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NASHUA – Local retailers said they have been bullied for years into allowing Massachusetts auditors to look at their books to see if they owed the Bay State any taxes.
The owners spoke out at a Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce breakfast yesterday, where the keynote speakers were state Attorney General Kelly Ayotte and David Nagle, attorney for Town Fair Tire.
Town Fair Tire is entangled with Massachusetts over its attempts to get the company to collect "use" taxes on purchases made by Bay State residents in the company's New Hampshire stores. Several states have use taxes, which are taxes on goods that residents buy in other states but use in their home state.
Moderator cut: please post a link to the article instead of cutting and pasting which is a copyright violation per the terms of service. Thanks.
A long time ago and far, far away at the Portsmouth State Liquor store, Connecticut State Police were recording the auto numbers of Connecticut license plates to later question the car owners about their booze purchases so the "proper" CT taxes could be paid. When the state store operators noticed this they had the New Hampshire cops charge the Connecticut cops with loitering and chased them off the NH property.
IMHO - If a consumer buys something in NH he only has to pay the NH tax. NH businesses have no responsibility for collecting data for the Mass Dept of Revenue.
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I agree, it is wrong wrong wrong! Unfortunately it does also exist elsewhere. If I buy a car in NH.. and then register it here in MD, I will have to pay MD the appropriate sales tax. If I buy furniture in whichever Carolina (north?) is big on furniture, they collect MD sales tax. Just not right!!!
It should not matter where you live or are taking your purchase to, it should only matter where you buy things. If your taxing state misses their tax, too bad! NH stores should refuse to cooperate with MA. What's MA going to do? they have no authority in NH. they should be off, before someone drops a house on them!
NH should threaten to establish an income tax that only applies to NH residents that work out of state. NH could put it at 5.2%. When someone who lives in NH and works in MA files their taxes, 5.2% would go to NH and .1% would go to MA. That would cost MA more than they could get via taxing purchases in NH by MA residents and any tolls they would put up at the border....
Here's the link (http://www.unionleader.com/pda-article.aspx?articleId=3da8e0ec-6404-4e1c-9224-a39e6b7ca988 - broken link) to the story in the Union Leader.
Also from the story:
"Massachusetts would have a harder time collecting sales taxes under a bill passed unanimously by the New Hampshire Senate yesterday."
I checked the NH gov't website. The bill is SB0005 : "AN ACT prohibiting retailers from disclosing private customer information to foreign states in connection with the collection of certain sales and use taxes."
thanks greg - I posted the entire article with the source which the paper says is okay,as long as the source is included.
it should be stopped.
I spoke to a fella' recently that just moved to NH from Berwick, ME. He did his shopping in Rochester, NH to avoid ME taxes. He claims he got a bill from the state of ME for the sales tax on purchases.
I have witnessed NH state cars in store parking lots writing down license plate numbers. It appears the two states work together.
roughly 20 years ago, I had a boat that I purchased in NH, registered it in NH where I live, and used in the ocean. One time I towed it to Maine and used it in the ocean there. It wasn't long before I got a bill from Maine for the sales tax on my boat. It took numerous letters, and a visit to my congressman before Maine dropped the issue. Someone is keeping track.
This tracking nonsense is just one of the reasons I am opposed to any taxes except a universal progressive and equal income tax on all income from all sources. This interstate and intertown competition on sales and property taxes is an absurdity and interferes in a persons' economic descisions on where to buy and where to live. I think that one tax levied where the person lives is adaquate. The distribution of the tax revenues can be argued in the town, state and federal legislatures.
Last edited by GregW; 04-13-2009 at 08:30 AM..
Reason: added words
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