Spitzer’s Surprise Christmas Present
By Jim Willis on Nov 15, 2007 in Gov Eliot Spitzer, Government & Politics, Taxes & Spending | Printable Version
Eliot “The Don” Spitzer is at it again. He thinks the money you make does not belong to you–it belongs to him! And he aims to get every last penny of it. Here’s a nice little tidbit from The New York Sun:
New Yorkers going Christmas shopping online at Amazon.com will find an 8.375% surprise at the virtual cash register, courtesy of Governor Spitzer, who is moving aggressively to collect Internet sales taxes that have gone widely unenforced.
Under a new policy, major electronic retailers, such as Amazon.com, will be required to collect sales tax on all purchases from New York. The policy, based on a novel legal theory, could hasten the end of the Internet’s era as a duty-free marketplace if other states follow New York’s lead. With the policy, New York immediately took the lead among states that are seeking to tax online commerce.
My reading is this: A “novel legal theory” means Spitzer has found yet another way to skirt the law, or bend it to his own liking. Sales tax on Internet purchases is a complicated matter, but the short story is that most of the time businesses have not had to collect it, and for those states that impose it, it is up to the customer to voluntarily pay the tax. As we all know, voluntary and taxes don’t usually go together. So “The Don” has now figured out out to get his cut.
Merry Christmas from your favorite governor!
UPDATE – LATE BREAKING NEWS
Spitzer has pulled back and reversed his decision! Great news for all New Yorkers. See The New York Sun article here. A big hat tip to Roger Thornhill, editor and writer of The Catskill Commentator, for making me aware of it.
Technorati Tags: Eliot Spitzer, internet sales tax
Roger Thornhill | Nov 15, 2007 | Reply
In stunning proof of two-faced-ness, the Gov instantly backtracked his position, waffling in the face of overwhelming GOP withering volleys…
from the NY Sun this AM:
“…In a second major policy reversal in less than a day, Governor Spitzer is backing down from a plan to require Amazon.com and other online retailers to charge state and local sales taxes on all purchases from New York.
Yesterday, just hours after The New York Sun reported on the new revenue collection scheme, the Spitzer administration announced that it was burying it for the time being — at least until after the Christmas shopping season. The move saved New York City shoppers from having to pay an additional 8.375% on many Amazon.com goods.
“Governor Spitzer believes that now is not the right time to be increasing sales taxes on New Yorkers,” Mr. Spitzer’s budget director, Paul Francis, said in a statement. “He has directed the Department of Tax and Finance to pull back its interpretation that would require some Internet retailers that do not collect sales tax to do so.”
The turnabout came just hours after Mr. Spitzer said he was dropping his plan to allow illegal immigrants in New York to obtain driver’s licenses.
In this latest instance, Mr. Spitzer wasted little time before pulling the plug on another controversial policy, aborting it before it threatened to snowball into a distraction for his administration. ”
To Mr. Spitzer:
There’s a stagecoach leaving in five minutes.
Be under it.
Jim Willis | Nov 15, 2007 | Reply
Excellent Roger! Thanks so much for the update. This is truly good news. Glad to have sharp readers (and bloggers) like you in our area.
Best regards – Jim Willis