Bentonville Company Granted Patent For Tax Analytics Software

Tax technology company Sales Tax DataLINK of Bentonville has been granted a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for software aimed at validating information for companies on sales tax charges and filings.

CEO Noel Hamm said the software can protect clients from bottom-line losses due to overpayments and lost money from audits finding tax errors, while adding to the efficiency of tax filing.

It also serves as a customer service tool, because it helps ensure patrons of the clients’ businesses are paying the right taxes.

The patent proves the uniqueness and usefulness of the product, Hamm said. It’s difficult to get software patents in general, and tax software patents are especially hard to come by right now, because of changes and possible future modifications in the health care system and tax code.

In fact, only 15 sales tax software patents have been granted during the past 40 years, dating back to a cash register that can calculate sales tax, patented in 1976, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website. Software tax patents granted in recent years include a system to capture sales tax from credit card transactions, patented in 2011, and a cash register that automatically makes tax declaration, patented in February.

The Sales Tax Analytics patent was filed by Hamm in September 2012 and granted on July 22.

Hamm started Sales Tax DataLINK in 2009. He has 20 years’ experience in sales tax, once working as an auditor for the state of Arkansas and as tax director for Time Warner Telecom in Denver.

Before starting his company, he worked several years at CCH, a tax software company in Chicago.