February 5th, 2021 by WCBC Radio
A coalition of businesses is in the midst of a fight with the General Assembly over Maryland’s first-in-the-nation attempt to levy a tax on online advertising. Maryland lawmakers passed the tax last year, in hopes of drumming up money for education by taxing Big Tech. Republican Governor Larry Hogan vetoed the tax, setting up a battle over whether the Democratic-led legislature will override the veto in the coming weeks of the legislative session. A coalition calling itself Marylanders for Tax Fairness is starting a push against the tax as lawmakers make their decision on the veto. The coalition’s members call the tax shortsighted and deeply flawed. And they say the costs will be passed on to Marylanders, as businesses charge higher prices to cover their increased cost of advertising. The idea behind the tax was to hit big technology companies that place ads that follow people around as they browse websites and click through apps such as Google and Facebook. But coalition members — and the Hogan administration — argue small businesses would bear the brunt of the cost. Lt Governor Boyd Rutherford…
