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Should internet sales tax dollars go to roads or schools?

Posted at 7:25 PM, Aug 21, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-21 21:04:25-04

A Supreme Court ruling means that Michigan can now collect sales tax when you shop online.  

It is a question that has pitted children and schools against roads. 

State officials predict that the state will be able to collect about $200 million a year through the internet sales tax. The question is how should that money be spent? 

As the law stands right now, sales tax money goes to schools but the governor is proposing that when it comes to money collected from internet sales, that may be changed. The governor says the money is needed to fix roads. 

It isn’t hard to find people with opposing opinions. The schools and the roads have legitimate needs in our state. 

“It is not fair to pit our children against our roads,” said Gilda Jacobs, an education advocate and president of the Michigan League for Public Policy.

She says she wants all sales tax money going to schools, but that lawmakers also need to find a way to fix roads. 

“It is really time to take a look at our tax structure,” said Jacobs. 

The governor’s office says this move will help the state address the roads crisis, without raising taxes.