Streamlined Sales Tax Project |
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eBay opposes raising taxes on the Internet or its uses, as well as any attempt to impose remote sales tax collection burdens on the small businesses who can least afford it. This is certainly not the time to impose a major new tax burden on Internet vendors working to implement successful new business models, nor is it wise macro-economic policy to impose what is effectively a tax increase on American consumers.
Background
In 1992, the Supreme Court ruled that forcing remote sellers to collect sales tax in states in which they do not have a physical presence would constitute an undue burden on retailers and commerce in general. Since that ruling, states are prohibited from collecting remote sales tax until the Congress changes federal law to grant them this new power, or the Supreme Court determines that the states have simplified their tax regimes enough to lift the burden on remote sellers. In the name of simplification, a group of states proposed the Streamlined Sales Tax Project (SSTP). While the goal of the SSTP is simplification, it does not succeed in simplifying state and local tax laws sufficiently to ease the collection burden on eBay sellers like you.
The State Simplification Tax Project (SSTP) is still remarkably “un-simplified”
It does little to reduce the 7,600 different state, county and city taxing jurisdictions. In fact, the SSTP allows for a different rate for each zip code - that's as many as 49,000 different jurisdictions. Small entrepreneurs like you will be disadvantaged by a distant sales tax collection regime that forces you to comply with thousands of different rates, laws, filing instructions, and audit procedures. Moreover, this would place you at a competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis your offline counterparts, who are only required to collect and remit taxes in one jurisdiction.
No increased tax burden on small business
Small business expansion (fostered by Internet marketplaces like eBay), is a major job creator helping to keep the U.S. economy moving forward. Given record state tax revenues, now is not the time to impose new tax burdens on American consumers and small business owners, or do anything to hamper the growth of e-commerce.
Please Take Action!
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