Interesting op-ed in the Sunday New York Times:  Taxing Telecommuters, by Nicole Belson Goluboff:

New York State imposes a penalty tax on nonresidents who do work at home for their New York employers. That gives the nonresidents who commute to New York — including approximately 400,000 people from Connecticut and New Jersey, according to 2000 census data — powerful reason to think twice before telecommuting. Under New York’s “convenience of the employer” rule, nonresidents employed by New York companies who telecommute some or most of the time may owe taxes to New York both on the income they earn when they come to New York and on the income they earn when they work from home, outside New York. Because a telecommuter’s home state may also tax the income earned at home, the telecommuter may be taxed twice on that income.

Take Edward Zelinsky, a Connecticut resident and professor at the Cardozo Law School in Manhattan. Professor Zelinsky spent some workdays in New York, teaching classes and meeting with students, and others at home, doing research, writing and grading. Connecticut taxed him on the income he earned in Connecticut. Applying the convenience rule, New York taxed the same income….

Prior TaxProf Blog coverage:

• WSJ: NY Alters Telecommuter Tax Rule (5/31/06)
• Update on NY Telecommuter Tax (5/8/05)
• NY Court of Appeals Upholds Tax on Non-Resident Telecommuter (3/30/05)
• NY Court of Appeals to Hear Telecommuter Tax Case (1/3/05)
• Senate Bill to Prevent NY from Taxing Portion of Cardozo Tax Prof’s Salary Attributable to Work in Conn. Home Office (9/15/04)