SALTovation: Navigating the Complexities of State and Local Tax by Aprio

In this episode of the SALTovation podcast, we are joined by Judy Vorndran and Scott Peterson. Scott is the current Vice President of U.S. Tax Policy and Government Relations at Avalara. Prior to Avalara, he was the first Executive Director of the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board - an organization devoted to making sales tax simpler and more uniform for the benefit of business. Scott also spent 10 years as the Director of the South Dakota Sales Tax Division and 12 years providing research and legal writing for the South Dakota legislature.

Scott shares how his career in sales tax started by accident but ended up loving it and has dedicated his life to bringing industry change. Judy explains the importance of hiring lawyers who understand sales tax and policy at the same time to represent you as a business.

Listen in to understand why some states are not members of Streamline due to lack of uniformity in state and local tax.

Questions asked and answered in this Episode:

• What has your career been like in private practice and what made you stay away?
• 
  
• 
  
• Is there something strategic within South Dakota state that was chosen to carry the supreme case forward?
• 
  
• 
  
• What led you to be the executive director of Streamline Sales Tax Governing Board and what does streamline mean for everyone?
• 
  
• 
  
• How did working at Avalara come about and what are you doing there?
• 
  

What You Will Discover: 

• [1:09] He describes his career in tax as an accident caused by unemployment during a recession and having to take what was on the table.
• 
  
• 
  
• [8:12] The attributes to look for when hiring people who fully understand sales tax.
• 
  
• 
  
• [16:09] How not to be in the uncertainty of potential liability especially for public companies.
• 
  
• 
  
• [18:04] The amount of business that is happening in South Dakota which is why it has much bearing when it comes to the sales tax world.
• 
  
• 
  
• [20:52] Judy explains why there’s a Wayfair in Colorado state.
• 
  
• 
  
• [25:20] Scott describes how Streamline was a change environment for him- they applied change to make life better for everyone.
• 
  
• 
  
• [29:16] Why some states are not members of Streamline- the challenge of state and local tax having to be identical.
• 
  
• 
  
• [36:43] How big companies promoting SST uniformity did not care about certified service providers- how Avalara tackles the issue of government-imposed tax.
• 
  
• 
  
• [43:37] How automation or software is connected with transactions and taxes in general.
• 
  

Quotables:

• “If you don’t have the financial acumens, it’s really hard to understand sales tax because you have to understand the policy and then you have to put the numbers on the forms.”- Judy [13:56]
• 
  
• 
  
• “We were making changes to make life better.”- Scott Peterson [26:40]
• 
  
• 
  
• “It’s easy to automate a yes with a no if you have all the staff behind it, what’s complicated is selling it because you have to be sold with something else.”- Scott Peterson [44:00]
• 
  

Relevant Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-peterson-9170b8a/

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app:

https://saltovation.captivate.fm/listen

https://linktr.ee/taxops 

Follow Us on Socials

https://www.linkedin.com/company/taxops-llc

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMB1ZQNGXM_F777SIEl8Vjw 

Talk To A Tax Advocate Today

TaxOps Website: https://taxops.com/contact/

Production Support

This episode was produced with support from Truth Work Media. www.truthworkmedia.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Schedule a Call with the Aprio Team Now!

Introductory Call

In this episode of the SALTovation podcast, we speak with Diane Yetter, founder of Sales Tax Institute, and our very own Judy Vorndran.

Diane shares her journey in sales tax that spans over 35 years and the lessons she has learned throughout this period. She also shares the importance of understanding business processes when working in sales tax.

Listen in to learn the importance of tax compliance which will cost you less than getting caught when evading.

Questions asked and answered in this Episode:

• Why is Diane good at what she does?
• 
  
• 
  
• Why has she decided after 35 years to stay in state and local tax?
• 
  
• 
  
• How do you think people come to see the value and the importance of sales tax piece?
• 
  
• 
  
• To what do you attribute that continuous ability to serve the community in adding new students?
• 
  
• 
  
• Are there any concepts that you see class after class your attendees struggle with?
• 
  

What You Will Discover:

• [1:25] Diane shares her 35-year long career in sales and use tax where she was employed before starting her own consulting practice
• 
  
• 
  
• [2:46] How Diane learned to understand the business processes of sales tax
• 
  
• 
  
• [7:27] The opportunity that exists in sales tax for young people and the challenges that it possesses
• 
  
