If a little-known but influential alliance of state politicians, large retailers, and tax collectors have their way, the days of tax-free Internet shopping may be nearly over.
A bill expected to be introduced in the U.S. Congress as early as Monday would rewrite the ground rules for mail order and Internet sales by eliminating what its supporters view as a "loophole" that, in many cases, allows Americans to shop over the Internet without paying sales taxes.
The final legislation is expected to be introduced by Sen. Mike Enzi, a Wyoming Republican, and Rep. Bill Delahunt, a Massachusetts Democrat, who have championed similar proposals in the past.
What happened to my taxes not being raised?
I guess that promise went out the window whenever Obama took the oath of office.
Is this really the best time to be raising any kind of sales taxes?
No!
Should this "loophole" be filled? Perhaps, but this is not the time. Our economy is down, and we don't need to do anything that might throw a monkeywrench into its recovery. They should get back to this when the economy is back on the right track.
Of course, they will probably try to fast track it through underneath the radar while the Democrats have a heavy advantage.
In addition, the article points out how complicated and confusing this new sales tax code would probably be. That'll dampen consumer internet spending.
People use the internet to shop for it's easy and convenient. If the new sales tax will be as confusing and complicating as they think it will be, it'll cause a sharp decline in internet sales. Many small businesses rely on the internet for much of their business. This could severly hurt them and possibly bankrupt them especially in the middle of a recession. That would lead to more layoffs and higher unemployment.
Sen. Enzi is usually a conservative guy for the most part. I'm not sure what he's thinking.
We need to all give Sen. Enzi and Rep. Delahunt a call or an email to let them know that they should wait on this until we get the country's wheels back on.
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