Kendall Houghton

About Kendall Houghton

Ms. Houghton is a nationally recognized expert whose practice focuses on state and local tax planning, tax controversies and unclaimed property/escheat matters. She leads the Alston & Bird SALT practice and serves on the firm’s Partners’ Committee.

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New York Assembly Introduces a Bill on the Escheat of Virtual Currency

June 25, 2019 By Kendall Houghton and Kathleen Cornett

New York Assembly Bill 8314, introduced on June 13, 2019, would provide for the escheat of virtual currency. The bill, which also directs the comptroller to create regulations establishing when electronic communication qualifies as “written contact” from an owner, defines “virtual currency” as “any type of digital unit that is used for a medium of exchange or a form of digitally stored value.” The definition is meant to be broadly construed and includes decentralized currencies and those with a central depository or administrator. However, the bill excludes online gaming currencies, [...]Read more

Unclaimed Property Challenges in the Health Care Industry

December 26, 2018 By Kendall Houghton and Matt Hedstrom

States across the country are undertaking unclaimed property audit campaigns. These audits are targeting large national health care providers and insurance companies. Learn from Unclaimed Property partners Kendall Houghton and Matt Hedstrom why these audits raise HIPAA and unclaimed property concerns for the health care sector. Click here to read the article. [...]Read more

What Is the Future State of Unclaimed Property?

November 2, 2018 By Kendall Houghton

Over the past two years, a series of sea-change developments in the unclaimed property compliance arena has impacted corporations in the U.S. As part of this series of articles produced by Duff & Phelps asking what's next, Kendall Houghton considers how investment assets will continue to generate audit disputes and litigation. Read the articles here. [...]Read more

IRS Ruling on IRAs Raises Numerous Unclaimed Property Issues for Holders, Owners, and States Alike

June 5, 2018 By Kendall Houghton, Michael Giovannini and Kathleen Cornett

Many states have begun to treat IRAs as unclaimed property even before the owner can take a tax-free distribution. But now the IRS has ruled that escheatment is equivalent to a distribution and subject to federal income tax withholding and reporting requirements. Our Unclaimed Property Group dives into this dilemma for holders, owners, and states alike. Revenue Ruling 2018-17 concludes that escheatment of an IRA is a designated distribution Holders must honor federal tax withholding and reporting rules upon escheat States are aggressively auditing IRAs Potential negative impact on [...]Read more

The Supreme Court Weighs a New State Tax Nexus Standard, Again

April 18, 2018 By Kendall Houghton and Clark Calhoun

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the latest challenge to Quill’s physical-presence standard for collecting state use taxes. Our State & Local Tax Group provides a first-hand account of the lively debate and analyzes the Justices’ willingness to overturn the 25-year-old standard. South Dakota takes up Kennedy’s suggestion What is the real-dollar impact? Retroactivity becomes an issue Read the full advisory here. [...]Read more