May 19, 2000 Washington, DC

Co-Chairs:
Charles D. Collins, Jr., North Carolina Department of Revenue
Diane L. Hardt, Wisconsin Department of Revenue

(May 19, Washington, DC) Representatives of national retailers and a major technology company will take part in a panel discussion on issues of simplification and uniformity at the May 25-26 meeting of the Streamlined Sales Tax Project. The meeting will take place in Chicago, Illinois.

"The states are at a point in their discussions where they need input and suggestions from companies who have been intimately involved in sales tax return preparation on a national scale," stated Charles D. Collins, Jr., a co-chair of the project. "We have many questions regarding how individual elements of the proposed streamlined sales tax system can be accommodated by the companies who will be utilizing the system. Therefore, we want this to be the first of what may be many discussions focusing on these issues."

30 states are currently meeting on a monthly basis to design and test a streamlined sales tax system. The project, which is an effort created by the governments of the states, aims to develop a system that incorporates dramatic simplification and uniformity in both tax bases and definitions and meets the needs of the new and existing economies.

The panel discussion will be held on May 25, the first day of the two-day meeting. Invited participants will dialogue with the project member states during the public session of the meeting and address a variety of issues including collection methodology, tax rate simplification, and tax base uniformity. In addition to the panel discussion, several organizations and individuals are expected to address the states on other issues.

"We appreciate the time, thought, and effort that a number of individuals and companies have given to the idea of simplifying the sales tax system," stated Diane L. Hardt, project co-chair. "Many of the simplification measures that the states are discussing as a part of this project have been proposed by the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce and have been introduced in legislative form in Congress. We want to reaffirm the recommendation set forth by the Commission and Congress that states simplify their sales tax structure—and we need the input of a wide-range of stakeholders to insure the best possible result."

The project hopes to test a pilot project of the new system in several states as early as the fall of 2000. Individuals and companies will also be provided the opportunity to comment on the components of the proposed system. The project anticipates presenting the system to state legislatures for approval in 2001.

At its recent meeting in St. Louis, project states met with technology companies that have developed software products for tax collection purposes. Discussions regarding the privacy of consumer data were also addressed. "We must insure the security of taxpayer information," commented Mr. Collins. "We gathered a wealth of information from technology and privacy experts during our discussions. We intend to continue these discussions and incorporate the most stringent privacy safeguards into the new system." Individuals or companies interested in learning more about the project or attending the Chicago meeting should refer to the project website at www.streamlinedsalestax.org. Public sessions are incorporated into each project meeting. Individuals interested in addressing the project member states should contact one of the project co-chairs prior to the meeting.

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