During a course that I taught about tax treaties at last week’s TEI Houston Tax School, one audience member asked whether the exchange-of-information provisions of U.S. tax treaties apply not only to the federal government but also to state and local governments. I had to confess that I did not know the answer of the top of my head. However, I took a quick look at the question later in the week.
By way of background, in each income tax treaty with foreign jurisdictions, the United States negotiates an “exchange of information and administrative assistance” provision. This provision generally obligates the governments to share information with one another “as may be relevant for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes of every kind imposed by a Contracting State….” United States Model Income Tax Convention (“Model Treaty”), art. 26, ¶ 1 (Nov. 15, 2006). (more…)
