From NPR’s Cities, Websites and Hotels at Odds Over Taxes:
Atlanta won a court case last week that will bring in more money for the city. And the same legal argument heard there — about whether the city now is simply able to collect taxes that it said it was already owed, or whether it’s imposing a new tax altogether — has taken place in courtrooms all across the country.
A seemingly technical question about taxing hotel rooms has triggered dozens of lawsuits nationwide, as well as a big-money lobbying fight in Congress.
On one side are online travel companies such as Expedia and Travelocity, which claim that cities — because of their miserable budget situation — are attempting a money grab by demanding tax payments to which they’re not entitled.