The Internet And Taxation Essay -- E-commerce ecommerce E-business ebu

The Internet and TaxationA 19-member panel recondite to virtually all Americans is con nervering how to tax a virtual world thats household to millions the Internet. The federal Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce convened for the firstborn time Monday in historic Williamsburg, Virginia, but the setting is the only subject thats serene. On some(prenominal) facial expressions of the debate, fireworks have been flying for months.On one side are consumers and businesses that buy and sell on line. Most of their transactions go across give tongue to lines, and sales taxes are not collected. They say princely sales taxes on the Internet could stifle growth in an fabrication that is helping to drive the U.S. economy, and taxes could drive Internet firms overseas. On the other side are traditional retail merchants who collect sales taxes and the governments that rely on those taxes to pay for police, schools and roads. The retailers are losing business to the tax-free I nternet. That cuts into the 36% of state and topical anaesthetic government revenue that comes from sales taxes.The commissions task is to recommend changes to Congress that both sides can live with. It is faced with the current system of more than 3,000 state and local sales taxes. And the products that are taxed, such as food and clothing, neuter from state to state. For that reason, the panel, might consider something as radical as a national sales tax. Its recommendations are due to Congress in April 2000.America is a world leader in information technology. We are at the thinning edge of Internet commerce, and we want America to maintain that position of leadership, says Virginia Gov. mob Gilmore, the commission chairman. The debate will affect every human being, every effectiveness customer, everyon... ...ead, marketing vice president for the Los Angeles-based research firm, were the lengths to which online shoppers would go to avoid taxes. twenty-four percent sai d they would bypass well-known retailers that charge sales levies in favor of unfamiliar merchants that dont, to save on taxes. Thats a real indicator of the concern about taxation, she said.Richard Wolf, Billions of dollars hang over Internet tax debate. , regular army Today, 06-22-1999, pp 01A. J. Leffall, Lawyers tell e-commerce panel tax system needs overhaul. , The Washington Times, 05-31-1999, pp D13.Szabo, Joan, last(a) returns just when you thought it was safe to do business in cyberspace....(Tax Talk)(Column). Vol. 26, entrepreneur Magazine, 09-01-1998, pp 70(3). James T. Madore, Great Debate / Shoppers, governments in dispute over erupt of online sales tax. , Newsday, 08-15-1999, pp F06.