eBay and Etsy CEOs Call for Lawmakers to Act on Small-Business Issues

As the year wound down, the CEOs of eBay and Etsy called on US lawmakers to take action to help small-business owners who sell on their respective platforms, but each executive had his own priority.

For eBay CEO Jamie Iannone, it was concern over new tax-reporting requirements that will take effect when sellers file their income taxes in April for sales revenue received in 2022.

For the first time, sales by many casual sellers will trigger a notification to the IRS – called a Form 1099-K – due to a lower reporting threshold, Iannone said in a commentary published in Fortune.

Iannone said that as the CEO of eBay, he had supported the American Rescue Plan, but he said a last-minute provision lowering the 1099-K reporting threshold from $20,000 in annual payments (and 200 transactions) to just $600 did the opposite of the legislation’s intended goals. He said it would cause confusion, increased cost, and tax overreporting “for those Americans who need the extra income the most.”

Iannone said online marketplaces play a critical role by providing an “economic parachute” that help millions of people pay for critical everyday needs such as food, medicine, and utility bills.

eBay’s CEO pointed to other impacts the lower reporting threshold would have, claiming more items could end up in landfills, thrown away by people daunted by the possibility of a complicated tax form. And, he said, budget-conscious consumers could be impacted due to fewer used items being available for sale on marketplaces like eBay.

Meanwhile, Etsy CEO Josh Silverman made a trip to Washington DC in early December to advocate for government-supported child care and family leave that don’t rely on employer benefits, according to Axios.

“Etsy is pushing for better federal protections for people who make a living running businesses online, highlighting their lack of benefits compared to employees of traditional jobs who often receive paid leave and full health coverage,” according to the news report.

We reached out to Etsy to learn more about CEO Silverman’s recent lobbying on sellers’ behalf and have yet to receive a response.

For sellers seeking more information about Form 1099-K, eBay posted a link on December 20 to a help page on the website of a tax service called TaxAct titled, “Unique eBay Seller Scenarios and How to Determine Fair Market Value.”

Ina Steiner

Ina Steiner is co-founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and has been reporting on ecommerce since 1999. She's a widely cited authority on marketplace selling and is author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). Her blog was featured in the book, "Blogging Heroes" (Wiley 2008). She is a member of the Online News Association (Sep 2005 - present) and Investigative Reporters and Editors (Mar 2006 - present). Follow her on Twitter at @ecommercebytes and send news tips to ina@ecommercebytes.com. See disclosure at EcommerceBytes.com/disclosure/.