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March 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 19 SALT News - State Tax Amnesty Programs By Gail Perry, CPA, Editor-in-Chief A Year in the Life of a SALT Accountant is sponsored by Avalara w s - c c o u n t a n t b y A v a l a r a March SALT Checklist Amnesty programs help miscreant taxpayers get back into the system without having to pay oner- ous penalties. Check the legislative updates in the states where your clients owe state taxes to see if there are amnesty programs in the works. Do you have multi-state clients? Develop a work- sheet to help your team gather the appropriate information from your client so you'll have every- thing you need to handle apportionments. Offer to provide clients with an analysis of state tax obligations to make sure no double-taxation is occurring. Accountants are extra busy this time of year. If you discover state tax issues with your clients, set up appointments for the summer months to chart out the tax obligations and get your clients registered and paying taxes. In Massachusets, the governor has proposed an amnesty program slated to bring in $100 million. Tis program is for ta x payers of all ta x types who have not previously fled in Massachusets (non-registrants), plus ta x payers k now n to Depa r t - ment of Revenue (DOR) who have not f i le d a nd h ave not yet be en assessed by the DOR for failing to fle. If approved, the program w ill run for the entire year of 2016. In addition, Massachusetts has enacted an amnesty program spe- ci f ica l ly for cor porate excise ta x- payers. A mnesty participants will be granted relief from penalties associ- ated w ith late pay ments. A l l pay- ments will be required to be made in full by June 30, 2015. Te penalty waiver applies to taxpayers who have either an unpaid self-assessed lia- bi l it y or who have a n u npa id ta x liabilit y resulting f rom an assess- ment either before or afer the fling of a return. Tis is good news for ta xpayers who want to get back in good stead with the state and bring their late tax liabilities up-to-date. North Carolina is still ofering its Trust Tax Recovery Program which was launched in 2014. Under the terms of this program, businesses have the opportunity to pay any unpaid or non-fled based on a predeter m i ned i n st a l l ment a g r e e m e n t . O n c e t h e t a x a n d i nterest has been pa id i n f ull, penalties and collec- t ion fees w i l l be wa ived . Taxes covered in this pro- g r a m i nc l u d e e m pl o y e e i ncome ta x w it h hold i ng , sa les a nd u se t a x , motor vehicle lease and rental tax, scrap tire disposal tax, and white goods disposal tax. California w ithholding agents are eligible to participate in the Withholding Voluntary Compli- ance Program (W VCP), a voluntary program which entitles withholders to rem it past-due nonwage w it h- holding for the previous two years, plu s i nt e re s t , i n e x c h a n ge f or a penalty waiver. N i ne s t a t e s a nd P u e r t o R ic o of fered va r ious ta x a mnest y pro- grams during 2014. M any states use tax amnesty programs as a way of bringing in additional revenue and, more importantly, get some former ta x payers back on active tax payment duty. SALT Toolkit • Sales tax compliance tune-up checklist • Sales tax survival guide for 2015 • Up-to date sales tax news by state • Sales tax rate lookup tool • Sales tax automation free trial