Whether you pay sales tax for online purchases or not is in the hands of the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court will hear arguments today in an internet sales tax case. The case focuses on businesses' collection of sales tax on online purchases. Under a decades-old Supreme Court ruling, businesses do not have to collect state's sales tax if they are shipping a product to a state where they don't have an office, warehouse or other physical presence. States argue the rule is costing them billions of dollars in revenue as online sales have sky-rocketed and dramatically changed the market.
South Dakota in 2016 passed a law requiring retailers, including internet companies, to collect taxes on the sales they make in the state. Lower courts blocked the law and the Supreme Court will hear the state's appeal today. A total of 35 other states have sided with South Dakota on the issue.
Because every state taxes items differently, this is a complicated situation.
Source: NPR