Posted on 03/28/2011 8:14:33 AM PDT by Mr Ramsbotham
Some California Democrats are trying again to get Internet retailers such as Amazon to tack state sales taxes onto the price of online purchases, and some California Republicans are again warning that collecting these longstanding and lawful taxes will have disastrous consequences. We'd like to see the millions -- perhaps billions -- of dollars in sales and use taxes owed by sometimes unaware California shoppers get collected, and we're tired of arguments by supposed law-and-order conservatives against collecting lawfully owed taxes.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Yeah, chomping at the bit. ROTF!
How dare the productive citizens of Kalifornistan deny the state the money it needs to pay the extravagant salaries and benefits of state workers.
After all, that's what they send out for refunds.
Next those EVIIIL citizens will not want to pay the way for illegal aliens either!
“We’d like to see the millions — perhaps billions — of dollars in sales and use taxes owed by sometimes unaware California shoppers get collected,..
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What do you mean ‘WE’, you commie jackass.
If all unreported income was taxed and collected, we’d probably balance the budget.
I don’t buy things online.
But IF I did, there’s no way I’d claim it. Ohio has a section where they ask you to declare online purchases, and pay sales tax on those items.
Screw them. They get enough of my money. I’ll keep every penny I can.
Yeah, sneak across the border, get on welfare, work under the table and all is fine. But if you do not pay that 8% tax on that book you ordered from Amazon, ve vill come for you!
How SELFISH!! The very thought of people wanting to keep what THEY earned and not give it to the selfless generous politicians and bureaucrats to squander on failed social engineering is heresy. (at least to government types)
Have you ever noticed who easy it is for politicians to be generous with someone else's hard earned money?
You can’t ever balance the budget in California because various mandates have conspired to create a structural deficit. For every dollar in revenue that comes into the General Fund the State is obligated to spend $1.08.
I once said to a Dummtcrat who wanted to raise taxes that even if the taxes were raised to 100% it wouldn’t be enough. The problem in California is not a revenue problem, it’s a problem of idiots spending more than they will ever earn.
I’ve tried to find the percentage of people who file “Use Tax” on their state tax forms - to no avail (looked for MA)
States that have state taxes have the “Use Tax” line on state forms - you are supposed to enter all purchases from out of state or internet to pay the glorious state tax.
No one does it - or very few - businesses do but not personal taxes.
States go after people who bought cigarettes over the net to grab those huge tax funds - now that internet cigarette sales are illegal -”Pact Act”- they are going after everyone - got to fill those coffers.....
ML/NJ
Their idiotic law would be unenforceable except to already burdened california based operations. Way to go loons - tighten that noose that’s choking you off!
Not so. If all unreported income was taxed/collected, the budget would probably be doubled, so there would still be a huge deficit.
When all government workers pay their taxes, when all the rich liberals pay Social Security for their workers, and when all the illegal aliens are taxed for the underground economy, then you can ask me to pay taxes on a book from Amazon.
From a business perspective, I understand the argument. Retailers who have to pay rent in a storefront create a huge number of jobs in this country. If the internet is the model that has all the business, what does it do to jobs? What does it do to commercial property? Those are concerns to ponder.
I’ll play the devils advocate here. In some sense, if you don’t pay the tax, aren’t you really cheating? It’s like downloading music online - chances are you won’t get caught, but that doesn’t change the nature of what you are doing.
From a purely practical point of view however, unless the sales tax is deducted at the point of sale, it’s not likely to be collected.
Legally, perhaps, but morally, no. Are they trying to say that there are no limits to the authority a California government can maintain over its citizens, regardless of where they do their shopping? I can't help but compare this to Dred Scott; it's a loose comparison, but an apt one, I think. Where do the limits of a state's authority begin and end?
Well if you sit in your home in Malibu and click on Amazon.com and make a purchase “where” are you doing
your shopping? There’s at least an argument to be
made that you’re actually still in California.
Reasonable minds may differ on this but I think you
can still have the conversation.
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