A bipartisan group of 53 lawmakers in the Senate and House backed the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013 last Thursday, Febuary 15, 2013, which aims to resolve the differences between bills introduced in the Senate and House in the last Congress.
The proposed legislation permits States to enforce the Collection of Sales & Use Taxes from Internet Retailers, placing them on a par with brick and mortar businesses.
This Act permits States to require qualifying Sellers to collect and remit sales and use taxes on remote sales, but the States must implement certain simplification requirements.
In the last decade, Internet sales have gone from 1.6 percent of all U.S. retail sales to more than 5 percent, according to Commerce Department data, a proportion that will likely grow as shoppers turn more to handheld devices to make purchases. In the third quarter of 2012, retail "e-commerce" sales were $57 billion, the department said.
Large Internet retailers are worried the tax could drive up the cost of doing business. They would also have to create new systems and software to collect the surcharges, adding to their costs.
Amazon said in July it prefers having the tax issue resolved at the federal level. States and cities say they can recoup billions of dollars with the tax. Some estimate around $11 billion in tax revenues are currently being lost, due to exempt internet sales.
In the last decade, Internet sales have gone from 1.6 percent of all U.S. retail sales to more than 5 percent, according to Commerce Department data, a proportion that will likely grow as shoppers turn more to handheld devices to make purchases. In the third quarter of 2012, retail "e-commerce" sales were $57 billion, the department said.
Large Internet retailers are worried the tax could drive up the cost of doing business. They would also have to create new systems and software to collect the surcharges, adding to their costs. Amazon said in July it prefers having the tax issue resolved at the federal level.
Read more at: Tax Times blog
