Why Illinois court's 'Amazon tax' ruling may not last long

By avoiding the fundamental constitutional question, last week's Illinois Supreme Court 6-1 ruling against the state's “Amazon tax” has left the controversial issue of Internet sales taxes up to Congress or the U.S. Supreme Court to sort things out once and for all. In other words: Don't expect those Internet marketers that fled the state when the law was enacted two years ago to be flocking back anytime soon.

The state's highest court found Illinois' Internet sales tax void and unenforceable because it conflicts with a federal law that temporarily blocked new state or federal taxes aimed at online retailers or Internet providers, the first court in the country to take that stance. But others say a conflict with federal law merely makes the state tax unenforceable. For unstated reasons, the court did not address a lower court ruling that found the state tax in violation of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.