E-commerce sites have several competitive advantages over their brick-and-mortar counterparts, one of which has long chafed small, independent retail owners: sales tax. As determined by the 1992 case South Dakota v. Wayfair, state governments cannot require an online retailer to collect sales tax if it does not have a physical presence in that state.
In the 25 years since that ruling, however, the online retail space has radically evolved — today's consumers flock to the internet for their retail needs, turning sites like Amazon into global giants. Because of this, states are losing out on billions in revenue; according to Bloomberg, states could have collected roughly $13 billion last year.
But that may change. The Supreme Court will hear the case, meaning the ruling may be overturned. For the full story, click here.
