Episode Info: Every couple of years, somebody somewhere does something that brings the idea of an Internet-wide sales tax back into the news here in the US. This naturally causes people to freak out left and right. Why? Because most people are seriously misinformed about why this might happen, how it might happen, and what effect it may have on home-based ECommerce businesses. Be sure to Subscribe to the Show! Find much more TRUTH about ECommerce on my site.   EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Welcome to Chris Malta's EBiz Insider Podcast, where the TRUTH about ECommerce is WHERE WE LIVE. Every couple of years, somebody somewhere does something that brings the idea of an Internet-wide sales tax back into the news here in the US. Whether it's a court case against a large retailer, a State government looking to raise even more tax revenue they can spend inefficiently, or any number of other triggering issues, the idea of a nationwide Internet Sales Tax in the United States rears it's ugly head over and over again. This naturally causes people to freak out left and right. Why? Because most people are seriously misinformed about why this might happen, how it might happen, and what effect it may have on home-based ECommerce businesses. So let's set the record straight and look at this with a common-sense perspective instead of the intentional fear-mongering created for a variety of specific agendas, none of which are to your benefit as a business owner. I do have to state for the record that I'm not a lawyer or an accountant, so I'm not giving you legal advice here. This is my personal opinion based on what I've seen in more than 40 years in business overall. As a long-time business owner in various large industries, I have an experienced personal perspective that most HOME-based business owners DON'T have. The first thing you need to understand is WHY this issue keeps coming up. It's simple, really. Let's use an example. Somebody in South Dakota buys a product online. The website that sold the product to that person is based in Florida. Since the seller is in Florida, they're not required (or allowed, under current law) to collect sales tax on that South Dakota sale. So the buyer in South Dakota gets to buy something without paying sales tax. The government officials in South Dakota don't like this. "What?!" they exclaim. "Somebody who lives in our State actually bought something without paying US for the privilege of buying it?? How dare they!" This is a common theme with many US States. They complain that they're losing tax revenue because their residents are buying things from across state lines without paying sales tax to their home State. They would much rather have all of their residents buy things ONLY from stores in their own States, so they don't miss out on a dime of that sales tax. Well, that simply isn't going to happen as much as it did decades ago. This is the 21st Century, and things are a changin'. To be fair, though, you CAN see their point. Sales tax revenue i...

Episode Info: Every couple of years, somebody somewhere does something that brings the idea of an Internet-wide sales tax back into the news here in the US. This naturally causes people to freak out left and right. Why? Because most people are seriously misinformed about why this might happen, how it might happen, and what effect it may have on home-based ECommerce businesses. Be sure to Subscribe to the Show! Find much more TRUTH about ECommerce on my site.   EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Welcome to Chris Malta's EBiz Insider Podcast, where the TRUTH about ECommerce is WHERE WE LIVE. Every couple of years, somebody somewhere does something that brings the idea of an Internet-wide sales tax back into the news here in the US. Whether it's a court case against a large retailer, a State government looking to raise even more tax revenue they can spend inefficiently, or any number of other triggering issues, the idea of a nationwide Internet Sales Tax in the United States rears it's ugly head over and over again. This naturally causes people to freak out left and right. Why? Because most people are seriously misinformed about why this might happen, how it might happen, and what effect it may have on home-based ECommerce businesses. So let's set the record straight and look at this with a common-sense perspective instead of the intentional fear-mongering created for a variety of specific agendas, none of which are to your benefit as a business owner. I do have to state for the record that I'm not a lawyer or an accountant, so I'm not giving you legal advice here. This is my personal opinion based on what I've seen in more than 40 years in business overall. As a long-time business owner in various large industries, I have an experienced personal perspective that most HOME-based business owners DON'T have. The first thing you need to understand is WHY this issue keeps coming up. It's simple, really. Let's use an example. Somebody in South Dakota buys a product online. The website that sold the product to that person is based in Florida. Since the seller is in Florida, they're not required (or allowed, under current law) to collect sales tax on that South Dakota sale. So the buyer in South Dakota gets to buy something without paying sales tax. The government officials in South Dakota don't like this. "What?!" they exclaim. "Somebody who lives in our State actually bought something without paying US for the privilege of buying it?? How dare they!" This is a common theme with many US States. They complain that they're losing tax revenue because their residents are buying things from across state lines without paying sales tax to their home State. They would much rather have all of their residents buy things ONLY from stores in their own States, so they don't miss out on a dime of that sales tax. Well, that simply isn't going to happen as much as it did decades ago. This is the 21st Century, and things are a changin'. To be fair, though, you CAN see their point. Sales tax revenue i...Read less