Main Street Fairness Act wants to tax online purchases

Congress is once again considering legislation that would force online retailers to collect sales tax for all purchases. The Main Street Fairness Act, introduced by U.S. Rep. William Delahunt, would change the current law, which only requires sales tax be charged on purchases when the retailer has a physical presence in the state.

Many states already require consumers to report online purchases when they file their taxes and remit the sales tax if the retailer does not collect it, but a many, if not most, consumers either do not know they are required to make these payments or fail to mention their online purchases on their state tax forms.