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Legislative changes that would tax online sales would bring little benefit to Maryland, Comptroller Peter Franchot told Gov. Martin O’Malley Friday.
“Remote sellers have shown a determination to minimize their tax-collection obligations in response to actions of other states,” Franchot wrote in a letter to the governor. “In the absence of federal legislation that would authorize states to require online sellers to collect taxes, it is obvious they will continue to do so, and the amount of revenue that would be accessible to the state is modest, if not minimal.”
Although the state could recover as much as $20 to $40 million in tax revenue from online and remote sales, it is more likely that Maryland would recover at most $5 million and be faced with legal challenges, he said.
