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Amazon to begin collecting sales tax, bringing 1,000 jobs to Ohio
By Marc Kovac
COLUMBUS
Online retailer Amazon.com Inc. announced it will begin collecting state sales tax from Ohioans making online purchases.
The change, to take effect Monday, likely will mean a boost to the state’s coffers, with consumers who were unaware or who ignored the required payments in the past remitting what’s due at the time of purchase.
The collections were announced Friday during a press conference at the Statehouse, where Gov. John Kasich, John Minor, Jobs-Ohio chief investment officer, and Paul Misener, vice president of global public policy at Amazon.com, announced new data centers and fulfillment and related facilities to support the company’s U.S. network.
The locations in several Columbus suburbs will create more than 1,000 jobs over the next few years.
“This is really an intellectual triumph in a lot of ways,” Kasich said. “This is something that will send a message to our young people that, you want to think, you want to live in the future, you want to understand technology, you stay right here in Ohio.”
Ohioans are already required to pay sales taxes on purchases they make from out-of-state and online retailers, if those sellers aren’t collecting it already. The voluntary payments are made via filings with the Ohio Department of Taxation.
Gary Gudmundson, spokesman for the Ohio Department of Taxation, said more than 50,000 Ohio tax returns filed in 2012 included reports of owed sales tax, with more than $3 million in such payments made. Ohio had about 5.4 million tax returns filed that year.
The National Conference of State Legislatures, citing a University of Tennessee study, estimated that Ohio lost nearly $308 million in uncollected sales taxes from online sales in 2012.
Starting Monday, Amazon.com will collect the Ohio sales tax and send it back to the state.
“My understanding and expectation would be if you’re buying an Amazon product, they’re going to start charging Ohio sales tax and collecting it right when you are checking out,” Gudmundson said. “Up until now, they haven’t been collecting, so that’s when you’re supposed to pay.”
Misener said the company voluntarily agreed to begin Ohio sales-tax collections.
“We view this as a part of a long-term partnership with the state, and we’re happy to do it,” he said.
Misener also voiced Amazon.com’s support of the federal Marketplace Fairness Act, legislation that would enable states to require online retailers to collect sales taxes when purchases are made.
“Of course, this whole issue needs to be resolved in Congress. ... We look forward to working with the Ohio delegation to make that a reality soon,” Misener said.
Misener said Ohio stands to gain an estimated $150 million to $300 million in sales taxes if Congress moved on the issue.
Kasich and other state officials offered no projections on potential new sales-tax collections that would result from Amazon.com’s decision.