Court Overturns $101M Tax Refund To Texaco
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The 9th Circuit rejected Texaco's bid for a $101 million tax refund on the $1.25 billion settlement it paid the government for selling oil and gas above the price ceilings set by federal regulations.
The judges reversed judgment for Texaco, now a subsidiary of ChevronTexaco Corp., ruing that the tax benefit on repayment applies to public utilities only, not private companies such as Texaco.
Texaco had overcharged for crude oil and oil products from 1973 to 1981. After a series of administrative actions, the Department of Energy agreed to the settlement. Texaco made the payments and deducted the settlement amount on its federal income tax returns for those years, then filed refund claims for 1988, 1990, 1991 and 1992.
The appellate judges reinstated the government's denial of the refund claims on the grounds that federal tax law "plainly precludes" Texaco from recouping some of the money.
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USCIS Adjusting Premium Processing Fee
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today it is adjusting the premium processing fee for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers beginning on Oct. 1, 2018 to more effectively adjudicate petitions and maintain effective service to petitioners.
The premium processing fee will increase to $1,410, a 14.92 percent increase (after rounding) from the current fee of $1,225. This increase, which is done in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, represents the percentage change in inflation since the fee was last increased in 2010 based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers.
“Because premium processing fees have not been adjusted since 2010, our ability to improve the adjudications and service processes for all petitioners has been hindered as we’ve experienced significantly higher demand for immigration benefits. Ultimately, adjusting the premium processing fee will allow us to continue making necessary investments in staff and technology to administer various immigration benefit requests more effectively and efficiently,” said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Moore. “USCIS will continue adjudicating all petitions on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable law, policies, and regulations.”
Premium processing is an optional service that is currently authorized for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140. The system allows petitioners to request 15-day processing of certain employment-based immigration benefit requests if they pay an extra fee. The premium processing fee is paid in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees, which cannot be waived.