PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — The Rhode Island General Assembly has passed legislation to collect the sales tax from online retailers.
Lawmakers approved the bill Tuesday, sending it to the governor for consideration.
A June U.S. Supreme Court ruling paved the way for states to require tax collections for online purchases.
The court upheld a South Dakota law that targeted online retailers who avoided collecting sales tax because they didn’t have a physical presence, like a store or distribution center, in a state. The court threw out a decades-old exemption.
The legislation was introduced in Rhode Island by the chairmen of the House and Senate Finance Committees. Democratic Sen. William Conley and Democratic Rep. Marvin Abney say it removes the unfair advantage that out-of-state, online retailers have in competing against Rhode Island brick-and-mortar businesses.
