It could well be more immoral and corrupt actions. Here is why the suspicion is raised :

Within the last couple of days, I read where Alabama has passed a law that eliminates sales tax on Precious metals and coins. It was among a list of several good reasons for Alabama Citizens to purchase precious metals and coins. At that point I realized that I have been paying sales tax to Ebay for sales tax exempt items!

Of Course I contacted Ebay, by phone, and spoke with a customer rep. He pleasantly told me that he was reviewing the requirements for Alabama. He then proceeded to tell me that Alabama requires sales tax on Precious metals and Coins! He says that the only way Ebay can remove the sales tax, for Alabama, is if I fill out a tax exemption form. Then it becomes even more unreasonable when I find out the form is not electronic. They want me to fill out a form, hand sign it, and mail it to them. They must think us fools or over trusting! Why in the world would they need my hand signed signature? In this day and time, and the known corruption of the Hi-Tech companies, This appears to be very suspicious behavior. 

Just right of the top of my head, I can think of a couple of scams this gives the green light to! One is the possibility that they are collecting those taxes and not passing them on to Alabama. The other could be some scam to use my signature in unethical and/or damaging ways. One is not exclusive of the other.

At this point, I think I will approach a State official and see what their take is on this subject. Before I take that step, I will contact my accountant to see what they have to say.

I am interested in any comments, you may have on this subject. Kindly leave them below.

Thank you for your time, interest, and attention!

Anthony