hantavirus isn't as easily transmissible so a global pandemic repeat isn't likely. Still, many are thinking again about the coronavirus pandemic that killed more than a million in the U.S. and 7 million worldwide. And COVID-19 is back in the news for tax reasons, too.Trout CPA : Recent court decisions are creating a meaningful opportunity for taxpayers to seek refunds of certain IRS penalties and the related interest assessed during the COVID-19 period. Notably, this opportunity is not based on traditional "reasonable cause" arguments. Instead, it stems from how the IRS applied (or failed to fully apply) its own COVID-era relief rules.
Annual scramble
Wiss : For many, tax season ends in April. Strategic tax planning happens in February, June, September, and every time a major financial decision is considered. If a primary tax interaction is the annual scramble to pull documents together before a filing deadline, a tax preparer is needed. That is a necessary thing to have. It is not sufficient. For high-net-worth families, the gap between compliance and strategic tax planning is not a matter of degree. It is a matter of category.CBIZ : A proposed 9.5% property tax increase would add new pressure to ownership costs in New York City as officials look to close a multibillion-dollar budget gap.Taxbuzz : New York lawmakers have officially reached a tentative budget agreement that includes a new tax targeting luxury second homes in New York City, setting off a heated debate about wealth, business and the future of the city's economy. The agreement, backed by Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, includes a new "pied-à-terre" tax on high-value secondary residences worth more than $5 million. State officials estimate the measure could generate roughly $500 million annually to help fund public services and affordability initiatives. Supporters argue the tax is aimed at ultra-wealthy property owners who use Manhattan luxury properties as part-time residences rather than primary homes.Avalara : A growing number of states are looking to reduce payment card processing costs for merchants and consumers. Illinois is prohibiting interchange fees (a.k.a., swipe fees) on taxes and gratuities starting July 1, 2026, and the Colorado Legislature has sent a similar bill to the governor.
Hit the road now
Tax Foundation : Rental cars are some of the most heavily taxed transactions in the U.S. Last year, it was estimated the median state rental car tax was more than 11%. Customers in Minnesota, Colorado and New York were charged an average tax of more than 20% for a standard rental car transaction. Car rental taxes can vary significantly across the country, both in rate and structure.Baker Tilly : Equity compensation programs are a cornerstone of talent attraction and retention strategies across the middle market. Yet even well-established programs contain inefficiencies that erode value for both employees and the company offering the equity plan. One such area is at the time of restricted stock release, where timelines are tight, taxes are complex and coordination is required between multiple stakeholders.The Tax Times : The Tax Court's memorandum decision in Kadau v. Commissioner, is the latest warning shot at taxpayers using microcaptive insurance structures that do not hold up as real insurance arrangements with genuine economic substance. For practitioners, Kadau is useful not just as another "bad microcaptive" case, but as a clear illustration of how courts are applying the economic substance doctrine and the 40% penalty under section 6662(i) in this context.Withum : On May 7, 2026, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled against the imposition of 10% temporary global tariffs by the administration under Section 122 of the Trade Act 1974 by calling it "unlawful." In a split 2-1 decision, the court found that the administration failed to meet the strict legal requirements of Section 122 when they imposed those duties beginning in February, after the previous set of IEEPA tariffs were deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. However, while the court declared Section 122 tariffs to be illegal, it only explicitly blocked their collection from the two importers and the State of Washington under appeal that had sued over their legality. The court's decision leaves the temporary tariffs in place for all other importers while any appeal by the administration plays out or until it expires in July.Yeo and Yeo : Tax identity theft isn't limited to individual taxpayers — businesses are also targeted through their Employer Identification Numbers, payroll systems and tax filings. The financial impact of these crimes can be significant. Businesses may face delayed or stolen tax refunds, unauthorized payroll filings, and the time and expense of resolving IRS issues. There may even be credit damage or, if employee or customer data is compromised, reputational harm. Here's what you need to know to protect your business.
Grandmother's sedan
Dean Dorton : Too many businesses are running their finances like their grandmother's sedan loaded down with unnecessary weight, and they need to start building sleeker accounting functions.The Sales Tax People : You might think you have sales tax figured out until a random state audits you for $50,000 in uncollected taxes. Between changing economic nexus thresholds, obscure product exemptions and complex city-level tax rules, businesses often discover compliance problems only after the penalties pile up. This is exactly why companies hire sales tax consultants.Boyum & Barenscheer : For factoring companies, their accounting isn't just about compliance. It's directly tied to their profitability, lender relationships and ability to scale. Here are the most common accounting mistakes factoring companies make, and how to stay ahead of them.
