Kansas lawmakers may well have a new revenue stream to utilize at some point next year.
Lawmakers were pleased to find out the US Supreme Court ruled that states can collect sales tax on e-commerce sales, saying internet retailers can be mandated to set aside those taxes even in states where they have no physical presence.
60th District Representative Mark Schreiber says this ruling is a far cry from one on the same general topic in the early 1990s. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled against allowing states to tap the internet sales taxes.
Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine of Emporia says some significant discussions are ahead for lawmakers.
States, including Kansas, have said for years they are missing out on millions or billions of dollars in annual revenue because they weren’t allowed to collect sales tax on e-commerce businesses. Brick-and-mortar stores chafed under the prior rules, saying they were at a decided disadvantage because they had to pay sales tax.
