In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a Catholic organization qualifies for a tax exemption even though its operations were not primarily religious. The decision overturned a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling. Background Under Wisconsin law, certain religious organizations may be exempt from paying taxes, including unemployment compensation taxes. This is similar to laws in other states that provide exemptions based on specific criteria. In other words, tax-exempt status for federal income tax purposes doesn’t always translate to state income or other tax exemptions. In this case, Wisconsin law exempts any “church or convention or association of churches”…

Topline The Supreme Court expanded when religious organizations can qualify for tax exemptions as it ruled Thursday in favor of a charity in Wisconsin—potentially setting off a slew of organizations seeking new exemptions, which critics warn could harm federal and state tax revenues. Key Facts Catholic Charities, a social charity that’s part of Roman Catholic dioceses in Wisconsin, asked the state to be exempted from the its unemployment tax under the carveout for religious groups, but the state denied the request because the group’s actual activities—providing services to people of all faiths who have disabilities—are not religious. The Wisconsin Supreme…

The CBO estimates that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will add $2.4 trillion to the federal deficit over the next decade. While these are only estimates, the group’s analysis is responsible for helping shed light on the economic impacts of proposed legislation. However, many do not know what this group is and what exactly their estimates mean. This comes as Trump publicly disagrees with the estimate and questions the groups assumptions and qualifications. This article discusses what is the CBO. It then provides three key takeaways from their latest report estimating the economic impact of the One Big Beautiful…

The IRS often challenges taxpayers who seek penalty abatements for late-filing penalties, particularly those related to international information returns. Generally, these cases focus on whether the taxpayer can demonstrate reasonable cause for non-compliance. Because the reasonable cause standard depends on the facts and circumstances, it is common for the government and taxpayers to disagree on whether the conduct at issue arises to a level of reasonable cause sufficient for penalty abatement. A recent federal district court order illustrates this point well. In Huang v. United States, No. 3:24-cv-062998-RS (N.D. Cal. 5/28/25), a pro se taxpayer challenged the IRS’ assessment of…

In the November 2022 election, New York voters overwhelmingly approved three amendments to the New York City’s charter to “lay the foundation for achieving racial equity.” But the legally required implementation of the amendments is far behind schedule, and despite its progressive reputation, New York is lagging behind other US cities on comprehensive racial equity policies. New York’s Charter Now Requires Racial Equity Policies New York’s charter lays out the city’s governing vision, the roles and activities of the Mayor (executive) and City Council (legislative) and establishes standards for city policies. (City courts are mostly governed as part of the…

The budget reconciliation bill passed by the House on May 22 would cut taxes by an average of about $2,900 in 2026, according to a new analysis by the Tax Policy Center that reflects eleventh hour changes to the measure. About 84 percent of households would get a tax cut. The cost would be steep, however. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates the measure would reduce federal revenue by $3.9 trillion through 2034. Who Benefits? As with earlier versions of the bill, the measure would be highly regressive. Tax cuts would be relatively small for low- and moderate-income households but…

In this episode of Tax Notes Talk, Tax Notes Capitol Hill reporters Cady Stanton and Katie Lobosco discuss the final version of the House’s reconciliation bill and what’s next as the legislation heads to the Senate. Tax Notes Talk is a podcast produced by Tax Notes. This transcript has been edited for clarity. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today International. This week: reconcilable differences. On May 22 the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a giant reconciliation bill that has been hotly debated over the past few…

Foreign investors can win big with United States investments. While holding U.S. assets can be lucrative, the U.S. estate tax regime is complex and often misunderstood by nonresident alien investors. NRAs, those who are neither U.S. citizens nor residents for estate tax purposes, are often very surprised when they learn of the challenges imposed by the estate tax rules. This article summarizes 5 estate tax surprises that often catch the NRA investor off-guard. These include the limited exemption amount, common misconceptions about asset types, the requirement to disclose the value of worldwide assets on the NRA’s estate tax return, and…

Trade wars, regulatory pivots, complex jurisdictional nuances – these are just a handful of the day-to-day challenges that have become major strategic priorities for multinational corporations around the world. In fact, now is arguably the most vital time for C-suites and their respective enabling functions, such as tax, trade, legal, HR, and procurement departments, to be in lockstep when it comes to everything from day-to-day governance to big-picture growth strategy. However, new research from Thomson Reuters finds a significant disconnect between the strategic value these functional departments play and executive priorities for business growth and expansion. Value Hiding in Plain…

To read this article with full citations, please visit taxnotes.com Last week, Tax Notes International ran an insightful piece by Lewis J. Greenwald and Eric J. Rietveld, two attorneys with Sullivan & Worcester. The authors detail how the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first pope to hold U.S. citizenship, raises some novel concerns. The issues relate to the payment of U.S. federal income tax and compliance with U.S. information reporting requirements. Beyond the saving of souls, the new pope might need to worry about saving his receipts — in the event the IRS audits him. Their article argues, quite…