The U.S. Senate passed a bill on Monday that would subject online shoppers to state sales taxes. The 69 to 27 vote drew support from both sides of the aisle, but it is expected to face a greater challenge in the House from conservatives who view it as a tax increase. President Obama has expressed his support for the bill, which does not include businesses with less than $1 million in online sales. Current law stipulates that states can only require online retailers to collect sales tax on goods sold if the store has a physical presence in the state requiring the tax.

“That means big retailers with stores all over the country like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Target collect sales taxes when they sell goods over the Internet. But online retailers like eBay and Amazon don’t have to collect sales taxes, except in states where they have offices or distribution centers,” reports The Washington Post. “As a result, many online sales are tax-free, giving Internet retailers an advantage over brick-and-mortar stores.”

“We ought to have a structure in place in the states that treats all retail the same,” suggests Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation. “Small retailers are collecting (sales tax) on the first dollar of any sale they make, and it’s only fair that other retailers who are selling to those same customers the same product have those same obligations.”

Governors from both parties have lobbied over the years for the authority to collect taxes from online sales.

“The bill would empower states to require businesses to collect taxes for products they sell on the Internet, in catalogs and through radio and TV ads,” explains the article. “Under the legislation, the sales taxes would be sent to the state where the shopper lives.”

Proponents of the Internet tax bill say brick-and-mortar stores have turned into showrooms, where consumers compare products in person, but then make their actual purchases online to avoid sales taxes.

“Internet giant eBay is leading the fight against the bill, along with lawmakers from states with no sales tax and several prominent anti-tax groups,” notes the article. “The bill’s opponents say it would put an expensive obligation on small businesses because they are not as equipped as national merchandisers to collect and remit sales taxes at the multitude of state rates.”

“Giant retailers have a requirement to collect sales taxes nationwide because they have physical presence nationwide,” eBay president John Donahoe wrote in an online column. “Likewise, today small retail stores and online retailers collect sales taxes for the one state where they are located. That’s a fair requirement… If the bill passes, small online businesses would have the same tax compliance obligations and face the same enforcement risks as giant retailers, despite the fact that they are usually located in just one state.”