The American Booksellers Association is encouraging its members to reach out to their state governors and federal lawmakers in support of sales tax fairness legislation currently under consideration in both the U.S House of Representatives and the Senate.

The Marketplace Equity Act (H.R. 3179) in the House and the Marketplace Fairness Act (S.1832) in the Senate would give states the choice to require remote retailers to collect and remit sales tax to the state. Neither bill forces any state to do so, but they would allow legislators to pass sales tax fairness laws without fear of drawing a legal challenge.

Importantly, both bills include small business exemptions: In the Senate version, there is an exemption from the collection requirement for small retailers that do less than $500,000 in remote annual sales nationally; in the House bill, the exemption is for less than $1 million in remote annual sales.

In an e-mail to ABA bookstore members, ABA CEO Oren Teicher wrote:  “As you may know, a federal solution to sales tax fairness has been slowly but surely gaining momentum during this legislative session in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. To continue to move these bills forward, we need your help. If you have not already communicated with your lawmakers regarding these bills, we are asking you to contact your representatives and senators, as well as your state governor, to urge their support of sales tax fairness.”

Both bills have bipartisan support, as well as the backing of a wide and diverse array of retailers.

To make booksellers’ outreach easier, ABA has provided a template letter [6] that booksellers can adapt and e-mail to their lawmakers or use as a source for talking points for a phone call or office visit.

Booksellers with questions or concerns regarding these bills, and those who would like help prepping for a visit with their legislators, are encouraged to contact David Grogan, ABA’s senior public policy analyst, at (800) 637-0037, ext. 6662 or via e-mail. [7]