Amazon Victory in NC, Trouble at the Alamo
A federal judge has blocked the North Carolina Department of Revenue from requiring that Amazon disclose in-state cust0mer names and the details of their purchases, ruling that “the disclosure of the identities and detailed information as to the expressive content of Amazons’ customers’ purchases will have a chilling effect that implicates the First Amendment.”
In Texas, however, Amazon received a $269 million tax bill after the state determined that Amazon.com’s in-state warehouses constitutes an in-state physical presence. Amazon also warehouses inventory in Arizona, Indiana, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Virginia as well.
In addition, fourteen additional states have indicated that they could impose an “Amazon tax” under existing law (i.e., though an expansive interpretation of existing law ala North Carolina) – Arizona, the District of Columbia, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington.
More Info: Federal Judge; First Amendment Protects Amazon Buyers’ Data; First Amendment Center; Court’s Opinion; Amazon.com gets a Texas-sized tax bill, Internet Retailer;BNA’s 2010 State Survey Obtains Troubling Responses for Internet Retailers; Leverage SALT.
Cyber Report 