HOT SPRINGS -- Garland County and the city of Hot Springs have each adopted a resolution in support of federal and state legislation requiring out-of-state retailers to collect and remit sales taxes from online purchases.
The resolution, introduced by the Arkansas Municipal League and Association of Arkansas Counties, calls for local governments to support the Marketplace Fairness Act filed in the U.S. Senate in April. It also asks the governor to convene a special legislative session to consider the issue.
Senate Bill 140, a bill providing for the collection and remittance of sales taxes by retailers without a physical presence in the state, was defeated in the Arkansas House, 43-50, on the last full day of the Legislature's 2017 regular session. The Senate had passed SB140 by a 23-9 margin. The bill required retailers with more than $100,000 of annual sales occurring through a minimum of 200 transactions to collect and remit sales taxes.
In lieu of collecting and sending sales tax proceeds to the state, the bill gave retailers the option of providing an annual report to the Department of Finance and Administration listing the name, address and total purchase amounts of each of their in-state customers.
Retailers would have been required to notify their customers the information had been transmitted to the state.
Supporters of assessing sales taxes on Internet sales have said that in addition to increasing revenues for state and local governments, levying the tax on online sales also fosters parity between electronic and traditional commerce.
Metro on 07/31/2017