Economic Nexus: The “New Normal” or the Demise of Quill?

  IMPORTANT UPDATE: Since the original publication of this post, the South Dakota law, discussed in detail below, was challenged as unconstitutional. On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court held in favor of the state in South Dakota v. Wayfair and overturned the physical presence standard – opening the door for other states to adopt […]

Amazon Laws: The New Normal? An Update on Internet Sales Tax Laws

This post was originally published on SalesTaxSupport* on July 17, 2011. E-Commerce and Internet Sales Taxes; possibly the most contentious area in state taxation today! The arguments for and against internet sales taxes come from all directions – from states who contend they’re losing billions in tax revenues as a result of uncollected sales taxes […]

A Tale of Two “Main Street Fairness” Blog Posts

Congress has once again introduced federal legislation, which if passed, could require out-of-state retailers to charge and collect sales tax on sales to customers in certain states . That right, on July 29, 2011, Congressional Democrats in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives introduced “internet sales tax” legislation.  In the Senate, S. 1452 was introduced by […]

Are State “Amazon Laws” the “New Normal”?

The “New Normal”, a phrase coined in 2008 to describe the then-new period of diminished investment returns and slower economic growth that seemed permanent after the financial crisis and recession of the last decade.  Many have borrowed this term to describe what wasn’t expected or normal in the past, but now is. As I closely […]

The Main Street Fairness Act: Explaining Internet Sales Taxes

Legislative Update:   On July 1, 2010, House Bill (H 5660), was introduced in Congress by Massachusetts representative, William Delahunt. The Bill, named the “Main Street Fairness Act“ states that its purpose is to “promote simplification and fairness in the administration and collection of sales and use taxes, and for other purposes.”My guess is by now, […]