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ALERT – Governor Newsom Signs New Business Recovery Bill

August 3, 2021
On July 16, 2021, in an effort to provide tax relief to small businesses facing unprecedented economic hurdles due to COVID-19, Governor Gavin Newsom signed California Assembly Bill 150 establishing a new elective pass-through entity level tax. The new law allows California taxpayers to work around the $10,000 state and local tax limitation imposed by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”).

In 2018, the TCJA went into effect, limiting an individual’s deduction for the aggregate amount of state and local taxes paid during the calendar year to $10,000. This was a big hit for California taxpayers because prior to TCJA, the state and local tax deduction was unlimited and most likely the California taxpayer’s largest itemized deduction.

Now, thankfully, there is a workaround to this limitation effective as of January 1, 2021. California taxpayers who own qualified pass-through entities can now receive a credit for their share of the pass-through level state and local taxes deducted by partnerships and S-Corporations, allowing them to indirectly exceed the $10,000 state and local tax deduction limitation on their federal taxes.

Here is how it works. The qualified pass-through entity makes the election. The entity pays state and local taxes at the individual rate. The entity deducts the additional state and local taxes paid, lowering the adjusted business income. The owners report their share of the adjusted business income on their individual federal tax return. The owner additionally obtains a credit for the amount of tax paid on their distributive share on their individual state tax return.

Qualified pass-through entities include:
·      Partnerships (General, Limited and Limited Liability Partnerships)
·      Limited Liability Companies
·      S-Corporations

Note, the following entities are excluded as “qualified entities”:
·      Trusts (unless taxed as a partnership)
·      Publicly Traded Partnerships
·      Sole Proprietorships
·      Single Member LLCs
·      Entities permitted or required to be part of a combined reporting group
·      Entities with pass-through owners like a partnership or LLC

Qualified pass-through entity owners include:
·      Individuals
·      Trusts
·      Estates
·      C-Corporations

If you are a business owner that owes more than $10,000 in state and local taxes, you should contact the business and tax attorneys at our Walnut Creek office to discuss taking advantage of this tax election.

Authored by:

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CIRCULAR 230 DISCLOSURE – Pursuant to rules and regulations imposed by the Internal Revenue Service, any tax advice contained in this communication, including any attachments, is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (1) avoiding tax penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (2) promoting, marketing or recommending to another person any transaction or matter addressed herein.

The summary which appears above is reprinted for information purposes only. It is not intended to be and should not be considered legal advice nor substitute for obtaining legal advice from competent, independent, legal counsel. If you would like to discuss these matters in more detail, please feel free to contact us so that we can provide the clarification and resources you need to make effective decisions.


2033 N Main Street
Suite 720
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
P 925.944.9700   F 925.944.9701