Shaheen, NH Reps Vow to Keep Up Telecommuter Tax Fight

U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is criticizing the call by President Joe Biden’s acting solicitor general for the U.S. Supreme Court to not hear the state of New Hampshire's case against Massachusetts for taxing its residents.

New Hampshire residents who work in Massachusetts are subject to the Bay State's five percent income tax.

Both Republican New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu and Republican Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker urged people to work from home during the pandemic, but Baker signed an emergency order allowing the tax to still be collected even though they never stepped foot into the Bay State.

After Sununu called it an attempt to "punish" New Hampshire residents who chose to work from home during the pandemic to "keep themselves and their families and those around them safe," the state filed a lawsuit claiming Baker's order was imposing an income tax on Granite State residents.

New Hampshire does not have a state income tax.

Acting Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar on Wednesday wrote that New Hampshire's case had no merit and that individuals should file their own lawsuits instead.

Shaheen, D-NH, responded on Thursday.

"I’m disappointed by the Biden administration for urging the Supreme Court to decline the case that would reverse an unfair, and I believe unconstitutional, tax burden on Granite State workers, especially those who have been working remotely throughout this pandemic," Shaheen said in a statement.

“I’ve continuously pushed back against this requirement and have worked to advance legislation in Congress to prevent this abuse of Granite State workers by other state governments. I’ll keep fighting to find a path forward that protects New Hampshire workers from this improper out-of-state influence."

Shaheen had the support of most of the congressional delegation.

"It's simple: Granite Staters living and working in New Hampshire shouldn’t have to pay another state’s taxes. Yet with the expansion of remote work, Massachusetts is trying to tax Granite Staters. I introduced legislation today to protect New Hampshire residents," fellow U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-NH, wrote on her official Twitter account.

U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-NH, called the opinion "deeply disappointing" and said he also introduced legislation that would create a permanent solution about taxes and telecommuters.

"The legislation I helped introduce in the House would do just that, and I will continue to work to build bipartisan support around this issue so that we can get tax relief to our workers as quickly as possible," Pappas said.

2nd Congressional District representative Annie Kuster did not comment on the opinion.

Sununu in a tweet remains confident the Supreme Court will hear the case.

"Try as they might, overreach by Washington politicians and efforts by the Biden administration will not deter NH from fighting against Massachusetts' unconstitutional attempt to tax our citizens. We remain confident that the Supreme Court will hear our case and that we will win," Sununu wrote.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNH