Amazon + warehouses = NJ sales tax

[Nikos 31]

Amazon considering bringing 2 warehouses in NJ which would eventually result in us residents paying to start paying sales tax.

 

As an Amazon whore, I'm not digging this news.

http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20120209/BUSINESS/302090016/Amazon-may-open-N-J-warehouses

[lunker 274]

I hope not. Who the hell would voluntarily open a business in this hi-tax state that did not require face-to-face interaction? It's one thing to open a walk-up store here. It's another to open a warehouse for an internet site where a small minority of customers are from the area. Lets hope Lou Greenwald's general douchiness scares them away.

[BlueLineFish 615]

This state needs jobs. State might not get sales tax right away but you get real estate taxes, payroll taxes plus more people with jobs spending money.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

I thought there already was an amazon warehouse in NJ...

[Babaganoosh 192]

I was just about to what lunker said. Why in Gods name would you want to open a branch in this state. We drive businesses away in this state. They might get a sweetheart deal though, who knows. Some one is going to get rich off this.

[TonyJ 17]

I'm not a tax expert, but wouldn't it have to be a retail store ?

Just read the full article, I guess not.

[blksheep 466]

More Jobs!

[Midwest 28]

What if Amazon has a warehouse in one of those 'enterprise zones" where y'all pay 3% tax. So...would the 3% tax apply or the full rate if you ordered something from Amazon?

[axeman_g 128]

People in this state dont get it. Give them the tax break.... you now have 1500 employees being wage taxes. Plus you have all the taxes on the property sales/ rental and contracting. Ok... then in two years you start bringing in 200mil extra a year, per location? Please see what Mercedes Benz, BMW and Nissan have dont for their localities in the US as examples. The existing Amazon warehouses bring in tons or revenue and jobs, creating more jobs in the surrounding areas as gas, food and shopping are required by the workers.

 

This is a good plan for this state, not great for individs users of Amazon, but still good. I hope they do put them in places like Vineland, Camden or other enterprise zones. People need work more then the state beuracrats need more tax money to waste.

[tony357 386]

I have an issue with this, i purchased an angle drill from home depot online, the drill was shipped from ohio home depot warehouse but i was still charged sales tax clearly from an out of state sale..Just wondering if it is a way for these big co's to smuggle money?

[blizzzarddemon 0]

Eventually we will probably pay tax for online buying no.matter what state you live in or what state the item comes from

[rdsmith3 19]

Eventually we will probably pay tax for online buying no.matter what state you live in or what state the item comes from

 

I agree. I think that is where all this is headed. We will end up having to pay sales taxes, no matter where they are located.

 

I buy a TON of stuff through Amazon. I personally would not want to see this happen, but it is good for the local economy.

 

I am an Amazon Prime member, and I get most stuff in two days, and some stuff in just one day. So it seems they can already ship me goods very quickly without a warehouse here.

[Smokin .50 1,907]

Yes to the above and one more thing about UEZ's: Part of the reason the 3% Tax was granted was that there's a requirement in the Tax Code to visit the retailer to pick-up the purchase! So you don't get the tax break from a mail-order, nor should you you cheap pricks! So you must show-up to buy at 3%! This is the rule that was established when this first came into being. The reasoning behind it was to "elevate" the surrounding area around the Enterprise Zones as you pay for other taxable things like cheeseburgers, pizza, gas, coffee, drinks, etc. So it's designed as an economic stimulus to bring dollars into depressed areas. Sort of the poster-child for Reaganomics or "trickle-down". It DOES work! You just can't NOT GO THERE!

[GRIZ 3,369]

What if Amazon has a warehouse in one of those 'enterprise zones" where y'all pay 3% tax. So...would the 3% tax apply or the full rate if you ordered something from Amazon?

 

Just opening a business in one of those towns doesn't automatically qualify you for that low tax. In order to qualify for the low sales tax an employer has to follow a bunch of rules from the state, including where you get your employees from.. A friend has a business in Elizabeth and he refuses to let the state tell him more than they already do and he has to collect 7%.

[Nikos 31]

People in this state dont get it. Give them the tax break.... you now have 1500 employees being wage taxes. Plus you have all the taxes on the property sales/ rental and contracting. Ok... then in two years you start bringing in 200mil extra a year, per location? Please see what Mercedes Benz, BMW and Nissan have dont for their localities in the US as examples. The existing Amazon warehouses bring in tons or revenue and jobs, creating more jobs in the surrounding areas as gas, food and shopping are required by the workers.

 

This is a good plan for this state, not great for individs users of Amazon, but still good. I hope they do put them in places like Vineland, Camden or other enterprise zones. People need work more then the state beuracrats need more tax money to waste.

 

The 1,500 jobs is good for the people that get them but any other benefits that go to the state will be negated due to the level of corruption that's crippling NJ.

[Gorilla800lbs 12]

Newegg.com opened a distribution center in South River, NJ, they reportedly saw their business in the area increase, not shrink. I would be surprised if Amazon isn't betting on the same.

 

I suppose the main advantage of opening a warehouse in NJ would be the speed of delivery to NYC and Greater New York area. Since Amazon agreed, in principle, to (eventually) collect CA sales tax, it's only a matter of time when this whole sales tax/no sales tax argument becomes moot.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

I used to buy from NewEgg heavily.... not anymore...

[rdsmith3 19]

I used to buy a lot of camera gear from Adorama and B&H. Then Adorama opened a warehouse in NJ and started charging me sales tax, so I stopped ordering from them.

