Doorstep Delivery Without Extra Taxes

From retail packages to food and grocery deliveries, American consumers and small businesses rely on the delivery economy each and every day.

In 2022, Colorado residents started paying a new 27 cent “doorstep” tax on every restaurant, grocery and e-commerce purchase delivered directly to their homes. Despite growing backlash from consumers and businesses in Colorado, other states are considering imposing similar harmful doorstep taxes.

A Delivery Tax Hurts Families & Workers

1

A delivery tax is the last thing Americans need

Americans are already suffering from record inflation, supply chain shortages, and sky-high prices. A new tax on everyday items that people rely on will only exacerbate these issues and further raise costs for consumers.

2

American families rely on delivery

Doorstep delivery is a critical, often overlooked part of everyday life in America. Families working long hours, elderly people, the disability community and those living in rural and remote localities depend on affordable and accessible delivery services for prescriptions and other essentials.

3

Doorstep taxes result in DOUBLE taxation on consumers

In Colorado, where doorstep taxes are in place,  some localities have imposed their sales tax on top of the new doorstep tax, resulting in double taxation for consumers.

4

Delivery powers small business growth and jobs

Doorstep delivery of food, groceries and packages supports millions of jobs in the U.S and helps to expand the customer base for businesses. Conversely, in Colorado where doorstep taxes are in place, small businesses have reported spiking compliance and accounting costs at a time when they can least afford it.

5

Extra taxes means fewer deliveries & reduced wages for workers

Delivery jobs employ a wide spectrum of Americans. Gig workers and delivery drivers earn less when consumers choose fewer deliveries.

Americans are already suffering from record inflation, supply chain shortages, and sky-high prices. The last thing working families need is new, burdensome taxes that would exacerbate these problems by levying higher costs on consumers while hurting workers.

American Families Depend on Delivery

Doorstep deliveries are an integral part of daily life for most Americans, and the delivery ecosystem is a growing and essential service for families across the U.S. The growth of doorstep delivery has provided a convenient and accessible way for consumers to receive essential items, food and various other goods, empowered small businesses and local restaurants to expand their customer bases and supported millions of jobs.

Preserving an efficient and convenient delivery economy is critical in supporting American consumers, small businesses and workers. Raising costs via doorstep delivery taxes will only increase the price of everyday items — the last thing Americans need.

What People Are Saying

"A very large percentage of my customers will be affected by this. I’m sure once they end up on the website and they see an additional fee, I will be getting phone calls on that…There’s so many hats involved in being a business owner, it’s really hard to kind of start to have to educate my customers now that we have this whole new fee and it’s just a whole extra thing. And it’s very time consuming."

"This comes at a time when wages are increasing and many businesses are still grappling with supply chain and material issue…This is the absolute worst time to be assessing these fees."

"Coloradans are living with the highest inflation in 20 years, supply-chain problems, labor shortages and a whole host of new state regulations…At a time when Coloradans’ primary concerns are affordability, inflation and the economy, leveraging costly new fees that make doing business more difficult is a bad idea."

"In Salt Lake City Wednesday afternoon, KUTV 2News didn't find many who think a retail delivery fee is a good idea. ‘No way, no way, that should not happen,’ said Scott Clark."

"The new fee is occurring at a time of record-setting inflation, spiking home prices, and a general sense of how unaffordable living in Colorado has become, particularly in metro Denver. It's also occurring even as elected officials promise to do everything in their power to lift the economic burden on residents."

"Many small business owners in Colorado Springs are not happy with the new fee, and one small business owner tells KKTV 11 News that it’s costing her more than $100,000 to implement new software and systems around the fee for all her business."

No Doorstep Tax is a project of the Chamber of Progress.

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Infrastructure Funding
Alternatives to Doorstep Taxes

Colorado is a clear outlier. No other state is seriously considering imposing delivery taxes. Below are just a few examples of how other states’ are addressing declining gas tax revenues.  

Virginia’s Mileage Choice Program

"More than 7,000 Virginians have signed up to pay a fee for each mile they drive under a program launched this summer, putting the state at the forefront of a nationwide effort using new technology to prop up gas taxes that pay for roads.”

Utah’s Road Usage Charge Program

"The road usage charge program, a voluntary pilot program that started in January 2020, allows users to pay based on miles driven using a device in their car. Users are given the option to pay 1.5 cents per mile traveled or an annual flat fee of $120 for electric vehicles or $20 for gas hybrids. Per-mile payment stops when the accumulated total for the year reaches the flat fee, so customers can pay less if they drive less.”

Oregon’s Road Usage Charge Program (OReGO)

"OReGO is a voluntary road-usage fee program that allows drivers to pay 1.8 cents per mile traveled. The project could also serve as a mechanism for collecting highway funding from electric vehicle drivers.”

Massachusetts’ Fair Share Amendment to Fund Education & Transportation

"Massachusetts voters have approved a constitutional amendment to increase the tax rate on incomes over $1 million a year in order to generate more revenue for the Commonwealth's transportation and education programs.”

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