Tax News

CCH (cch.taxgroup.com) reports:

On Dec. 6, the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law heard testimony on the Sales Tax Fairness and Simplification Act of 2007 (H.R. 3396), which would confer collection authority over remote sales on states that have conformed their laws to the requirements of the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax (SST) Agreement, as well as made certain additional changes. (TAXDAY, 2007/08/10, S.1)
Chairman Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., said states are collecting less tax revenues as consumers go online to purchase items without paying the appropriate state sales taxes. "State and local governments have voiced their concerns that increasing online sales and the resulting loss in collection of sales taxes are affecting an ever larger portion of their revenues," Sanchez said.
According to Illinois State Sen. Steven Rauschenberger, speaking on behalf of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), many states are in danger of losing their revenue base as a result of uncollected tax on electronic commerce transactions and a shift away from an economy based on the sale of tangible goods to a service-based economy. States are concerned about the future viability of the sales tax and the ability of state governments to fund essential services such as education, homeland security, and public safety, he said. Rauschenberger added that passage of H.R. 3396 is Congress' opportunity "to ensure that the simplified system that the states have developed for the seamless collection of transactional taxes in the new economy is not impeded by those who merely are trying to avoid paying legally imposed taxes."
By Stephen K. Cooper, CCH News Staff
Hearing, U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law, December 6, 2007.