The
Issue
Many states are considering trying to collect existing state and local taxes on internet sales through "click-through nexus legislation." Such legislation presumes that a nexus with the state is established when state residents click on a company's website to purchase an item. Then there is the “Amazon Law” in the state of New York, an approach that many states are also considering. That policy establishes a presumption of a state nexus based on out-of-state sellers who compensate state residents (i.e. associates or contractors) for internet sales. These legislative proposals are intended to collect lost revenues already owed.
A majority of states have simplified their sales tax systems through the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (SSUTA). The SSUTA provides a uniform system to administer sales tax collection within the states, thereby simplifying the collection of sales taxes by internet retailers and lessening any burden on interstate commerce.
Position
NAIOP opposes creating any new taxes on the Internet, including access taxes or discriminatory taxes, but we do support the collection of existing sales and use taxes already owed to state and local governments. Without a collection mechanism that requires the vendors to collect the taxes, the states will continue to lose billions of dollars each year.
Status
The Supreme Court has ruled in a case called South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc. that States can charge out-of-state retailers sales tax in some circumstances, even if those retailers do not have a store or warehouse in the State. That overturns its 1992 Quill decision and will enable States to impose sales taxes on internet purchases.
In Congress, the "Main Street Fairness Act" would authorize states that have signed on to the SSUTA to require internet retailers to collect sales taxes. The Senate passed the bill in 2015, but the House has failed to bring a companion bill to the floor for a vote.