Jonesboro, Arkansas Pursues Unconsititutional Internet Sales Tax

by Bobby L. Hester, Letter to Editor: The Sun story on the Jonesboro, Arkansas city council's vote on the resolution to support an Internet sales tax (which passed 8 to 4) began with this statement: "What was initially considered to be a noncontroversial item on the Jonesboro City Council's long agenda Tuesday became a 20-minute debate." It was supposed to be noncontroversial because the public was not to know anything about it - the same way it is being pushed across the state in various cities.

The resolution was to be voted on in a group of other noncontroversial issues, but Councilman Bobby Long asked that it be pulled for a separate vote. Long then gave his opposing points. The Mayor then quickly called for the vote, not even giving the audience a chance to discuss the bill until a lady from the audience asked Perrin if he were going to give them a chance to speak.

The Arkansas Municipal League is pushing cities to pass a resolution to support the Internet tax. Their goal is to use our cities to pressure the Arkansas legislature into passing the Internet tax which died in the last legislative session. It is a way for the Mayor and aldermen to get more tax money for the city without having to take the blame for actually imposing a new tax. Mayor Perrin proposed the resolution and our governor, Asa Hutchinson, supports the Internet tax.

The internet tax has been ruled unconstitutional because of interstate commerce laws and rightfully so. Many small businesses also offer internet sales as an added income and many in-home businesses in Arkansas rely exclusively on the internet to sell their products. Such businesses could be forced out of the internet market because they can't afford the cost and time required to comply with the internet sales taxes of multiple states. These small businesses would also have to comply with each state's sales tax forms, regulations, and collection schedule and deal with tax exemptions, tax holidays, and tax definitions that differ from state to state.

Huge businesses like Wal-Mart can absorb this ever changing software costs to keep up with all the regulations of different states, but what small business or in-home business can afford this cost and paperwork?

This tax would just take money out of the pockets of shoppers and give it to the government for more bureaucracy, and then shoppers would just have less money to spend at the local businesses.

We owe a debt of gratitude to councilman Bobby Long and three others city councilmen (Charles Coleman, Chris Moore & Mitch Johnson) who voted with Long and with the people who oppose this Internet tax by 74% (88% GOP and 59% Democrats).
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Bobby L. Hester, Jonesboro, Arkansas.
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Editor's Footnotes:
- U.S. Supreme Court decision in Quill vs North Dakota.
- Conduit for Action related article: 11 Reasons to Vote NO on SB140, the Internet Sales Tax & Violates Republican Party Platform.

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