Supreme Court To Rule Whether E-Retailers Pay State Sales Tax

The Supreme Court on Friday decided to take up a contentious debate over whether online sellers would be required to collect sales tax in the same way local physical stores do. The court also urged Congress to address the issue through legislative efforts. The court was petitioned to take up the case in October when South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley (R) asked the court to review the South Dakota Supreme Court decision State of South Dakota v. Wayfair, Overstock and Newegg. Jackley at the time called on SCOTUS to “level the playing field” by overruling the physical-presence requirement set as a precedent 25 years ago in the Quill Corp v. North Dakota case. Matthew Shay, the head of the National Retail Federation, called the move “encouraging” in a statement. “Congress should not sit on the sidelines as the Supreme Court considers this case. It’s time to pass legislation to settle this critical issue once and for all. Even if the court rules in favor of a modern sales tax policy, legislation will still be needed to spell out how that would work,” he said. Read more at Retail Dive.