Governors Seeking Internet Tax
Tim May
tcmay at got.net
Sat Aug 4 23:41:22 PDT 2001
On Saturday, August 4, 2001, at 10:13 PM, Declan McCullagh wrote:
> I'm no expert on this -- in fact, I've studiously avoided becoming one
> on this -- but my understanding is that under the Quill decision,
> California can't force PennsylvaniaBooks.com to collect sales taxes on
> shipments to SF and remit it to the Calif tax collectors. (Without
> nexus, that is.)
>
> Ideally the guvs would like federal law to modify the Quill ruling.
I'm with Steve Schear on this one.
If Alice in California buys a thing from a person or store in
Pennsylvania, and that store is not operating in California (the
"nexus"), then charging a tax on that item is NOT a "sales tax." It is
much more like a tariff on goods entering California.
(What else could it be? The sale is not happening at a store in
California, or even arguably at an out-of-state "branch" of a store in
California, there being no such store at all in California. Thus the
"tax" is really just a tariff or duty. Something specifically forbidden.)
Of course, states like California get around _parts_ of this ruling when
people bring cars bought elsewhere into California: they require some
calculated amount of the effective sales tax, had the car been bought in
California, to be paid upon registration of the car.
--Tim May
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