[RobRoy]

>>There never used to be a tax on catalogue sales such as from Sears catalogue. <<

Actually I think there always was, but it just wasn’t enforced. In my state (until tomorrow, that is), Washington, you are supposed to add up all your catalog purchases and send the state a check for the sales tax. If you don’t, you are technically breaking the law.

[Anitius Severinus Boethius]

In my state (until tomorrow, that is), Washington, you are supposed to add up all your catalog purchases and send the state a check for the sales tax. If you don’t, you are technically breaking the law.

That is really how the laws are supposed to work, but almost no one ever does that. The onus is on the purchaser, not the out of State retailer, though. To force a business to calculate sales taxes for a Governmental entity that it is not under the jurisdiction of is ludicrous on the surface.

[old gringo]

there used to be no sales tax period.

[stayathomemom]

Actually I think there always was, but it just wasn’t enforced. In my state (until tomorrow, that is), Washington, you are supposed to add up all your catalog purchases and send the state a check for the sales tax. If you don’t, you are technically breaking the law.

My husband and I have been paying use tax for about 20 years on catalog orders. Michigan IRS assumed that because of the nature of his job, he was avoiding paying them for his business, which was not the case. We have been saving receipts on all on-line and catalog orders ever since and paying Michigan use tax.