Mrs. Mecomber's Scrapbook Talking technology, computers, and the Internet… for the average computer user

Not very good news for online shoppers. New York State just passed a law that commands online businesses to tax their patrons if these patrons reside in the state of NY. The NY government is pooh-poohing it, saying that shoppers won’t see much of an increase in their costs, but the state is expected to reap in millions. So, you buy a $10 book, you’re going to pay $1.00 extra for tax (by the way, NYS taxes are the highest in the nation). But if you buy, say, a fancy lcd mount for $1,000, you’re going to pay $100 in taxes. That’s highway robbery.

And money or not, it’s a matter of principle. New York State is breaking federal LAW and being a bully.

I’m amazed that the state can get away with this, since this is a direct breach of the “interstate commerce” clause of the Constitution; this clause forbids one state to tax goods purchased in another state. The Supreme Court clarified it, to allow a state to tax commerce if the business has a direct physical presence in the state. But Amazon.com has no store in New York State (just individual vendors). I’m glad to hear that Amazon.com and Overstock.com are taking NYS to court. God forbid NYS should be allowed to tax like this, imagine all the states doing this. That would be another part of the Constitution gone.

Incidentally, one of the reasons why the Founding Fathers even wrote the Constitution was because New York State was doing this very same thing– taxing goods from other states (New Jersey and Connecticut) as the goods passed through the New York City harbor. NJ and CT became so incensed that it almost started a civil war– and this was only just after the American Revolution! You’d think New York would stop being a bully, but nope.