A group of Chattanooga businesses, all of whom lose business to internet-only competitors because those competitors don't have to charge sales tax, will unveil a new study showing just how important it is to the economy to fix that problem, officials said.
The study was conducted by Arthur Laffer of Nashville, architect of the Reagan economic policies.
The Marketplace Fairness Act would fix the problem, officials said. It has passed the Senate where Senator Lamar Alexander was an author and Senator Bob Corker a co-sponsor. It faces a fight in the House. Retailers at the event will be urging congressmen to vote in favor of the bill, which also has the support of Governor Bill Haslam, Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey and House Speaker Beth Harwell.
The groups will gather at P&E Distributors on Ringgold Road on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. P&E owner Donnie Eatherly serves on a national advisory board fighting for online fairness. Copies of the study will be available.
Those attending include Donnie Eatherly, P&D Distributors, Tom Glenn, Ace Hardware of Chattanooga, Tim Boyd, Hamilton County Commission, John Ballinger, local businessman and former president of the Enterprise Gateway Council of the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce and Ron Harr, president and CEO, Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce.