Web retailers, states tussling over store-site sales tax rule

By Rachel Metz The Associated Press NEW YORK — In a big break for online shoppers, Web retailers generally don't have to charge sales taxes in states where they lack a store or some other physical presence. Increasingly, states aching under the weight of the recession are seeking a way around that rule. Because companies such as Amazon.com Inc. get help drumming up sales from online affiliates — people who link to products on their blogs, promote Web shopping deals and offer coupons — several states say the Internet retailers should charge sales taxes in states where those affiliates are based. The financial benefits might not be quite what states anticipate, though. Rather than gearing up to collect taxes, Amazon and other Web retailers are simply shutting down their affiliate marketing programs. As the small businesses that... [read full story]                    

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