I don’t think this is much different than Indiana, Wisconsin, and other states trying to lure business away from Illinois after their tax hike with tax breaks and incentives.
In this case, Texas is trying to keep Amazon after they announced their decision to quit their distribution and warehouses in Texas in Feb. after the Comptroller handed them a $269 million bill for uncollected sales tax and tried to order them to collect sales tax.
Amazon already left Rhode Island, Hawaii, and N. Carolina in ‘09 over the same disagreement.
Sounds better than New York State they gave some tech company a bunch of money out right and got nothing... they went belly up..
The consumer of the finished product pays a tax.
Retailers forward that collected tax payment to the state.
If Amazon doesn't want to collect and forward state and local sales taxes for products sold in Texas, to Texas consumers, it is easily done.
Amazon can simply refrain from opening an office in Texas!
All legal!
When Texas exempts Amazon from collecting Texas retail sales taxes, Texas is violating both the spirit and the letter of all federal laws regarding interstate commerce.
BTW, in an effort at full disclosure,let it be clear that I refuse to buy any books from Amazon.
I love my local book retailers, and much prefer to pay an open sales tax, instead of an Internet dealers tax evading shipping and handling charge.
But that's just me....