Oberweis, Lauzen differ on e-commerce tax

The Republican frontrunners in the 14th Congressional District race continued to spar this week over who has the most taxpayer-friendly campaign platform.

Friday's debate was about collecting sales tax on e-commerce -- dairy magnate Jim Oberweis is against it, while state Sen. Chris Lauzen is for it.

In the state legislature, Lauzen proposed a property tax freeze similar to one enacted in California. To recoup the lost tax revenue, estimated at $2 billion annually, Lauzen would support collecting sales tax on all transactions conducted over the Internet.

"I stand firm in my belief that it is basically unfair and inconsistent that a local merchant must charge me sales tax when I buy a shirt at his or her store and that I'm charged sales tax on that shirt if I order it over the phone, but if I use a computer to order it over the Internet, then no sales tax applies," Lauzen said in a prepared statement. "In Illinois, this unfairness and inconsistency represents $600 (million) to $1 (billion) being launched somewhere into cyberspace."

Oberweis opposes taxing all e-commerce, saying it would create an undue burden on online retailers to determine the exact taxing amount for each individual customer because taxes often vary from county to county and city to city. He cited a 1992 U.S. Supreme Court decision that mandates sales tax collection only from those online businesses serving customers in states where they have a physical presence such as a store, office, warehouse or distribution center.

"Sen. Lauzen is acknowledging that his legislation seeks to take anywhere between $600 million and $1 billion more out of the hands of Illinois consumers who transact business on the Internet," Oberweis, of Sugar Grove, said in a statement. "This, I submit, is a startling admission."

Lauzen, of Aurora, countered that Oberweis was twisting his words to "slime" him as a pro-tax candidate.

"It's a matter of enforcement," Lauzen said. "There are a number of different companies voluntarily complying with the law. He's calling it a tax increase and it's not."

The pair is tied in GOP polls to replace former U.S. Rep. Dennis Hastert of Plano. They will face Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns and Michael Dilger of Evanston in the Feb. 5 primary.

Oberweis released a plan Thursday to rein in federal spending. Specifically, he is calling for a requirement that all federal government expenditures be posted online, a constitutional amendment to grant the president a line-item veto and a ban on earmarks.