How Did Massachusetts Figure Out Who Was Buying Cigarettes Online?
from the not-too-many-possibilities dept
As states continue to increase taxes on cigarettes, many smokers have decided to turn to online cigarette purchases to avoid paying the taxes. Imagine the shock of a few thousand Massachusetts residents who then received a tax bill for the cigarettes they bought. No one is exactly sure how the state got the list of buyers, but they do know whose list it was - which limits the possibilities to two likely suspects: the company itself or UPS. UPS is fairly unlikely, since it would be quite a scandal if it turned out they were handing out stats on what they delivered to people. The more likely revealer, then, is the online site that sold the cigarettes - and, in fact, the article suggests they're required by law to file a report of who's buying what in terms of cigarettes. So, even while the company is fighting a lawsuit on that very issue, they may have handed over the list in this case - though, without telling their customers to expect a tax bill.
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Unlikely?
Hmmm. So do we have to be careful who we ship with now?
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Re: Unlikely?
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No Subject Given
Doubly so because tax-free cig spammers piss me off.
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No Subject Given
Mike: it'd be nice to see how much freedom americans lost in post 9/11 period...
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Bad News for Ohioans
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Re: No Subject Given
> lost in post 9/11 period...
Yeah, we should be free to avoid any taxes we don't feel like paying, especially those that use the internet...
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Re: No Subject Given
Tax avoiders are the true patriots of freedom, make no mistake about it.
It's how and why the friken country got started in the first palce.
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Massachusetts Tax on online cig's
Can someone tell me when did Massachusetts institute a 'Border Tax'?
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