WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has struck down as unconstitutional a Maryland tax that has the effect of double-taxing income residents earn in other states.
Maryland officials say the 5-4 ruling means the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues.
It also could affect similar tax laws in nearly 5,000 local jurisdictions in other states, including New York, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
The justices agreed with a lower court that the tax is invalid because it discourages Maryland residents from earning money outside the state.
The unusual split wasn’t along ideological lines. Writing for the court, Justice Samuel Alito said the tax “is inherently discriminatory” under the Constitution’s Commerce Clause. The court has interpreted that provision to ban states from passing laws that burden interstate commerce.
Alito was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor.
Maryland allowed its residents to deduct income taxes paid to other states from their Maryland state tax, but it did not apply that deduction to a local “piggy back” tax collected for counties and some city governments.
- Posted May 26, 2015
- Tweet This | Share on Facebook
Court strikes down Maryland tax law
headlines Macomb
- Lawyer publishes first of three children’s books
- US government agrees to $138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
- Owner of twice-sunken Lake Michigan barge pleads guilty to felony
- Woman charged with murder in crash that killed young brother and sister at birthday party
- MDHHS to issue maternal health quality payments to hospitals
headlines National
- New Legalese: You may have heard a deepfake, but what about ‘Twiqbal’?
- From Intake to Outcome: An in-house lawyer’s guide to matter management solutions
- 2 BigLaw firms in merger talks that could produce 1,600-lawyer firm with top 50 revenue
- Send in the paralegals
- Lawyer reprimanded after mistakenly emailing opposing counsel with plan to avoid judge’s call
- ‘I don’t play well’ judge who threatened to track down, jail misbehaving litigant gets tossed from case