• 
  
• [11:43] How Diane takes her clients through the process of sales tax in their businesses
• 
  
• 
  
• [14:50] Why you’re more likely to be caught with tax offense if you’re a B2B company than a B2C company
• 
  
• 
  
• [18:41] Diane explains how they used to catch companies that were evading tax back in the 1980s
• 
  
• 
  
• [25:49] The importance of making learning a lifelong process when working in the sales tax field
• 
  
• 
  
• [28:34] Diane explains the difficulty of nexus, drop shipping, and taxation of digital goods topics with her students
• 
  

Quotables:

• “If what you sell is taxable, every mistake, every order that goes out that doesn’t have tax on it correctly, you’ve just lost 9-10% of your gross sales price.” - Diane Yetter [12:30]
• 
  
• 
  
• “Businesses really want to do what’s right but there’s always going to be some bad apples out there that are going to be evaders of tax and do things illegally.” - Diane Yetter [26:15]
• 
  
• 
  
• “If you’re going to work in this field, it is a lifelong learning opportunity.” - Diane Yetter [28:10]
• 
  
• 
  
• “Sales tax should not control the business but business decisions should take into account all costs associated with that.” - Diane Yetter [32:58]
• 
  

Relevant Links:

Website: https://www.salestaxinstitute.com/faculty/diane-l-yetter

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianeyetter/

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended, nor should it be relied upon, as legal, tax, accounting or investment advice. You should consult with a competent professional to discuss specifics of your situation and the applicability of the information presented.

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app:

https://saltovation.captivate.fm/listen

https://linktr.ee/taxops 

Follow Us on Socials

https://www.linkedin.com/company/taxops-llc

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMB1ZQNGXM_F777SIEl8Vjw 

Talk To A Tax Advocate Today

TaxOps Website: https://taxops.com/contact/

Production Support

This episode was produced with support from Truth Work Media. www.truthworkmedia.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Schedule a Call with the Aprio Team Now!

Introductory Call

In this episode of the SALTovation podcast, we are joined by Judy Vorndran and Bruce Nelson. Bruce has dealt with adversarial relationships for 40 years and is now an instructor for the AICPA and CSCPA and the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of State Taxation.

Bruce talks about why the relationships between taxpayers and the department of revenues keep on deteriorating on so many levels. He shares the factors that have contributed to worsening these relationships and the role each of the parties has played.

Listen in to learn how you should handle your taxes as a business owner and the responsibility you have to ensure you’re complying.

Questions asked and answered in this Episode:

• What are the issues that come together to create the environment leading up to the Quail decision in 1992?
• 
  
• 
  
• Was the Quail case a huge blow to the states?
• 
  
• 
  
• Does Bruce think good tax policy and good tax law are just more of the same?
• 
  
• 
  
• Will Wayfair change relationships between taxpayers and departments of revenues for the better as opposed to Quail?
• 
  
• 
  
• What should business owners be expecting since there are fewer taxpayers’ victories in tax law nowadays?
• 
  
• 
  
• Why do we need the marketplace? Who is the market place?
• 
  

What You Will Discover: 

• [2:29] The issues that have changed the relationships between taxpayers and tax administrators and legislators to become more divisive. 
• 
  
• 
  
• [7:34] How technological transitioning has changed the tax world which has broken the relationship between auditors and taxpayers.
• 
  
• 
  
• [10:22] Ways in which Quail was a huge setback for states.
• 
  
• 
  
• [14:57] Why tax policy and tax law need funds. Things that do not make sense from a conducting business perspective that impact taxpayers’ duties across the country.
• 
  
• 
  
• [22:34] Bruce explains why relationships between taxpayers and state department of tax are only going to get worse due to COVID even after Wayfair.
• 
  
• 
  
• [29:35] How business owners should handle their tax planning and audits to avoid tax cases.
• 
  
• 
  
• [35:38] Why things are going to get interesting in the coming years with business and their taxes.
• 
  

Quotables:

• “You can’t just train to an audit, you have to understand business as a whole.” -Bruce Nelson [9:46]
• 
  

• “There’s a lot of things that don’t make sense from a doing business perspective that impacts taxpayers’ duties across our land.” - Judy Vorndran [21:35]
• 
  

• “I think it’s going to get worse; it’s going to get uglier, and I don’t see any solution to that.” -Bruce Nelson [28:44]
• 
  

• “Taxpayers and attorneys and accountants, we have our share of the blame here too that makes the situation worse.” -Bruce Nelson [34:11]
• 
  

Relevant Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bruce-nelson-2a434064/

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended, nor should it be relied upon, as legal, tax, accounting or investment advice. You should consult with a competent professional to discuss specifics of your situation and the applicability of the information presented.

