3/18/21 The Coming Corporate Tax Hike Democrats are zeroing in on raising the corporate tax rate from its current 21% to 28% as one of the easiest ways to find new revenue for an infrastructure package. The big picture: While many senators are signaling that President Biden's next big-ticket bill must come with a way to pay for it, the White House and its Democratic allies are growing confident they can get there, in part, by increasing corporate taxes. 3/17/21 I.R.S. Pushes Tax Deadline Back One Month The Internal Revenue Service will again give Americans extra time to file their taxes as a result of the pandemic. Instead of the usual April 15 deadline, filers will instead have until May 17, the agency said Wednesday, an extension that will ease the burden on filers dealing with the economic upheaval caused by the coronavirus, which has put millions out of work or caused their hours to be cut. The I.R.S. emphasized that the extra time is only for federal returns, not state returns, so taxpayers should check with their state tax agencies about any deadline changes. It also does not apply to estimated tax payments that are due on April 15, which are still due on that day. 3/17/21 Will Pennsylvania Be the First State to Motor Past the Gas Tax? In Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf (D) has proposed phasing out the gas tax as the main funding mechanism for the state's highway fund, and he has established a commission to recommend options for replacing it with alternative revenue sources. In a statement, the governor called the current motor fuel tax burdensome, outdated, and unreliable. 3/15/21 Bitcoin ATMs Are Coming To A Gas Station Near You A new feature has appeared at smoke shops in Montana, gas stations in the Carolinas and delis in far-flung corners of New York City: a brightly-lit bitcoin ATM, where customers can buy or sell digital currency, and sometimes extract hard cash.The machines have multiplied quickly through the United States over the past year, fueled by a frenzy in crypto trading that sent bitcoin prices over $58,000. Kiosk operators such as CoinFlip and Coin Cloud have installed thousands of ATMs, scouring areas competitors have not yet reached, executives told Reuters. . . As of January, there were 28,185 bitcoin ATMs in the United States, according to howmanybitcoinatms.com, an independent research site. Roughly 10,000 came within the prior five months. 3/12/21 Teamsters Urge FTC to Halt Review of Speedway Sale Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa is calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to pause its antitrust review of the Speedway sale to Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd. until the agency has time to interpret, integrate and employ the antitrust legislation currently making its way through Congress. In Hoffa's letter to the FTC, he also requested the agency ensure that all competitive effects from the transaction have been fully considered and remedied. 3/12/21 Sen. Durbin Says Visa, Mastercard Want to 'Get Even' During an antitrust hearing yesterday, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard Durbin (D-IL) had choice words for rising credit card swipe fees, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC), of which NACS is a founding member. Durbin, who authored a key legislative victory for the convenience retail industry in 2010 that brought transparency, competition and predictability to debit card fees, cited Visa and Mastercard's plans for a nearly $1.2 billion increase in credit card swipe fees scheduled to take effect in April. "They didn't forget," Durbin said, referring to his earlier legislation. "They're waiting for an opportunity to get even again. Where is the policing authority to stop this duopoly from doing this to every merchant and retailer in America? I don't see it." 3/11/21 Lawmakers Strike Bipartisan Deal To Extend Small-business Loan Program Senior House and Senate lawmakers have reached an agreement to extend the Paycheck Protection Program for two months amid growing concern that the March 31 expiration of the landmark small-business rescue plan would deprive many employers of aid. The deal first announced by House Small Business Chair Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.), the committee's top Republican, would delay the PPP's loan application deadline to May 31. It would also give the Small Business Administration authority to continue processing pending applications for 30 days after that date.
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