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SCOTUS: states may collect sales tax from retailers without "physical presence" there


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Just now, CitizenVectron said:

Good luck enforcing that. The big ones like Amazon will comply (if they already aren't), but small stores?

Sounds like there's a good business opportunity to help small businesses remain compliant with all state and local sales tax requirements. 

 

Does this apply to local sales taxes as well? Or just the state of the address being shipped to? Or the credit card address state?

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37 minutes ago, outsida said:

The opposite ruling back in the nineties was the impetus for the start of Amazon. I expect amazon shares to get hit today. 

 

Amazon already collects tax in all states, so this shouldn't be an issue for them. I know in Canada the government was having a really hard time collecting from them, though.

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No point in searching “other sellers” on Amazon now. If I buy from Amazon directly I have to pay NJ sales tax, if I find another seller located elsewhere I get the item (often still with prime shipping) without sales tax - this was a huge help when my AV receiver died a few weeks back as it was a $600 item.

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54 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

What a mess for small online retailers.

 

In Santa Monica the sales tax is 10.25%. In LA I think it's 9.5%. So at the boundary it literally depends on which side of the street you're on. In 2016 we got to vote on a county-wide tax measure where the sales tax rate went up in the City of Los Angeles but not in Santa Monica because in Santa Monica we were already at some kind of cap for what sales taxes can be. :silly:

 

People don't realize just how much variability there is not just in the rate but what it applies to as you move around from place to place, not to mention if there's any special excise taxes or fixed-rate "half a cent per transaction" or whatever taxes that you need to account for.

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6 hours ago, Jason said:

 

In Santa Monica the sales tax is 10.25%. In LA I think it's 9.5%. So at the boundary it literally depends on which side of the street you're on. In 2016 we got to vote on a county-wide tax measure where the sales tax rate went up in the City of Los Angeles but not in Santa Monica because in Santa Monica we were already at some kind of cap for what sales taxes can be. :silly:

 

People don't realize just how much variability there is not just in the rate but what it applies to as you move around from place to place, not to mention if there's any special excise taxes or fixed-rate "half a cent per transaction" or whatever taxes that you need to account for.

My sister has a small online business in California, configuring Square Space to collect the right amount was nightmare since zip code doesn't equal county. 

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I honestly never even think of sales tax; I always just assume it's going to be added to the transaction (even though in PA certain things aren't taxed), and I couldn't even tell you when Amazon began collecting it. If I'm buying something, the additional 7% isn't going to change my mind or really affect how I view the transaction. I think the only time I really gave a shit was when I bought my car (because for whatever reason I wasn't anticipating sales tax would apply to a vehicle purchase).

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18 hours ago, Jason said:

 

 

Let's unpack this.

 

It is only a victory for consumers and retailers if both accept that paying taxes are a good thing. But we know that people don't like paying taxes, and retailers don't either since by not collecting it gives them an advantage over physical stores. So the only way this is a victory is if Trump thinks that taxes in general are a good idea. Which he does not. Which means this tweet is actually just him being happy that Amazon now has less of an advantage, as he hates Jeff Bezos. Except that Amazon has been collecting sales tax for a while now, and Trump remains ignorant of this.

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45 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

Let's unpack this.

 

It is only a victory for consumers and retailers if both accept that paying taxes are a good thing. But we know that people don't like paying taxes, and retailers don't either since by not collecting it gives them an advantage over physical stores. So the only way this is a victory is if Trump thinks that taxes in general are a good idea. Which he does not. Which means this tweet is actually just him being happy that Amazon now has less of an advantage, as he hates Jeff Bezos. Except that Amazon has been collecting sales tax for a while now, and Trump remains ignorant of this.

 

Pretty much this. 

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On 6/21/2018 at 7:26 PM, Jason said:

 

 

What in the actual fuck? How is this good for consumers? 

 

Maybe im missing something... but are there states where amazon doesn’t charge sales tax? 

 

Here in NY we’ve been paying sales tax for goods purchased through amazon for as long as i can remember. I’m also going to suspect that the vast majority of high population states (re: the coasts) also pay the sales tax. And these states are also probably vast the majority of all sales (by a large margin). 

 

Now, there is zero incentive for me to purchase an item from a 3rd party vendor on amazon. Their prices were usually slightly higher to begin with, but a lot of time if the item is expensive enough, they can be cheaper due to not having to pay the sales tax. Allowing these smaller mom and pop shops able to compete with amazon. That’s 100% out the window now. It was always a risk buying 3rd party due to warranty issues, etc. now I’ll just buy from amazon direct. No need to even bother check the other vendors. 

 

Good job trump! 

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13 hours ago, atom631 said:

 

What in the actual fuck? How is this good for consumers? 

 

Maybe im missing something... but are there states where amazon doesn’t charge sales tax? 

 

Here in NY we’ve been paying sales tax for goods purchased through amazon for as long as i can remember. I’m also going to suspect that the vast majority of high population states (re: the coasts) also pay the sales tax. And these states are also probably vast the majority of all sales (by a large margin). 

 

Now, there is zero incentive for me to purchase an item from a 3rd party vendor on amazon. Their prices were usually slightly higher to begin with, but a lot of time if the item is expensive enough, they can be cheaper due to not having to pay the sales tax. Allowing these smaller mom and pop shops able to compete with amazon. That’s 100% out the window now. It was always a risk buying 3rd party due to warranty issues, etc. now I’ll just buy from amazon direct. No need to even bother check the other vendors. 

 

Good job trump! 

 

He doesn't exactly think ahead.

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