SALT LAKE CITY — June 21, 2018 — Overstock.com Inc. is prepared to comply with today’s Supreme Court ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc., which overturned long-standing United States Supreme Court precedent, in Quill Corp v. North Dakota. At the same time, the company calls on Congress to intervene and legislate a fair solution in the wake of today’s ruling to lessen possible impacts on innovative internet startups.
“Though the impact of the Court’s ruling today will be clarified by further proceedings in the lower court, we are prepared to comply with any outcome, and the decision will have no appreciable impact on our business,” said Overstock.com executive and board member Jonathan Johnson.
The 5-4 ruling altered the 26-year Quill precedent, which established that a retailer had to have a physical presence in a state, before it could be compelled to collect sales taxes on behalf of that state. Physical presence will no longer be the standard, though there are still guidelines for states to consider, as given by the Supreme Court.
“Today the U.S. Supreme Court has re-shaped the interstate commerce landscape in a move that could impact small business innovation on the internet, which has been a driving force behind our nation’s economy for the last 15 years,” said Johnson. “The framers of the Constitution intended Congress to regulate interstate commerce by thoughtful legislation. To lessen the potential impact of today’s ruling on internet innovation, Congress can, and should, pass sound legislation allowing states to accomplish their aims while still permitting small internet business to thrive.”
The company noted that there are more than 12,000 different state and local taxing districts, which presents internet start-ups with a compliance challenge.
Johnson continued, “Unless Congress responds, the Court’s ruling may remove key entrepreneurial opportunities before they even get out of the heads of the inventors.”
Posted June 25, 2018
Source: Overstock.com Inc.
