Civic Register
| 3.30.18

Trump Slams Amazon Over Taxes, Shipping

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What’s the story?

  • President Donald Trump renewed his attacks on Amazon.com over Twitter on Thursday, saying the online retailer does not pay its share of state and local taxes.
  • Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post, which the president often criticizes as being unfair to his administration.

What is the relationship between Amazon and the U.S. Postal Service?

  • Amazon regularly uses the USPS to complete what’s known as "last mile" delivery.

  • According to a recent study by Citigroup, the postal service loses about $1.46 per box. In the fiscal year ending in September, the USPS reported a $2.7 billion net loss; Amazon reported a $1.176 billion profit for the same period.

  • However, Amazon also remains one of the postal service’s biggest customers.

  • Though the USPS is a federal agency – one of the few outlined in the Constitution – it does not receive any tax dollars. All income is generated by postage sales and services.

Is Amazon "putting many thousands of retailers out of business"?

  • Though many brick-and-mortar stores are struggling, a report from the Progressive Policy Institute found e-retailers, like Amazon, are more than making up for any job losses:

"We found that the e-commerce sector added 355,000 jobs from 2007 to 2016—more than enough to compensate for the 51,000 jobs lost in the general retail sector," the report said.

Does Amazon really "pay little or no taxes to state & local governments"?

  • Amazon doesn't collect state sales tax from third-party sellers in some parts of the U.S.

  • Amazon collects sales tax in the 45 states that require it; however, a patchwork of local regulations dictate whether the taxes are collected, and whether they are the responsibility of Amazon or the third-party seller.

  • As NBC News explained, "Amazon has expressed its support in the past for federal legislation to create a uniform plan for collecting sales online, but there has yet to be movement on that front."

  • White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters told reporters on Thursday that "the president has expressed his concerns with Amazon. We have no actions at this time."

  • During the 2016 presidential debates, Trump said not paying taxes "makes me smart."

What do you think?

Should Congress pass legislation to "create a uniform plan for collecting sales online"? Is Amazon taking advantage of the postal service? Should the Trump administration build an antitrust case against Amazon? Hit Take Action and tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.

—Josh Herman

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(Photo Credit: NoDerog / iStock)