Shop Amazon? Think Again!

States across the country have fought for Amazon to follow the law and collect sales taxes, and Amazon has fought back with low-ball tactics. Now that Amazon has agreed to locate distribution facilities in Tennessee, the fight has come home. The Department of Revenue wants to create a special rule change to exempt Amazon from sales tax collections, losing the state at least $35 million in revenue annually, and hurting local businesses.
This blogpost from Pennsylvania makes some excellent points on the topic:
"You might save a little money [by using Amazon] short term," [small business owner] Drabyak finishes, "but in the long run, you're doing yourself and your community a huge disservice" ... Drabyak cites The Andersonville Study to prove his point. This study, conducted in 2004, points out that for every one hundred dollars spent locally, $68 remains in that community, as opposed to $43 spent at a chain store. If a shopper would choose to use Amazon.com, the local community would not even see a dime.
“One of the big issues we’ve been championing is the state sales tax,” Drabyak explains. People who buy their books more cheaply through web sites such as Amazon.com do not pay sales tax to the state of Pennsylvania. Therefore, the local tax base suffers."