Online Tax: Member Lobbying Works
You probably read this morning that the Senate passed an online sales tax bill. How do you convince a gridlocked Senate to pass a new tax? The National Retail Federation spent the last few months pestering members to lobby Congress.
NRF president Matt Shay says the Marketplace Fairness Act"levels the playing field for all retailers." The next step is getting it passed in the House. The organization got its entire membership-- from small businesses to larger, brand names--to contact legislators personally and often, asking them to pass the bill. The organization also has 200 retailers in DC this week for the annual DC fly-in/lobbying day. Aside from pushing hard for House passage of the Marketplace Fairness Act, the advocates will be talking to members about tax reform and patent trolls. (We're hoping to borrow NRF members to lobby our five-year-old on the benefits of eating broccoli.)
