SPONSORED LINKS
> > Buying by mail order does not absolve the buyer from his obligation to pay
> > state and local sales tax on any such goods purchased. A few years ago an
> > attempt was made to require mail-order vendors to charge the appropriate
> > state and local taxes and remit to the states. The compromise that was
> > finally passed required any vendor with some kind of business presence in a
> > state to collect and remit state and local sales tax. Vendors without such
> > presence are not required to collect sales tax, although the buyer is still
> > required to pay it.
>
> Can you cite a ruling? Last I knew, the U.S. Constitution gave Congress
> the sole power to regulate (and tax) interstate commerce.
What he's saying, Keith, is that technically you're supposed to
be a nice little boy and write a separate check to your home state for
the sales tax you didn't pay (yeah, right--like you'd actually DO that).
But he's right. I don't know of the ruling's formal case name
or number, but I do know that your home state *does* have the right to
demand that you pay them sales tax on purchases you make from out of
state--the only problem is that they have almost no way of knowing if
you bought stuff from out of state, hence the enforcement problem.
----- ____________________________
Randy Whittle whittle@usc.edu | Making South-Central |
USC Graduate School of Business (Fight on 'SC!)| L.A. a better place by |
-Counselor, USC Business Expansion Network | helping small businesses |
| help themselves. |
----------------------------