[axeman_g 128]

Everyone... if you choose to stop using a vendor because you dont wish to pay sales tax, thats great for you. I totally understand. But this is not about that. This story is about jobs, increased revenue in a state that is dying, Chrisitie making this state more attractive to large corps to come do business in and the effect both of these locations will have on the local economies. I hope you can see that this goes way beyond your personal sales tax savings. Kudos to the gov for getting NJ to a place where Amazon would even look at locating space here, they could just as easily got to NE Pa for the NY market. Does anybody really want to see another company move to Easton?

 

Also kudos to gun fighting maniac, my friend State Assembly Majority Leader, Lou Greenwald. I wont yell at you as much next time I see you about guns... for about ten seconds.

[Midwest 28]

Amazon has warehouses/distribution centers here in Kentucky. We get charged sales tax when we buy from Amazon.

[SpacemanFry 51]

The way I see it, and I'm sure many will think I'm wrong or an arse, I really don't give a flying f*ck about giving this state more tax revenue so that business as usual continues. As far as I'm concerned good for any business that leaves NJ.

 

If amazon does this (and they probably will) it's so they can faster serve the NY metropolitan area and because they will get a hell of a lot of tax incentives and benefits (guess who's paying for those!).

[DirtyDigz 1,812]

For all those rah-rahing the jobs that this might bring - let's hope Amazon doesn't run the NJ facilities like they run some of their others:

 

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-allentown-amazon-complaints-20110917,0,7937001,full.story

 

...During summer heat waves, Amazon arranged to have paramedics parked in ambulances outside, ready to treat any workers who dehydrated or suffered other forms of heat stress. Those who couldn't quickly cool off and return to work were sent home or taken out in stretchers and wheelchairs and transported to area hospitals. And new applicants were ready to begin work at any time.

 

An emergency room doctor in June called federal regulators to report an "unsafe environment" after he treated several Amazon warehouse workers for heat-related problems. The doctor's report was echoed by warehouse workers who also complained to regulators, including a security guard who reported seeing pregnant employees suffering in the heat.

 

In a better economy, not as many people would line up for jobs that pay $11 or $12 an hour moving inventory through a hot warehouse. But with job openings scarce, Amazon and Integrity Staffing Solutions, the temporary employment firm that is hiring workers for Amazon, have found eager applicants in the swollen ranks of the unemployed.

 

Many warehouse workers are hired for temporary positions by Integrity Staffing Solutions, or ISS, and are told that if they work hard they may be converted to permanent positions with Amazon, current and former employees said. The temporary assignments end after a designated number of hours, and those not hired to permanent Amazon jobs can reapply for temporary positions again after a few months, workers said.

 

Temporary employees interviewed said few people in their working groups actually made it to a permanent Amazon position. Instead, they said they were pushed harder and harder to work faster and faster until they were terminated, they quit or they got injured. Those interviewed say turnover at the warehouse is high and many hires don't last more than a few months. ...

[axeman_g 128]

Space.. if you wish to live in Detroit... then please feel free to move there. A perfect example of what happens when local governments get to greedy and dont take care of their corporate benefactors.

[this_is_nascar 162]

The way I see it, and I'm sure many will think I'm wrong or an arse, I really don't give a flying f*ck about giving this state more tax revenue so that business as usual continues. As far as I'm concerned good for any business that leaves NJ.

 

If amazon does this (and they probably will) it's so they can faster serve the NY metropolitan area and because they will get a hell of a lot of tax incentives and benefits (guess who's paying for those!).

 

 

You can't be serious. Do you work for a living or live in mommy and daddy's basement? Why would anyone not want to see more business and revenue come to NJ?

[SpacemanFry 51]

Space.. if you wish to live in Detroit... then please feel free to move there. A perfect example of what happens when local governments get to greedy and dont take care of their corporate benefactors.

 

Umm obviously you misunderstand. I am saying the state is already there, and I applaud businesses that decide to leave this dump rather than supporting it. That's not an endorsement of the current anti-business practices in this state, on the contrary it's an indictment.

[BlueLineFish 615]

This state needs jobs....period. A large company like this will add tons of revenue in other areas as well. Trucking companies get work, gas stations from all the extra shipping, repairs for all warehouse equipment. More people will spend paychecks locally. Just to name a few. Hopefully this is a sign that the state will do something to get business here. They lost out a big fresh direct.com warehouse to NYC.

[SpacemanFry 51]

You can't be serious. Do you work for a living or live in mommy and daddy's basement? Why would anyone not want to see more business and revenue come to NJ?

 

Yep you got me I'm a basement troll... what exactly does that have to do with anything?

 

Do I want to see this state turn around and be more supportive of business and people in general and not tax everyone to death while infringing on our freedoms? Hell yea. Do I think it's going to happen as is? Hell no. The state has made it abundantly clear in quite a few decisions that if you don't like the way they do business leave, and as such I applaud the companies that do.

[this_is_nascar 162]

Yep you got me I'm a basement troll... what exactly does that have to do with anything?

 

Do I want to see this state turn around and be more supportive of business and people in general and not tax everyone to death while infringing on our freedoms? Hell yea. Do I think it's going to happen as is? Hell no. The state has made it abundantly clear in quite a few decisions that if you don't like the way they do business leave, and as such I applaud the companies that do.

 

 

Again, what's your problem with seeing new business and more revenue coming into NJ? You must not pay taxes or have financial responsibilities. That's the only reason I can think of that would cause you not to care.

[BCeagle 12]

I dont buy from any internet site that charges sales tax unless they are cheaper than the competition by more than the amount od the tax. If its equal, I would rather give it to the individual than the state.

[Gorilla800lbs 12]

I dont buy from any internet site that charges sales tax unless they are cheaper than the competition by more than the amount od the tax. If its equal, I would rather give it to the individual than the state.

 

If they're equal... Doesn't it mean that the "individual" is effectively overcharging you?