TPT Taskforce

Last week my manager had me do some research regarding the Governor's TPT Taskforce meetings.  Specifically I was researching and synthesizing what has occurred at the contracting working groups meetings.  This is going to be a major issue this coming legislative session.  The Taskforce is made up of 4 different groups - a general one, one focused on retail tax, online tax, and contracting tax.  Arizona has a very different and complicated tax structure than many states.  Vendors and contractors are required to register with the state and follow different tax regulations for different cities.  This is why sometimes if you buy somthing in at a Gilbert stores and do an even exchange for the product at a Mesa store, you will get a little refund.

The major issue to towns and cities falls under the contracting taxes.  Contractors and service providers currently pay taxes directly to municipalities.  The proposed restructuring is to create a materials based tax that they are required to pay at the point of sale.  The worry is that municipalities will lose a major portion of their general fund that comes from taxes because building materials are not actually purchased in the city where the work is being done. 

After doing the research, I attended the last Contracting Working Group's meeting at the capitol.  It was pretty apparent that they were done discussing the issue at these meetings and had already agreed to move ahead with the proposed solution.  However, I think that a lot more discussion is going on behind closed doors.