A last-minute bill provides a one-year moratorium on collecting sales tax on internet transactions with California-based consumers. AB 155, which was signed by the Governor today, delays implementation of ABX1 28 (Ch. 11-7), the “Amazon” law, for one year.

This new bill, the result of a deal between Amazon.com and some California lawmakers, allows the online retailer to wait until at least September 2012 to collect sales tax from its California customers. As a result, Amazon has backed off of its efforts to get a referendum to overturn the law on the June 2012 ballot.

Neither of these bills relieves California sellers of their responsibility to collect and remit sales tax on taxable sales shipped to California addresses. If a California seller sells a taxable item on Amazon.com, for example, and ships it to a California address, the item is subject to sales tax.