Pennsylvania takes aim at collecting use tax owed on Internet purchases

NEW CASTLE — Buyer beware. While the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue may not be saying that, the warning is implied in the department’s concerted effort to collect the use tax from state residents. This year for the first time individuals are required to enter on line 25 of their 2011 personal income tax return the amount of use tax owed to the state. Pennsylvania’s use tax — set at 6 percent — is the counterpart to the sales tax. It applies to taxable purchases made over the Internet, through toll-free numbers, from mail order catalogs and out-of–state locations. It