Lots of progress on the SALT Parity front to report! As readers know, S-Corp and the Parity for Main Street Employers coalition has advocated for the restoration of the federal SALT deduction to businesses organized as S corporations, partnerships, and LLCs.

In Minnesota, the House Tax Committee yesterday considered HF871, legislation introduced by Representative Greg Davids to enact our SALT Parity approach. The hearing featured supportive testimony from Beth Kadoun from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, Mike Hickey from the National Federation of Independent Business, and John Kammerer from Redpath and Company and the S Corporation Association.

A companion bill to HF 871 was considered by the Minnesota State Senate last year, so SALT Parity is in play in both bodies. Next step would be to include these reforms in an omnibus tax bill later this session.

Meanwhile, we’re making progress in Alabama too. The state’s Task Force on the TCJA released its final report last month, inlcuding a recommendation that Alabama adopt our SALT Parity fix. Here’s the key graph:

[T]he Task Force suggests the Legislature consider allowing an election for PTEs doing business in the state whereby the PTE may elect to pay their Alabama income tax at the entity-level, so that the tax (and the income) would not flow through to the individual owners and then be subjected to the $10,000 SALT cap.   The Task Force recommends that the provisions for the election incorporate the appropriate safeguards to ensure that these provisions are revenue-neutral.

Legislation implementing the Task Force recommendations –HB 353 in the House and SB 250 in the Senate — has been introduced and could come up before the relevant committees as early as next week. A summary of the bill and its provisions has been drafted by S-Corp ally Bruce Ely and can be accessed here.

Finally, SALT Parity bills have been considered in both bodies of the Maryland Assembly and they already had their hearings. The bills are HB 0129 in the House Ways and Means Committee and SB 523 in the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee. By all accounts, the hearings were successful and the bills appear poised to move through committee and to their respective Chambers in the next week or two.

So lots of progress on the SALT Parity front. For those keeping score, we are up to six states that have enacted some version of SALT Parity and another five or so where bills have been introduced and action taken. Here’s the full list:

Enacted:

  • Connecticut S.B. 11 (enacted May 31, 2018)
  • Wisconsin S.B. 883 (enacted Dec. 14, 2018)
  • Oklahoma H.B. 2665 (enacted April 29, 2019)
  • Louisiana Senate Bill 223 (enacted June 22, 2019)
  • Rhode Island H. 5151A (enacted July 7, 2019)
  • New Jersey S. 3246 (enacted January 13, 2020)

Under Consideration:

As S-Corp Wire readers know, we began this effort shortly after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act imposed a new cap on SALT deductions for pass-through businesses. We drafted model language and led successful efforts in multiple states.  Two years out and we’re making significant progress in getting this reform enacted nationwide. By our count, there are 41 states that tax their pass-through employers at the owner level. Our goal is to enact SALT Parity in every one.