Ayotte Continues Fight Against Online Sales Tax

Press Release

Continuing to stand up for online businesses in New Hampshire and across the nation, U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) today introduced an amendment to protect online business owners from being turned into tax collectors for other states. Ayotte offered her amendment as the Senate debates tax policy legislation. She has led the fight in Congress against the mis-named "Marketplace Fairness Act," which would require Internet businesses to collect sales taxes for nearly 10,000 jurisdictions across the country.

"The federal government shouldn't force Internet businesses to become tax collectors for over 9,600 jurisdictions across the country," said Ayotte. "In New Hampshire, our lack of a sales tax is a source of economic strength. We must stop any effort that would impose new tax collection and audit requirements onto online retailers, and my legislation will protect Internet businesses in New Hampshire and across the nation."

Senator Ayotte's amendment would establish what is known in the Senate as a point of order (parliamentary objection) against any bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, or conference report that authorizes states to require remote sellers (those with no physical presence in a particular jurisdiction) to collect and remit sales tax for online sales.

Senator Ayotte has worked diligently to protect New Hampshire Internet businesses from collecting sales taxes, having introduced bipartisan legislation expressing the sense of the Senate that no federal legislation should give states the authority to impose any new burdensome or unfair tax collecting requirements on Internet businesses and entrepreneurs.

Under current Supreme Court precedent, absent a sufficient connection, a state cannot force out-of-state Internet businesses to collect and remit sales taxes. For example, when a customer in Illinois buys a product from an online vendor based in another state that has no physical presence in Illinois, authorities in Illinois cannot currently compel the out-of-state vendor to send it the Illinois tax on that sale. However, cash-strapped states looking to plug budget holes continue to push for a new law that would force online retailers to collect sales taxes for jurisdictions nationwide.

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