NGA, NCSL Oppose Preemption Bill Under Consideration by Congress

The National Governors Association (NGA) and the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) today issued this statement in opposition to H.R. 2887, the No Regulation Without Representation Act of 2017:

“We oppose H.R. 2887 because this bill’s audacious scope not only expands the ‘physical presence’ rule to all state and local taxes, it swells it to capture all regulations. The speed at which this bill is moving through the House Judiciary Committee belies the robust opposition to it among elected officials from the state executive and legislative branches that our respective organizations represent.

It has been more than 25 years since the U.S. Supreme Court invited Congress to grant states the authority to collect sales and use taxes from remote sales already due.

Our organizations have long supported remote sales tax legislation that would ensure collection of existing sales and use taxes and level the playing field between online and Main Street businesses. Without the ability to enforce existing sales and use taxes on remote purchases, states and local governments lose billions each year, which could be used to reduce other taxes and invest in infrastructure, education, public safety and other services that improve residents’ quality of life.

We believe that the federal government should not enact any legislation or adopt any regulation that would preempt, either directly or indirectly, sources of state revenues, state tax bases, or state taxation methods. H.R. 2887 is a direct threat to representative self-government.”