WRAL.com reports that the state Department of Revenue has settled a lawsuit filed by the ACLU challenging a state policy demanding Amazon.com to provide personal information about purchasing behavior of Tar Heel State residents using the online retailer.
The Revenue Department argues that it never intended to track shopping preferences of Amazon users but instead only wanted to ensure that it collected adequate sales taxes on online purchases.
The settlement does not affect Amazon’s lawsuit against the state, challenging the online sales tax. Nor does it have any effect on a separate lawsuit brought by Internet travel services including Orbitz, Travelocity.com, and Hotwire.com, challenging the constitutionality of the online sales tax.
Carolina Journal contributor Karen McMahan foreshadowed some concerns with the online tax in this exclusive published last April.
