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Politics : Ask Michael Burke -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (41023)	12/26/1998 6:40:00 PM
From: yard_man	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 132070

>>2. What are the states going to use for tax revenues?<< Saw a guy from Vancouver crying about that on NPR the other night while I was at my Dad's. It will be interesting to see how long the net sales remain tax-free. On the same program they had some silly professor from Austin who thought it was the greatest -- maybe for some it is, but it just looks like another flavor of catalog sales to me ...

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (41023)	12/26/1998 9:24:00 PM
From: SteveDavis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 132070

MB, Of course it is going to effect real estate. The large malls are already becoming unpopular as is the classical department store. Look at the specialized shops (Gap, etc.) But the computer has had a much larger effect on real estate. There used to be one secretary for each lawyer in a law firm. Now it is one for 3/4 lawyers. Most executives do their own E-mail and have become very efficient. This means the company does not need the amount of square footage in the office that it used to require. Very bearish for office construction. The "just in time" model reduces the need for warehouse space in a retail store. Again, they don't buy as much land or build as big a building as 10 years ago. No need for the storage space. ALL merchandise is out on the shelf to be sold. This also reduces employees. Don't need the warehouse people. The internet tax situation is a very interesting one. It will probably result in some sort of national sales tax that is then divided among the states on some sort of pro rata basis? How do you determine what is what when you have the Web site in Houston, the merchandise is shipped from Kansas, Ill. and Ca., by FedEx (Tenn) with a credit card processing from Utah. IMO, the cost of compliance for the states would cost more than the tax collected so just let the Feds do it and divide the amount. Steve Davis

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (41023)	12/26/1998 11:31:00 PM
From: Skeeter Bug	Respond to of 132070

>>They don't collect them from the Net.<< they will...

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (41023)	12/27/1998 7:16:00 AM
From: valueminded	Respond to of 132070

Mike: The answer to the real estate question seems obvious but I am not so sure, the second is much easier. The elimination of "sales tax" on the web was in my opinion a ploy by the Federal Government. It is very easy for them to say "no taxes on stuff ordered on the web" when it does not affect their revenue base. Look for increasing advantage (larger purchases) to be taken of this inane law. For ex ordering cars on the web. Why not since the tax bill on a car can amount to 1500 or more. At the same time, look for them to close this gap and modernize the sales tax laws. As far as the collection of taxes from web based sales, in its simplest form, you pay tax based on the state/county/city you live in.