-Caveat Lector- Dave Hartley http://www.Asheville-Computer.com/dave http://www.ashevilletribune.com/commentary.htm North Carolina's Internet Tax Commentary By Dr. William Forstchen The General Assembly of North Carolina is again on the cutting edge of technology. We of North Carolina have set an example for the rest of the country, jumping ahead of Congress, Presidential candidates, and even the tax mad city of New York with House Bill 1433, which passed on July 13, 1999. We must now pay taxes on all internet purchases, registering them on our state 1040 form. The reasoning behind it? According to Charles Collins, Director of Sales & Use Tax Division of the state Revenue Department: "We will be collecting additional funds that we don't have today. There are a lot of different ways we can collect some of this money; this is just one of them." "A lot of different ways we can collect some money?" Sure, how about a gun to the head, how about yet a further invasion of our privacy, how about yet more harassment from out bloated bureaucracy. I called Mr. Collins today to ask him about the bill. Personally, he seemed like a nice guy. He was also very matter of fact about the right of the State to tax us for our internet purchases. According to him the state has every right in the world to tax us in this manner. Mr. Collins was quick to point out that we already have a "use tax" in place, which requires us to report all out of state purchases. In the past though, we had to file an addendum to our state income tax form. How many of you filed such an addendum? Don't worry though, House Bill 1433 eliminates that form and puts it as a direct line item on our state issued 1040. Fail to report a purchase on the Internet and you are cruising for an audit, an audit which can go over every purchase you've made across the last three years. All your personal purchases will now be open to government scrutiny. What is even more enraging is that this bill passed back in July. Did anyone out there hear about this, does anyone remember a debate? I've called half a dozen friends, my accountant, the staff of the Asheville Tribune, even a state representative who claimed ignorance regarding this change. No one knew this bill was already law. The state of North Carolina, leading the pack of vampires, wants to sink its fangs into the emerging world of internet commerce. The proponents of this bill didn't have the guts to make it an open debate, no, like a vampire they had to slip it to us under cover of night and keep it hidden until it was far too late for us to do anything about it this year. Internet commerce is the emerging wave of the 21st century. If we allow this to stand the precedent will be set, and once they start taxing this new form of commerce we will never get them out. I find this to be incredible given how the issue of Internet taxes is one of the hot topics on the federal level. I'm willing to bet that the pro-tax crowd on the national level had this well thought out. Forget the national debate, instead let a state, under cover of darkness, ram into place an indirect means of sucking off internet trade. The precedent gets set, and then they can move on to expand taxes and their invasion of our privacy. One of the reasons internet commerce is thriving is the fact that it is free of government's iron hand. It is the wave of the future and folks like our governor, Al Gore and others want their sticky fingers in the cashbox. God forbid that free Americans might actually do something without coughing up a payoff to them. What they don't connect to or discuss is the fact that internet commerce is creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs which is generating billions in income. This is fueling our economic growth and is income which is already being taxed. Finally, there is a Constitutional issue here. This bill, by targeting us with a sales tax paid through our income tax, is a direct harassment for taking our commerce out of state. Is this not an impediment to fair and open trade between states, an issue directly addressed in the Constitution which forbids states from blocking or placing tariffs on interstate commerce? If we allow this bill, passed in secret to stand, we will all live to regret it. Dr. William R. Forstchen is a professor of history at Montreat College. Submit your comments by Emailing [EMAIL PROTECTED] ************************* [ Home ] [ Hage Report ] [ Commentary ] [ Town Forum ] [ Tax Records ] Archives ] [ DOT ] [ Bombs ] DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! 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