Proposed Arizona Law Would Make Certain Retail Software Illegal, Prevent Tax Cheats

Published: Monday, January 29, 2018 - 8:03am

A proposed state law would make it a crime to have software or equipment that can lie about a retailer's sales. SB 1386 would make it a felony to purchase, install or use the equipment with the intent of cheating the state.

If the law passes, offenders could spend 18 months in state prison and face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

Ed Greenberg is a spokesman for the state Department of Revenue. He said it’s estimated that Arizona loses $350 million every year to this kind of cheating.

"Sales suppression software is designed to enter a business's point of sale system and delete and/or modify selected sales," Greenburg said. "You may purchase a $10 item. And it's deleted. And it comes up as a $2 item that was sold."

Greenberg said the software helps drive tax evasion, reduces tax revenue collections and places more of a tax burden on law-abiding taxpayers.