Owens
Counters Fellow Governors Plea
Urges Congress to Extend Internet Tax Moratorium
In
a move meant to counter his fellow governors plea for Congressional
authority to shift states sales and use tax collection burdens
to remote businesses, Colorado Governor Bill Owens is urging Congress
to extend the three-year Internet tax moratorium set to expire in
October.
"Some
including most of my fellow governors argue that the
moratorium hinders local tax collection efforts and supercedes states
rights," Owens wrote in an August 20 letter to every member
of Congress. "The debate over the taxation of the Internet
isnt about feeding the already well-lined coffers of government.
Its about the fundamentally American idea that there should
be no taxation without representation."
On
August 8, 42 governors sent a letter to Congress urging them not
to extend the moratorium, unless states are given the authority
to devise a system that would permit them to shift their tax collection
burden to remote merchants. Currently, a 1992 U.S. Supreme Court
decision, Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, forbids states from
imposing sales and use tax collection duties on out-of-state merchants
unless they have a physical presence in the purchasers state.
To
read a press release from Governor Bill Owens, click here.
To
read the August 8 letter to Congress from the 42 state governors,
click here.
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