Stop letting e-tailers off the hook (March 1)
By Chuck Doud
The Madera Tribune
The California Legislature is pondering whether to charge sales tax on sales made to Californians by out-of-state e-commerce firms.
Among them is Amazon.com, which has astutely kept from opening any offices, stores or warehouses in the state. As you might guess, Amazon opposes the tax bill, as do other e-retailers.
Lack of a sales tax is one way e-tailers siphon sales from brick-and-mortar merchants in California. Buyers think they’re getting a good deal by not having to add sales tax to their purchases, and as a result choose to buy on line.
If you are wondering whether this tax is wise, consider this: Every sale made by local merchants is taxed by law. Some of those taxes go to the state for state government operations, and some stay locally, where they help pay for local government activities.
If e-tailers paid their taxes on California sales, it would make a big difference in the state’s budget. We’re talking in the billions of dollars.
Not all e-tailers are Amazon, of course. Smaller firms say having to collect a sales tax would add a terrible burden.
That’s ridiculous, on several counts. Main street businesses have to collect sales tax, report it and pay it to the state. When a small main street business opens, its proprietor knows — or should know — that collecting, reporting and passing along sales taxes is as much a part of doing business as is paying suppliers or the light bill.
Why should the government of California give mostly out-of-state merchants a break it doesn’t give to those who do business here?
Also, Amazon’s growth has killed many small, local California businesses without paying one nickel to offset the taxes that were lost.
Other states have closed those loopholes. California should follow suit.
