Paul L. Caron
Dean
Pepperdine Caruso
School of Law
Tax News
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Rubin: The Tax Nerd Who Bet His Life Savings Against DOGE
Richard Rubin reports on a young economist who staked his “life savings”—$342,195.63—on federal spending increasing during the first year of the Trump Administration, compared to the final quarter of the Biden Administration. And he won. More on the intersection of prediction markets, herd wisdom, and mandatory spending—plus the economist’s winnings—below the fold.
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Northwestern: Tax Program Open House 2026
Northwestern: Tax Program Open House 2026: Thank you for your interest in attending the Tax LLM Open House at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law on Friday, March 13, 2026. Please complete registration to attend by Friday, March 6, 2026: https://apply.law.northwestern.edu/register/TPOH26
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Senators Cruz & Scott Ask for Capital Gains to be Indexed to Inflation
According to reporting in Tax Notes, Bloomberg Law, and others, Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Tim Scott (R-SC) have written a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (who, at least for a few more days, is also the acting commissioner of the IRS) advocating for the Trump administration to index capital gains to inflation by
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Webinar & Book Event: Tax, Race, and Reparations
On Friday, March 6, from 12:00–1:00pm (EST), the American Tax Policy Institute will host a webinar and book event titled “Tax, Race, and Reparations: Reckoning with History, Rethinking the Future.” The event will be moderated by Bridget Crawford (Pace) and will feature Dorothy A. Brown (Georgetown), Steven A. Dean (Boston University), and Anthony C. Infanti
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The Law Firms Spearheading the Trump Tariff Refund Fight
Roy Strom, “Crowell, Sidley Spearhead Big Law’s Trump Tariff Refund Fight” (Bloomberg Law, March 2, 2026): Companies seeking refunds from President Donald Trump’s tariffs are turning to Crowell & Moring and Sidley Austin, who are among Big Law firms that have filed the most cases for clients. Companies have so far filed more than 2,000
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The Push to Get California Billionaire Tax on the Ballot
Paul Kiernan, “The Push for 875,000 People to Help Get California Billionaire Tax on the Ballot” (WSJ, March 1, 2026): California’s proposed billionaire tax has rattled its wealthiest residents and spurred fears the state could lose some of its most valuable taxpayers. It has divided Democratic leaders and sparked debate, admiration and derision around the
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Bloomberg: “Alaska and Montana Revisit Sales Taxes to Help Stabilize Revenue”
Bloomberg Law: Alaska and Montana Revisit Sales Taxes to Help Stabilize Revenue Mounting concern over long-term revenue stability is pushing two of the nation’s five remaining sales tax holdout states—Alaska and Montana—to seriously consider adopting statewide levies for the first time. Additional Commentary: David Brunori (Law360): Now You Spell It, Now You Don’t: SALT In
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Netherlands to Embark on Real-World Test of Mark-to-Market Taxation at Scale
Bloomberg Tax, Dutch Unrealized Gains Tax Is a Surprise Reform: The Netherlands didn’t set out to tax unrealized gains. It arrived there because its highest court invalidated a more modest policy of taxing “assumed” investment returns. Lawmakers were left with a multibillion-euro revenue hole and few legally viable ways to fill it. Their solution was
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Fortune: Every U.S. Olympian Was Promised a $200,000 Payout
Jacqueline Munis, Every U.S. Olympian Was Promised a $200,000 Payout, but How Much They Actually Keep Depends on Where They Live, Fortune (Feb. 11, 2026) (quoting Nathan Goldman (N.C. State U., Dept. Acct.)):
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The Conversation: Non-U.S. Perspectives on Learning Resources and the Future of Tariffs
The Conversation has commentary from faculty outside of law schools on the Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources that struck down the Trump Administration’s IEEPA tariffs. Five post-decision articles for a popular audience, including four perspectives from non-U.S. scholars, below the fold.
