A Utah legislator withdrew a bill that would have helped the state get sales tax from online purchases after he realized the measure could cost at-home bloggers thousands of dollars they get in promoting Amazon products.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Rep. Mike McKell, a Spanish Fork Republican, said he heard from bloggers across the state saying it would negatively affect them.
McKell's bill would have collected sales from online purchases. Without that collection Utah is losing an estimated $180 million in revenue annually.
Bloggers are paid by Amazon to post links to products on their sites. The online retail giant told McKell that it would end its relationships with affiliated advertisers in Utah if the bill passed.
