Ford Motor Company v. City of Seattle, Exec. Services Dept., et al.

Case Updates

NCLC urged the Supreme Court to review a Washington Supreme Court decision holding that the Commerce Clause does not bar a city from imposing a business activity tax on one hundred percent of a taxpayer’s gross receipts, including receipts derived from interstate activities. NCLC argued that the Seattle and Tacoma taxes were more akin to income taxes than to sales taxes and therefore violate prior Supreme Court precedent requiring that the income tax base must be divided to fairly reflect the taxpayer’s activities within the state. NCLC also warned that the imposition of income taxes disguised as sales taxes is on the rise among the states.