|
 Sustains
Our Communities
THE
ISSUE
The
retail industry employs the second highest number of people
in the United States. In 2000, over 22 million people - one
in five Americans - were employed in retail jobs. Retailers
are committed to enriching the communities in which we live
and operate. We believe it is our responsibility to help sustain
the neighborhoods where our employees work, learn and play.
- Funds
generated from state sales and use tax revenues contribute
to valuable, tangible community services such as education
for our children, law enforcement to protect our neighborhoods
and transportation services to maintain and repair our roads.
- If
the tax loophole that allows online retailers to avoid collecting
a state's sales tax is not eliminated, state and local governments
may have to raise income or property taxes to offset this
lost revenue.
- Sales
and use taxes are consumption taxes imposed on the consumer,
not retailers. However, due to the complexity of the various
sales and use taxes, the states require retailers to collect
them at the point of sale.
- Main
Street retailers are the ones who sponsor the Little League
teams, buy tables at charity events, and participate directly
in the communities in which they live.
FACTS
ABOUT SUSTAINING OUR COMMUNITIES
- According
to U.S. Census Bureau statistics, 48% of states' revenues
come from the collection of sales and use taxes.
- A
University of Tennessee study released in February 2000
showed that continuing to exempt e-commerce sales from sales
tax collection would result in the loss of more than $20
billion in states' sales tax revenue by 2003.
- States'
Dependence on Sales Taxes: Many states rely heavily on funds
generated from sales taxes for their overall state income.
- Nine
states depend on sales and use tax revenue for 40% or
more of their overall revenue
- 18
states rely on sales and use tax revenue for 30% or
more of their overall revenue
*U.S. Census Bureau, Federation of Tax Administrators
- State
and local governments report more than $3.3 billion in tax
revenue is lost annually from mail order sales and the amount
lost from online sales may be much greater.
<
Back to How This Effects You
|
