By Food Marketing Institute
The Supreme Court just handed down its decision in Wayfair v. South Dakota (aka our Marketplace Fairness case) and we have scored a major victory!
On a 5-4 vote, the Court overturned the 1992 “Quill” decision that effectively prevented states from collecting sales tax on transactions from remote sellers who do not have a physical location in the state. Over the past decade, as online transactions have risen, the Quill decision not only led to states losing billions in sales tax revenues, it also created an unlevel playing field that disadvantaged brick and mortar retailers.
Today’s decision sets the stage for states to begin leveling this playing field by collecting sales tax on online transactions. For FMI and our members it is a big win, but one that only signals the start of our work on the issue. Congress is likely going to want to weigh in on the issue and outline the terms under which states can collect these taxes before state legislatures come back into session in 2019. So we expect to see an attempt to move legislation later this year.
We will bring you a more detailed analysis of the decision as we work through the details, but today is a good day that represents a great first step towards true sales tax parity. Here is the Supreme Court decision. FMI contact: Andy Harig
