Vote No On Bill - SB 3353
Originally published at Civin.org. Please leave any comments there.
Vote No On Bill - SB 3353
I was recently informed from The Performance Marketing Association that there is a bill coming up for vote in Illinois this year that is going to try to enforce an ADVERTISING tax on marketers online. They are basically attempting to impose sales tax on anyone who is advertising a product and sends them to the person selling it.
Basically anyone who has any sort of affiliate tax is going to get hit with sales tax beyond what both the customer and retailer get hit with. Let me get this straight:
- I don’t take the money from the customer.
- I don’t deliver the product to the customer.
- I don’t know who the customer is.
- I ADVERTISE the product.
But I’d be having an additional sales tax ADDED to my already taxed income from online referrals? Not only this but anyone I work with out-of-state would likely end contracts in IL as that is exactly what happened in New York, North Carolina and Rhode Island when they imposed the same tax. The entire tax they will try to take out will become non-existent by removing the ability for online marketers to even work with companies looking to advertise their products as they will stop working with anyone in the state to avoid the tax.
SB 3353
Amends the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, the Service Occupation Tax Act, and the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act. Provides that a retailer or serviceman is considered to be (i) maintaining a place of business in the State and (ii) engaged in selling personal property at retail in the State if the retailer or serviceman solicits business within the State through employees, independent contractors, agents, or other representatives. Provides that a retailer or serviceman is presumed to be soliciting business through an employee, independent contractor, agent, or other representative if the retailer or serviceman enters into an agreement with a resident of this State under which the resident, for a commission or consideration, directly or indirectly refers potential customers, whether by a link on an Internet website or otherwise, to the retailer or serviceman, if the cumulative gross receipts from sales by the retailer or serviceman to customers in the State who are referred to the retailer by all residents with this type of an agreement with the retailer is in excess of $10,000 during the preceding 4 quarterly periods ending on the last day of February, May, August, and November. Provides that the presumption may be rebutted by proof that the resident with whom the retailer or serviceman has an agreement did not engage in any solicitation in the State on behalf of the retailer or serviceman that would satisfy the nexus requirement of the United States Constitution during the 4 quarterly periods in question.
If you are an Illinois resident and are against this bill
Email Your Senators at the addresses below:
Louis S. Viverito
viverito@senatedem.state.il.us
James T. Meeks
senmeeks@sbcglobal.net
M. Maggie Crotty
crotty@senate.state.il.us
Susan Garrett
ilsenate29@sbcglobal.net
Mike Jacobs
jacobs@senatedem.state.il.us
Jeffrey M. Schoenberg
Schoenberg@senatedem.state.il.us
Chris Lauzen
admin@lauzen.com
Bill Brady
bill@bradyforillinois.com
Randall M. Hultgren
district48@senategop.state.il.us
Matt Murphy
senatormattmurphy@sbcglobal.net
Template to e-mail Senators
Subject: I oppose SB 3353 - internet referral nexus bill
Dear Senator [ ]:
I strongly oppose SB 3353, the dealer registration tax bill. If this
bill passes, the state will NOT gain additional taxes, and my small
business income will be devastated in the process.
My income is earned by selling advertising on web pages. I do not sell
on behalf of out-of-state retailers, I advertise. I do not take any
money from consumers, I don’t deliver any products to consumers, I
don’t even know who the consumers are!
[recommended: insert a few words describing your websites, and why
affiliate marketing is important to you - keep it simple!]
If SB 3353 passes, out-of-state retailers for whom I advertise will
terminate our partnerships because my business does not establish
nexus for them. When similar laws were passed in New York, North
Carolina and Rhode Island, over 200 retailers terminated their
affiliate programs, and many have promised to do the same in Illinois.
If these retailers terminate my partnership, my income will be
devastated.
This law would be futile: Illinois will not collect any new sales
taxes, and my business will be destroyed in the process.
I respectfully request you reject SB 3353. It will not earn any
additional tax revenue for Illinois, and it will damage my business in
the process.
Sincerely,