Professional Documents
Culture Documents
House Bill 581 - 3
House Bill 581 - 3
House Bill 581 - 3
Bill
581
2016
Freedom
Index
Score
(-2)
Analyst:
Wayne
Hoffman
Date:
March
14,
2016
ANALYST
NOTE:
House
Bill
581
would
apply
the
state
use
tax
to
businesses
that
are
not
necessarily
located
in
Idaho
but
may
have
even
a
limited
presence
in
the
state,
including,
among
other
things,
the
location
of
employees
in
the
state
or
the
transmittal
of
messages
via
social
media
or
text
messages.
The
language
is
broad
enough
that
one
could
imagine
it
applying
to
most
retail
establishments,
and
the
result
of
is
the
implementation
of
a
new
internet
sales
tax
in
Idaho.
Point
No.
3:
Does
it
give
government
any
new,
additional,
or
expanded
power
to
prohibit,
restrict,
or
regulate
activities
in
the
free
market?
Conversely,
does
it
eliminate
or
reduce
government
intervention
in
the
market?
ANALYSIS:
The
bill
creates
vast
new
categories
of
businesses
that
might
be
considered
to
have
"sufficient
contact
with
the
state
...
to
require
the
seller
to
collect
and
remit
use
tax
on
sales
of
tangible
personal
property
or
services"
in
the
state
of
Idaho.
In
analyzing
whether
a
business
meets
the
criteria
for
collection
of
use
taxes,
the
tax
commission
will
have
to
analyze
a
retailer's
business
interactions
in
ways
never
before
contemplated,
including
social
media
presence,
text
messages,
marketing
campaigns
and
the
existence
of
employees
in
the
state.
(-1)
Point
No.
5:
Does
it
directly
or
indirectly
create
or
increase
any
taxes,
fees,
or
other
assessments?
Conversely,
does
it
eliminate
or
reduce
any
taxes,
fees,
or
other
assessments?
ANALYSIS:
The
bill's
result
would
be
the
imposition
of
new
taxes
on
retail
sales
that
are
currently
not
exposed
to
the
use
tax.
Proponents
of
the
bill
say
the
measure
is
merely
calling
for
the
collection
of
taxes
already
owed,
but
the
bill
leaves
a
lot
to
the
imagination
of
the
state
tax
commission,
which
will
be
charged
with
examining
the
slightest
interactions
in
Idaho's
retail
marketplace
for
the
purpose
of
determining
whether
a
business
should
collect
and
remit
use
taxes.
(-1)