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California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

xconomy.com

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Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#261

Post by thwest »

brianoverstreet wrote: post #246
anigbrowl wrote: post #209

One-sided and confused article. Whether this is an attempt to mislead readers or a misunderstanding by the writer, I don't know. But this is not a case of California choosing to implement an unhelpful policy. This is a case of California's previous helpful policy being found illegal because it violates the commerce clause; the FTB had no other choice but to impose the tax. http://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/x/214234/…

Hi - as the author of the article, I don't think I was misleading, nor do I think I misunderstand the issues. The FTB has a number of options and tools at its disposal to craft an alternative to this "nuclear option". They could have changed the rule going-forward and allowed post 2008 QSB exclusions under revised terms. Yes, that may have cost them some $$$, but probably not as much as you think, and certainly not a…

> Yes, that may have cost them some $$$, but probably not as much as you think,

Why didn't you report this number?

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#262

Post by refurb »

vacri wrote: post #249
refurb wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Note, he said "marginal" not "overall" tax rate. Don't forget that BC has 12% sales tax and monthly premiums for health insurance. Income tax is only one of the many taxes.

Sales tax is not a 'marginal' tax, and is certainly not unique to BC.

No, it's not a marginal tax, I was just referring to the fact that total tax burden has to include more than just income tax.

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#263

Post by caniszczyk »

natrius wrote: post #166
techsupporter wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hopefully you aren't fond of electricity[0], water[1], schools[2], or roads[3]. 0 - http://www.ercot.com/news/press_releases/show/26375 1 - http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/DM_south.htm 2 - http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-budgets-call-for-cu... 3 - http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-polit... (Texas is my home state. I left, though I keep close ties to it through family and frequent visits.)

Electricity is being worked on, as that press release indicates. On the hottest day or two of the year, the power might go out for a little bit. It's not a big deal. Water is going to be the biggest issue this legislative session. California has similar water problems. Schools... are complicated. That one might not get fixed, but performance is better correlated with household income than education spending. Roads ar…

Same here, went to the bay area for a few years and came back to Austin. It's just a better area, so many things to do and better quality of life.

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#264

Post by protomyth »

If we're all recommending states, then how about ND. Yeah it gets cold and hot, but we have a budget surplus, wicked fast fiber, and low taxes. Fargo(1) is an ok town (Microsoft has a place there).

1) Fargo in no way resembles anything from the movie of the same name. That would be MN home of high taxes and no off-sale after 8pm.

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#265

Post by dyno12345 »

king_magic wrote: post #213
zzzeek wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

salaries are a lot higher here than in a southern/midwest state though (largely driven by the crazy costs of housing).

The cost of living is brutal here; e.g. $100K in NYC really isn't that great.

Don't forget to factor in the savings from not needing a car.

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#266

Post by refurb »

redthrowaway wrote: post #151
enraged_camel wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

High taxes aren't an issue, since healthcare is free and there is a very strong social safety net.

Also, taxes aren't high.

It's all relative, no?

Long ago, when I moved to the US from Canada, I figure out what I'd owe in tax in Canada vs. what I was paying in the US.

Keep in mind that I owed a home (mortgage interest deduction) and maxed out my 401k (which isn't a % of income like Canada).

I was only making $50K/yr, but I was taking home an extra $5K by living in the US and not Canada. 10% more income is pretty good, no?

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#267

Post by techsupporter »

natrius wrote: post #166
techsupporter wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hopefully you aren't fond of electricity[0], water[1], schools[2], or roads[3]. 0 - http://www.ercot.com/news/press_releases/show/26375 1 - http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/DM_south.htm 2 - http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-budgets-call-for-cu... 3 - http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-polit... (Texas is my home state. I left, though I keep close ties to it through family and frequent visits.)

Electricity is being worked on, as that press release indicates. On the hottest day or two of the year, the power might go out for a little bit. It's not a big deal. Water is going to be the biggest issue this legislative session. California has similar water problems. Schools... are complicated. That one might not get fixed, but performance is better correlated with household income than education spending. Roads ar…

Considering TXU is still being "managed" quite well by its leveraged buyout partners, "no big deal" may very well become a big deal. Texans already pay some of the highest average per-kWh rates in the country though the falling price of natural gas has helped.

Unless Texas is going to take water from Oklahoma by force, I wasn't meaning a solution to the problem from the state government. Texas is in a long-term, structural drought. The Ogallala aquifer is a shadow of its former self and the next major underground aquifer in East Texas is in danger of being rendered unusable by the Keystone pipeline. Several surface lakes have simply gone...away (check out aerial maps near Bronte).

As for tolling, I suppose the city folk will just keep letting paid for highways like 121 or capacity expansions (basically anything; 820, 183, Westpark, 635) go toll because hey, poor people don't need to get around. Mass transit will take care of that. Oops, no it won't. Besides, developers in rural areas gotta have their pristine FM roads (which are paid for by the state).

I didn't leave Texas for California (heavens, no) and I had the chance to come back this year making more money than I do in the (higher cost of living) state where I now live. Couldn't do it. Until the Legislature gets its head out of its ass and realizes that government is expensive--both for needed things like roads and schools, and nice to have things like state parks--and that you just dishonestly[0] can't cut your way to perfection, my state is going to be set up more and more for long-term failure. Even the Comptroller, who is legally required to make an accurate assessment of the state's income, can't get it all to balance without slight of hand.

0 - Sure, the state government hasn't raised taxes or imposed new fees in years. They just leave that hatchet job for the local governments. Never mind the several billion dollars earning crap for interest in the "rainy day fund" that's never once seen an emergency worthy of tapping it.

My apologies for the extreme derail; I'll stop ranting now.

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#268

Post by [deleted] »

anigbrowl wrote: post #259
brianoverstreet wrote: post #247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The court did not invalidate the statute, it invalidated one of the many qualifiers for a company to be deemed a QSB.

"The statute is discriminatory on its face and cannot stand under the commerce clause." http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=1745098991866615... It's at the end of section 3 (pagination doesn't work properly on GS at present). Seems pretty unambiguous to me. PS: I think the least you could do is update your blog post to remove the factual inaccuracies and correct the misapprehensions of your readers; most of t…

[deleted]

Re: California To Hit Startup Founders with Big Retroactive Tax Bills

#269

Post by mturmon »

twakefield wrote: post #175

Am I missing something or has California crossed over into absurdity? I don't understand why the VC and tech community in California stand for this stuff [1]. There should either be more lobbying by the seemingly powerful tech and vc community or mass exodus out of the state. I don't see either happening and I wonder why. Perhaps these things just take time. Is CA killing the golden goose here? [1] I am guilty too by…

"Give us our targeted tax breaks or we'll leave for another state!". I like principled stands like this.
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