The King’s English’s Burton Addresses Groups in Support of Sales Tax Fairness

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On March 27, ABA Board Member Betsy Burton, the co-owner of  The King’s English Bookshop in Salt Lake City, Utah, spoke in support of sales tax fairness at the International Council of Shopping Center’s Strategic Leadership Summit, which was held in Washington, D.C., from March 26 - 28. The summit brings the shopping center industry together in Washington, D.C., to deliver its legislative agenda to Capitol Hill.

The following day, Burton joined other business owners from Utah who were taking part in the summit on visits to federal lawmakers in support of the Marketplace Fairness Act, under consideration in the Senate, and the Marketplace Equity Act, currently under consideration in the House of Representatives. Both bills, if passed, would give states the right to require remote retailers to collect and remit sales tax.

“We were pleased to have Betsy Burton join us at our fly-in last week,” said Leslie McDowell, director of legislative outreach for ICSC. “She is excellent at articulating the problems that small businesses face every day because of the online sales tax loophole. While ICSC members can talk anecdotally about what they are seeing with their tenants, Betsy was able to provide an additional layer of authenticity at our Congressional meetings by sharing her personal experiences.”

Burton addressed ICSC’s members about sales tax fairness at a legislative briefings session, which also included a presentation about the Marketplace Fairness Act from Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), one of the bill’s co-sponsors.

Burton spoke briefly after a viewing of the short video “21st Century Retail — A Case for Fairness,” in which she was featured. She then spoke about how, if states began collecting sales tax from remote retailers, it would result in a $23 billion boost to state economies, as noted by the National Conference of State Legislatures. “Twenty-three billion sounds like a lot, but that’s just a drop in the bucket — that’s just sales tax,” Burton said, noting that a loss in sales tax revenue has ripple effects throughout a local community.

“This is bigger than sales tax … this affects property tax, payroll taxes, and all the people [retailers] hire, and the recirculation of the dollar” within the community, Burton said. “We anchor communities,” she noted, and if Main Street businesses suffer, that results in declining property values. “We’re more vital to the economy than people realize.”

The following day, Burton, along with ICSC members from Utah and staff from ICSC, met with the staff from the offices of Senators Mike Lee and Orrin Hatch and Representatives Jason Chaffetz, Bob Bishop, and Jim Matheson. “Four out of the five we met with seemed to be on board” and realized that something needed to be done, Burton said.

Overall, Burton was very pleased with ICSC and the summit. “They are very knowledgeable on [the sales tax fairness] issue,” she said.

Following the Summit, Burton spoke at the American Independent Business Alliance 2012 Conference in Louisville, Kentucky. Burton said this year’s conference was “fabulous.” On Sunday, April 1, Burton discussed sales tax fairness at the session “The Big Picture: Key challenges and opportunities for indie business advocates in 2012 and beyond.”

Burton briefed conference attendees about the federal sales tax equity bills currently being considered in the Senate and House of Representatives, noting, among other things, that both pieces of legislation, if passed, would empower states to make their own determinations regarding sales tax collection for online sales.