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NY Times: Why the I.R.S. Wants $15 Billion From Meta
From Jesse Drucker, Alexandra Ostasiewicz, June Kim, and Joey Sendaydiego, the New York Times produced a video explaining dispute between Meta (the holding company of Facebook) and the IRS that is currently pending in the Tax Court. At issue is a notice of deficiency from the IRS of just under $16 billion (before interest and
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New Report by NYSBA Tax Section
The New York State Bar Association’s Tax Section has recently released a new report (Report Number 1521) concerning final and proposed Treasury regulations under section 892. Those regulations concern the taxation of certain investments in the United States by foreign government and were published late last year. From the report:
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More States Proposing Social Media Taxes and Digital Ad Taxes
As the tax world awaits a decision in the Maryland digital advertising tax cases, more state lawmakers are proposing their own iterations. Several states have focused on social media specifically, functioning as a per-user “data extraction” tax. While others mirror the Maryland approach but with refinements that may make the new tax regime less susceptible
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NYC’s Mamdani Pitches Property Tax Hike
Law360: NYC’s Mamdani Pitches Property Tax Hike As Backup Plan New York City would hike property taxes by $3.7 billion to help close a $5.4 billion budget gap if state lawmakers don’t permit the city to raise income taxes under a preliminary budget plan that Mayor Zohran Mamdani unveiled Tuesday.
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Multistate Tax Commission Names New Executive Director
Bloomberg Law: “Keith Richardson, chief of the DC Office of Tax and Revenue, has been selected as the new executive director of the Multistate Tax Commission, an intergovernmental agency promoting tax uniformity and fairness across state tax systems.”
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The Supreme Court Strikes Down Trump’s IEEPA Tariffs
Friday wasn’t an easy day for the Trump Administration. GDP growth missed expectations badly, President Trump acknowledged the possibility of a military strike on Iran, and the President’s approval ratings hit a second-term low. And, the Supreme Court struck down the Trump Administration’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The Court’s 6-3
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SCOTUSblog Founder Tom Goldstein Trial: Closing Arguments
The defense rested. Closing arguments are complete. The jury has its instructions, and deliberations are underway in the tax evasion trial of Tom Goldstein, superstar Supreme Court advocate and founder of SCOTUSblog. Press reports indicate that Goldstein’s team mounted “a sturdy and multifaceted defense.” But will this jury find reasonable doubt in the government’s case
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ICE and the IRS: Inadvertent Disclosures Edition
In court filings on February 11, 2026, the IRS revealed additional details about its response to a June 2025 ICE request for 1.3 million taxpayers’ last known addresses—data that the Code expressly protects as part of “taxpayer identity.” Under the terms of an April 2025 information-sharing agreement, the IRS provided this information to ICE for
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NY Times: Is the U.S. Tax Code Anti-Feminist?
Tara Siegel Bernard, Is the U.S. Tax Code Anti-Feminist? (New York Times, Feb. 18, 2026) For many Americans, taxes are a chore to complete once a year. But if you reflect on the tax code long enough, you may see it differently — as a reflection of values, or even a national anthem. In some places,
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Mitch Daniels: A Consumption Tax on Americans is Brewing. Tariffs Are the Dry Run.
Echoing the famous quip by Larry Summers explaining the lack of a national VAT in the United States on the grounds that “Liberals think it’s regressive and conservatives think it’s a money machine”—but if liberals and conservatives reverse their positions, a VAT might be implemented in the United States—Mitch Daniels, the former Republican governor of
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NY Times: States Say No Thanks to Trump Tax Cuts, Drawing Republican Fire
Andrew Duehren, “States Say No Thanks to Trump Tax Cuts, Drawing Republican Fire,” N.Y. Times (Feb. 14, 2026):
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IRS Adopts Generative Artificial Intelligence Policy
Benjamin Valdez, “IRS Adopts Generative Artificial Intelligence Policy,” Tax Notes (Feb. 16, 2026): The IRS has issued guidelines on the use of generative artificial intelligence by employees, emphasizing that sensitive taxpayer data must not be input into generative AI tools and that the technology shouldn’t be used to make binding determinations. In an update to Internal Revenue
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Andrew Granato Joins University of Texas Tax Faculty
Andrew Granato (J.D. 2024, Yale; JD-PhD 2026 (Financial Economics), Yale):
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SCOTUSblog Founder Tom Goldstein Trial: Taking the Stand
This week, Tom Goldstein took the stand to testify in his own defense. The superstar Supreme Court advocate and founder of SCOTUSblog is charged with tax evasion and false statements on a loan application, among other charges. On direct, Goldstein presented a narrative of financial mismanagement and reliance on advisers rather than willful tax crimes—only
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Politico on the Tariff Votes
On Wednesday, the House voted to terminate the drug-related national emergency declaration that the Trump Administration’s used to support tariffs on Canada. Six Republicans joined all but one of the House Democrats on the winning side of this vote. Additional House votes on President Trump’s signature policy are expected in the coming weeks. Politico has