Online Levy: Should states charge sales tax on Internet purchases?

On March 1, residents of Arkansas, Oklahoma and Wyoming will join those in 38 other states-including Texas-and the District of Columbia in having to pay sales tax on items ordered online through Amazon.com.

And it might not stop there. Combined Arkansas House Senate legislation would have required other online companies to collect sales taxes from Arkansas residents. The bill failed to advance this week, but lawmakers will likely try again down the road.

Proponents say the state is losing revenue on untaxed online sales and that collecting sales taxes will put brick-and-mortar businesses on a more even footing with Internet retailers.

Opponents say the state isn't "losing" anything because it was never the state's to begin with. They say this is just another example of government's greed for a greater share of our income.

We want to know what you think. Should online purchases be subject to state sales tax? Or should online sales be tax-free?

Send your response (50 words maximum) to [email protected] by Wednesday, Feb. 22. You can also mail your response to the Texarkana Gazette Friday Poll, at P.O. Box 621, Texarkana, TX 75504. Be sure to include your name, address and phone number. We will print as many responses as we can in next Friday's paper.

 

Last Week: Fantasy Sports

Our question last week was about Texas possibly legalizing daily fantasy sports for money. Are daily fantasy sports contests games of skill, or at most harmless recreation that should be legal? Or is the activity gambling that should remain against the law?

 

From www.facebook.com/texarkanagazette

  • Seriously? This is ridiculous! There are so many other topics that should be taken care of before trying to make something so harmless illegal!
  • It shouldn't be the role of government to decide whether or not gambling is harmful or not.
  • Are they going to outlaw the stock markets? Pretty sure that's a gamble as well.
  • Make freedom legal. No more laws based on religion and someone else's idea of morality.

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