This letter made it’s way to me indirectly, so I’d say it’s out in the wild enough to post this.
In it, Amazon expresses their clear opposition to Maryland’s version of the “Amazon tax”, and the actions they’ll take if it passes, which is to drop their Maryland-based participants in the Amazon Associates program, as they threatened to do in Hawaii.
This ultimatum by Amazon is strong, but it only speaks to the revenue that Maryland will not get from Amazon. Maryland’s increased revenue may be lower than they expected, but they may see it as still more than what they get now.
The Maryland legislators also need to hear from real Amazon Associates and other publishers based in Maryland who will be affected in the same way.
Lower than expected revenue due to actions like Amazon’s combined with the impact that this will have on MD small business cannot be ignored. If you’re a publisher in MD, let them know that they will harm your business if they pass this bill.
