So the politicians have been trying and trying to pass a law to tap the vein of all this e-Cash, and with the usual grace of politicians, too. Implementation? Heck, that's someone else's problem, as long as they get their money.
The problem is thus: Say I start an online business selling widgets. I'm going to have to somehow find out the sales tax laws of all fifty states, (which I'd call "Byzantine" except that I've read a lot of ancient history and never come across anything so complex in Constantinople,) and every month, mail off a check to the .gov in every single state that had a
Apparently lobbyists have gotten that through to elected critters in at least a few states. I'd also like to think, although I don't hold out much hope for it, that at least one or two politicians realize that this would kill the goose laying the golden eggs. That would be a first.
The next big question is:
ReplyDeleteWhat if the company I'm buying from is a European company, with a domain name from some Pacific Island and a server in Russia?
Who is supposed to pay taxes to whom in that case?
Look, this law, if written, will be drafted by people who think teh intarw3bz are a series of tubes.
ReplyDeleteThink on that for a bit.
*Br-r-r-r!*
I already pay Ohio sales tax on online purchases. In addition, when my company sells online, we have to keep track of sales tax across all the states that charge sales tax (as well as by district or county in some cases, as Tam points out). Where it really gets entertaining is trying to account for the states that want you to charge sales tax on shipping & handling, too (PRK, I'm givin' you the stinkeye).
ReplyDeleteHow is all this not an unconstitutional interstate tariff?
ReplyDeleteTake it up with the Supreme Court, citizen. Good luck.
ReplyDelete(...or; "Why d'ya think they call 'em 'opinions', dummy?")
"Bear in mind that some states would have tax rates that varied by county"
ReplyDeletePart of LA have sales tax that varies by street. Try figuring that one out.
Not that this would stop them, but they cannot lawfully tax interstate movement of goods until they repeal or Amend Article 1, Section 9 of the Constitution, which says, in part, "No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State."
ReplyDeleteNow, I'm sure that the Bill Clinton wing of the Reality Enhanced would try to babel-i-fy that with definitions of "Articles" and "Export," but the meaning of the thing seems pretty clear to me, and I think folks ought to make an issue of it.
M