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app:

https://saltovation.captivate.fm/listen

https://linktr.ee/taxops 

Follow Us on Socials

https://www.linkedin.com/company/taxops-llc

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMB1ZQNGXM_F777SIEl8Vjw 

Talk To A Tax Advocate Today

TaxOps Website: https://taxops.com/contact/

Production Support

This episode was produced with support from Truth Work Media. www.truthworkmedia.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Schedule a Call with the Aprio Team Now!

Introductory Call

In this premiere episode of the SALTovation show, get to know some of the SALTovation members. They share their years of experience, when and how they joined TaxOps, and why they enjoy doing what they do.

Listen to hear answers to questions from both business and non-business owners about tax that are very useful.

Questions asked and answered in Episode 1:

1. What do we need to do to comply with SALT? Why does this matter, and why should we care?
2. 
   
3. 
   
4. What are the potential consequences of not understanding complex state and local laws across the U.S.?
5. 
   
6. 
   
7. I've told my employer multiple times over that I'm not a tax expert, but as we get these nexus questionnaires daily, they all come to me. How do I get people to stop expecting me to know about state taxes, just because I'm a CPA?
8. 
   
9. 
   
10. I travel to various states to train adults for a few days or to help solve a problem. Does distributing goods in a state during this period while the retailer pays the sales tax, create nexus?
11. 
    
12. 
    
13. Is Square a marketplace?
14. 
    

What You Will Discover:

1. [0:20] Tram Le is a member of SALTovation and has over 10 years of working in the state and local tax. She shares her journey in the tax sector, and why she enjoys working at SALT.
2. 
   
3. 
   
4. [1:40] Judy Vorndran is the head of the state and local tax practice and has been practicing for 25 years. She shares her journey in the tax sector, and the transition she has seen in her 25 years of practice.
5. 
   
6. 
   
7. [3:45] Alexander Korzhen has worked in the state and local tax for 15 years. He admits he’s had an interesting 15 years in the tax sector and is looking forward to the future.
8. 
   
9. 
   
10. [4:32] Stacey Roberts is a member of the SALTovation team and has 24 years of experience in the state and local tax. She shares her journey from the federal tax compliant to SALT which she found way more interesting.
11. 
    
12. 
    
13. [6:44] Judy explains why you need to understand the layers of the state and local taxes blueprint whether as a small or large business. Why it is critical to comply with tax.
14. 
    
15. 
    
16. [14:26] Stacy addresses the assumption that all CPAs know about local and state tax. Look where you can add value to your client as a CPA.
17. 
    
18. 
    
19. [17:48] The effects of crises in the tax sector and how the state governments are going to enforce laws post COVID-19.
20. 
    
21. 
    
22. [22:09] How to understand Nexus when traveling for business from state to state.
23. 
    
24. 
    
25. [26:27] Judy elaborates whether Square is a marketplace, how to handle sales tax, and the laws that handle these marketplaces.
26. 
    

Quotables:

1. “SALT is navigating the gray area that exists when laws are not written specifically to business and are not keeping track with business.” -Alexander Korzhen
2. 
   
3. 
   
4. “There are layers upon layers of taxes across our nation that apply to each and every business.” -Judy Vorndran
5. 
   
6. 
   
7. “You might very well have to eat the tax you didn’t collect from your end-users.” -Judy Vorndran
8. 
   
9. 
   
10. “A nexus questionnaire is really a fishing expedition from a state.” -Stacey Roberts
11. 
    

Relevant Links:

Website: https://www.saltovation.com/

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended, nor should it be relied upon, as legal, tax, accounting or investment advice. You should consult with a competent professional to discuss specifics of your situation and the applicability of the information presented.

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app:

https://saltovation.captivate.fm/listen

https://linktr.ee/taxops

Follow Us on Socials

https://www.linkedin.com/company/taxops-llc

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMB1ZQNGXM_F777SIEl8Vjw

Talk To A Tax Advocate Today

TaxOps Website: https://taxops.com/contact/

Production Support

This episode was produced with support from Truth Work Media. www.truthworkmedia.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Schedule a Call with the Aprio Team Now!

Introductory Call