On September 15, online retailer Amazon.com will charge sales tax on purchases from Californians.
The agreement between state lawmakers and Amazon.com is expected to raise $316 million in taxes, according to the L.A. Times, money needed to help our bankrupt state.
However, the agreement between Amazon and California may not last long. The Orange County Register reports that the agreement between the two parties was primarily a compromise meant to get a year's reprieve in collecting the tax in exchange for promises to add jobs and distribution centers in California.
This comes as a victory for the brick and mortar businesses that say that they have seen lost sales go to online retailers like Amazon.com.
at Palo Alto Bikes in mid-August to denounce Amazon.com for circumventing California sales tax laws. They argued that these online retailers have an unfair advantage in sales and that these uncollected taxes are depriving educators of their fair share.
"We just want to compete on an even playing field,” said Mike Jacoubowsky, owner of in Redwood City.
Amazon already charges sales tax in six states: Kansas, Kentucky, New York, North Dakota, Texas and Washington. Pennsylvania will join California in sales tax charges in September. New Jersey, Virginia, Indiana, Nevada, Tennessee and South Carolina are all expected to collect state sales taxes from online retailers within the next few years, adding millions to state accounts, according to CNNMoney.
Is charging sales tax on online purchases fair? Let us know in the comments.
