Senate to Open Debate on Charging National Sales tax on Online Purchases
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is expected to begin debate on the Marketplace Fairness Act as early as Monday with a possible vote on the measure by the end of the week.
The bill would allow states to require online retailers of a certain size to collect sales tax, even when the seller is from a different state. States now lose about $11 billion in tax revenue because online sales are not taxed, according to a 2011 report by Fitch Ratings.
Under current law, online retailers must collect taxes only in states where they have a physical presence. The legislation would compel those retailers to collect in all states, with an exception for retailers with annual sales of less than $1 million.
Support for the legislation crosses party lines but so does the opposition in the Senate.
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