Financial Transparency Coalition

In 1992 the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision that directly affected the profitability of future powerhouse online retailers like Amazon.com and Overstock.com. In Quill v. North Dakota, the Court ruled that retailers who have no physical presence (or “nexus”) in a state are exempt from collecting sales taxes in that state. Obviously internet shopping in 1992 wasn’t exactly what it is now. Actually the case dealt with a catalog mail-order company, but online retailers now use the rule to avoid sales taxes. Of course since e-commerce sales have soared and displaced business of local retailers, this has become am...

I live in Oregon where there is no sales tax. Before I moved here, I took the sales tax for granted. If a bottle of coke costs $1.00 then you can expect to dole out a dollar bill and some change. Now, I go to a restaurant and my bill always comes in a rounded figure. Imagine that! But I digress. The lack of a sales tax gives Oregon something of an advantage of its neighbors to the North and South. Many who live in Vancouver, Washington, for example, will venture across the border...