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More than 1000 online retailers have registered to collect ND sales taxes

More than 1000 Internet retailers have registered with the North Dakota Tax department, saying they will start collecting North Dakota state sales taxes.

Monday was the deadline for companies to register.

North Dakota Tax Commissioner Ryan Rauschenberger said Internet retailers with sales of more than $100,000 annually in North Dakota have to start collecting sales tax. He said his department has been focusing compliance efforts on the 1,000 largest national Internet retail sellers.

"About 250 of those companies are in the door right now," Rauschenberger said. "We're looking at the other 750 that aren't registered, to find out on a case-by-case basis if they need to be registered."

Rauschenberger said a few companies are refusing to register, because they believe Congress could act to overturn the court decision that allows states to collect.

"For decades, there have been bills in Congress to create a national standard for the collection of on-line sales taxes," Rauschenberger said. "That hasn't happened. And the law of the land is, the physical presence rule is gone, and they have to start collecting and remitting."

Rauschenberger said for budgeting purposes, his office projected online sales tax collections of $25 million in the 2019-2021 biennium. He said that will be adjusted once collections start coming in, and the state will see some actual dollars.