CA taxes internet, Amazon says no thanks

[spidey07]

Brilliant idea California! So they don't have a physical presence in your state? So you tax them through the affiliate advertising!

Here's a clue to IL, CA and NY - stop passing laws/taxes that make business flee your state if you want to collect tax revenue.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/amazon-306409-affiliate-california.html

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law California's tax on Internet sales through affiliate advertising which will immediately cut small-business website revenue 20% to 30%, experts say.
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Amazon has already emailed its termination of its affiliate advertising program with 25,000 websites. The letter says, in part:

(The bill) specifically imposes the collection of taxes from consumers on sales by online retailers - including but not limited to those referred by California-based marketing affiliates like you - even if those retailers have no physical presence in the state.

We oppose this bill because it is unconstitutional and counterproductive. It is supported by big-box retailers, most of which are based outside California, that seek to harm the affiliate advertising programs of their competitors. Similar legislation in other states has led to job and income losses, and little, if any, new tax revenue. We deeply regret that we must take this action.

 

[fskimospy]

Why shouldn't internet purchases be taxed at the same level as non-internet purchases?

 

[soundforbjt]

NM

 

[Texashiker]

Brilliant idea California! So they don't have a physical presence in your state? So you tax them through the affiliate advertising!

Here's a clue to IL, CA and NY - stop passing laws/taxes that make business flee your state if you want to collect tax revenue.

California has to do something to provide for their welfare state. The state is running out of money to give to illegal immigrants.

Could you imagine the horror if illegal immigrants were denied benefits? There would probably be mass riots.

 

[manimal]

free market really means FREE


BTW I pay taxes on my internet purchases like were supposed to. Do you advocate breaking the law? If you do then you are unamerican and support terrorism and killing baby seals..

 

[spidey07]

Why shouldn't internet purchases be taxed at the same level as non-internet purchases?

Read the article.

 

[spidey07]

free market really means FREE


BTW I pay taxes on my internet purchases like were supposed to. Do you advocate breaking the law? If you do then you are unamerican and support terrorism and killing baby seals..

Read the article.

 

[fskimospy]

Read the article.

I did, it's a roundabout way to tax internet sales.

Answer the question, you retard.

 

[manimal]

spidey hates baby seals.

 

[spidey07]

I did, it's a roundabout way to tax internet sales.

Answer the question, you retard.

Because they have no presence in the state and therefore the retailer is not required, via supreme court ruling, to collect sales tax.

 

[imagoon]

Why shouldn't internet purchases be taxed at the same level as non-internet purchases?

They are. File your use taxes with your state. There is a line on on all the state 1040's for it.

 

[fskimospy]

They are. File your use taxes with your state. There is a line on on all the state 1040's for it.

Of course in reality, they are not.

 

[soulcougher73]

I think they should just make it so whatever state you are in when you buy an item online you pay your states sales tax regardless where the item comes from. Its the only fair way around this whole thing. Sure the company (Amazon in this case) can set up shop in whatever state they feel is the most business friendly towards them, but the customer needs to pay their share for items bought.

 

[spidey07]

California to Internet - we're gonna get your money!
Internet to California - fuck off, no you're not.

So the revenue CA hoped to collect is simply not going to come in because Amazon severed ties with 35,000 business in california. Wonder how that is going to impact those small businesses and the income tax they would be paying? Talking about shooting yourself in the foot twice!

 

[manimal]

California to Internet - we're gonna get your money!
Internet to California - fuck off, no you're not.

So the revenue CA hoped to collect is simply not going to come in because Amazon severed ties with 35,000 business in california. Wonder how that is going to impact those small businesses and the income tax they would be paying? Talking about shooting yourself in the foot twice!

so you support people breaking the law. Check

 

[fskimospy]

I think they should just make it so whatever state you are in when you buy an item online you pay your states sales tax regardless where the item comes from. Its the only fair way around this whole thing. Sure the company (Amazon in this case) can set up shop in whatever state they feel is the most business friendly towards them, but the customer needs to pay their share for items bought.

Right.

I mean nobody likes paying sales taxes, but just from a basic business perspective its silly to have someone pay sales tax when they shop at one business but not pay it when they buy the same item at another. It doesn't make any sense, and it gives one company a competitive advantage for no good reason.

 

[spidey07]

so you support people breaking the law. Check

No. California is breaking the law here by requiring a retailer to collect sales tax without a physical presence in the state. Of course it is still the consumer who must pay tax and I'm not disputing that in anyway.

But this is unconstitional and just shows how California, make no mistake, simply will not rest, until all business is driven out of the state.

 

[her209]

California has to do something to provide for their welfare state. The state is running out of money to give to illegal immigrants.

Could you imagine the horror if illegal immigrants were denied benefits? There would probably be mass riots.

TX has a higher percentage of its population on WIC and SNAP than CA.
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2138676

 

[Lithium381]

Right.

I mean nobody likes paying sales taxes, but just from a basic business perspective its silly to have someone pay sales tax when they shop at one business but not pay it when they buy the same item at another. It doesn't make any sense, and it gives one company a competitive advantage for no good reason.

I'm in california and buy a large amount of my goods online a lot of the time because i don't have to pay tax(and get free shipping). It saves me 10%. I wouldn't mind some sort of flat internet tax, say 5%, but the whole reason i go outside of california is they can't keep it in their pants(their wallet) and it ends up costing me less to do so.

 

[spidey07]

I wonder how many of those 35,000 business will say "screw this CA, I'm moving".

CA has essentially taken their income away so they will simply move.

 

[Schadenfroh]

State taxation of internet sales is coming, it is inevitable, even if they have no presence.

 

[fskimospy]

I'm in california and buy a large amount of my goods online a lot of the time because i don't have to pay tax(and get free shipping). It saves me 10%. I wouldn't mind some sort of flat internet tax, say 5%, but the whole reason i go outside of california is they can't keep it in their pants(their wallet) and it ends up costing me less to do so.

I lived in California for the last 10 years (just moved to NYC last fall). Regardless of what the percentages are, I think that most reasonable people can agree that there's no good reason to give internet businesses preferential tax treatment like they get now. Amazon would survive just fine if it had to collect sales tax like most real businesses do now.

In NY state they have been forced to collect sales tax and I still buy things from there all the time.

 

[spidey07]

State taxation of internet sales is coming, it is inevitable, even if they have no presence.

It will take a supreme court ruling to happen. A 1992 case ruled the state cannot force a seller to collect sales tax if it has no physical nexus in the state.

 

[Atreus21]

The law is that states can only charge sales taxes on businesses that reside within their state?

 

[BeauJangles]

I wonder how many of those 35,000 business will say "screw this CA, I'm moving".

CA has essentially taken their income away so they will simply move.

Much easier to just rent a PO box in another state and put that as your address.