Georgia’s new law making more online retailers collect taxes on their sales to state residents just took effect Jan. 1, and already lawmakers are preparing to change it to add millions of dollars more to the pot of state revenue.
During the 2018 session, state lawmakers passed legislation – which went into effect this year – saying online retailers that make at least $250,000 in sales or 200 individual sales a year in Georgia must either collect and remit sales taxes on purchases or send “tax due” notices each year to customers who spend at least $500 on their sites.
Under the second option, customers would be obligated to send the taxes to the state Department of Revenue, and retailers would have to send the state copies of the notices to customers.
Some big companies, such as Amazon, had been collecting sales taxes for years, but many retailers had not.
The state got the green light on its bill in June, when the U.S. Supreme Court reversed a decades-old ruling and backed internet sales taxes.