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TOP STORIES FOR
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2004
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Local Businesses Affected by Streamlined Sales Tax Law |
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By Joel Washburn
washburn@mckenziebanner.com |
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The pizza delivery man, plumber, automotive repair shop,
furniture stores and others will greatly be affected by
a new sales tax law originally designed to close the
loophole on untaxed Internet sales. The Streamlined
Sales Tax Project, effective July 1 in Tennessee, will
require many businesses to track the location by Zip
Code + 4 instead the location of the retailer, as
present laws require.
For instance, pizza delivery stores will be required to
maintain a database of the price and cost of each
delivery according to the Zip+4 location of the
destination. The destination governmental jurisdiction
will receive the sales tax revenues. If a furniture
store in McKenzie delivers a piece of furniture to
Dyersburg, that city will receive the sales tax, not
McKenzie. The retailer or service business providing the
service must report the sale and the attendant tax to
the Tennessee Department of Revenue.
The new law will greatly effect businesses that
physically delivery, mail, or ship services or
merchandise. That could include the lumber company,
lawnmower store, printer, furniture store, plumber,
heating and cooling system repairman, and electricians,
to name a few. If possession of the merchandise or if
the service is provided at the store's place of
business, the sales remains with the locality of the
business. A good example of this is the grocery store,
where the merchandise is received at the store and no
delivery is involved.
While the law will be effective July 1, the state's
Department of Revenue is still uncertain how businesses
will comply with the law.
The Banner phoned the Department of Revenue last week to
ask a few questions, to which the Department could not
provide definitive answer. "Nobody has absolute
answers," said Ray Todd, manager of Taxpayer Education.
The activation date will probably be postponed to
January 1, 2005, predicted Todd. When asked if the
taxpayer will receive any "vendor compensation" for the
increase records keeping, Todd indicated that's a
possibility. "Stay tuned," said Todd. "This whole thing
could change."
Indeed, there are several bills pending in the Tennessee
General Assembly to amend the law.
According to the new law, each and every business would
have to file their sales tax returns electronically and
pay by electronic funds transfer. The businesses would
also have to maintain records of delivery of
merchandise. The State must bear the administrative
burden of providing and maintaining a database that
describes boundaries for each taxing jurisdiction based
on the five and nine digit zip codes. Department
officials could not provide details how retailers would
access that database or the associated expense of doing
so.
Local officials are uncertain how the new laws will
affect their revenues. No studies have been conducted to
show how local city, county, or schools will be affected
by the ebb and flow of tax dollars when the new laws
take effect.
Carroll County Mayor Kenny McBride said he thinks the
new laws will benefit the counties while hurting the tax
revenues of individual cities.
Brad Hurley, president of the Carroll County Chamber of
Commerce said he knows of no impact studies that could
measure how the new law would affect governmental
entities.
McKenzie, in three counties, is a great illustration of
the complexities of the new law. Within the city limits
are three school districts (McKenzie, and Henry and
Weakley counties), and two sales tax rates, with Henry
have a total sales tax rate of 9.25 percent compared to
9.75 percent in Carroll and Weakley counties. |
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Delco-Remy Pursuing McKenzie Location |
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Local industrial recruiters are still negotiating with
Delco-Remy to occupy the former American Lantern
building in McKenzie. The Banner reported last week that
the company is considering two sites in Tennessee and
one in Mississippi in which to locate.
Billy Barksdale, Executive Director of the McKenzie
Industrial Board said the company received as many as
300 applications from prospective employees during an
intensive recruitment effort last week. The company
placed advertisements in area and regional newspapers to
attract prospective employees. Barksdale said the
company's human resource personnel would return to
McKenzie this week to possibly meet some of the
applicants.
Delco-Remy is the world's leading manufacturer of
starters and alternators. The company plans to hire up
to 125 employees in the start-up phase with 225 and 350
employees total in phases two and three, respectively.
The much needed jobs will help the area reduce its high
unemployment numbers. Carroll County has the third
highest unemployment in the state with an unemployment
rate of 11.2 percent in December, 2003.
The 100,636 square-foot building, previously occupied by
American Lantern, is located on Highway 22 N in the
Henry County portion of McKenzie. It has ten 9'x9'
overhead loading doors, a separate office space, and 32
acres of land.
Barksdale said the effort to locate Delco-Remy in
McKenzie has truly been a team effort of Carroll and
Henry counties, the two associated chambers of commerce,
the State of Tennessee, and Tennessee Valley Authority.
All persons interested in employment are being directed
to the West Tennessee Career Center, 19476 West Main
Street, Huntingdon. |
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Last Game in Gleason's "Dudley Sanders Memorial"
Gymnasium |
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On Friday, February 6, the Gleason High School Lady
Bulldogs and Bulldogs will play their last game in
"Dudley Sanders Memorial" gymnasium.
All former basketball players are invited to come
back for a short ceremony remembering 55 years of
basketball played in the gym. The ceremony will take
place between the girls and boys game with West Carroll
and will recognize players by decades. Former players in
attendance will receive a very special memento. Come and
relive the memories as we close out an era of Gleason
High School basketball. |
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YMCA Starts After School Program in McKenzie |
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Some 22 students and parents took advantage of the
new "Kids Out" after school program that started last
week at McKenzie Elementary School, with 15 students
joining on the first day.
Bethel College students Dale Mathis and Audrey Cross
work with the children from 3:00 until 6:00 p.m. Monday
through Friday in the YMCA sponsored program.
Children enrolled in "Kids Out" may work on their
homework with assistance, get exercise through sports
and free play, eat a nutritious snack, relax with a good
book or even watch television. Other planned activities
include a trip to the library and computer lab for
hands-on assistance in fundamental tasks.
YMCA Program Director Paul Brough said the program will
also teach children about honesty and respect in a
relaxed and enriching environment.
Dale, a human services major at Bethel from Paducah,
says he became involved with the program after working
with other YMCA programs. He hopes "Kids Out" will
evolve into a summer program for youngsters.
Audrey is an English major at Bethel who moved with her
family to McKenzie five or six years ago from
Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Bethel students are very active in YMCA programs for
children as well as in a number of other YMCA programs.
Participation in "Kids Out" costs $8.00 per day for
non-members and $5.00 per day for members of the YMCA,
however, the Y's "Open Door" program offers up to 90%
off the cost of participation for qualifying families.
Membership at the Y is $28 per month for single parent
families and $36 per month for families where both
parents are in the home.
Dale stresses parents pay only for the days their
children attend the program. "There's no flat rate," he
said. |
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Huntingdon Amends Budget, Purchases Knuckleboom Truck |
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The Town of Huntingdon on Wednesday last week became the
new owners of a Peterson model knuckleboom truck after
the Town Council, during their regular Tuesday evening
meeting, approved a six-year, $65,000 capital outlay
note to help fund the $79,793 price of the equipment.
Carroll Bank and Trust was low bidder for the note at a
low governmental interest rate of 2.9%, said Mayor Dale
Kelley. The borrowed funds will be combined with $15,000
previously allocated in the budget for truck purchases.
The knuckleboom purchase was approved during the
Council's September 23 meeting last year, at which time
the mayor advised the increased efficiency of the
equipment would render obsolete two of three positions
in the brush pickup operation. Reassigning those two
individuals to other projects such as mowing, leaf
pickup, etc. would in turn eliminate two seasonal
positions which are valued at $3,700 each. Monies saved
could be applied to the debt service, Mayor Kelley
stated at that time.
For the remainder of this story, read the print edition
of The McKenzie Banner. |
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Phone (731) 352-3323 or Fax (731)
352-3322
washburn@mckenziebanner.com
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