In some states, covering the last mile has gotten harder for package and express carriers.

At issue is the application of state and local laws to online purchases. As more consumers buy goods over the Internet, package and express carriers are increasingly finding themselves dragged into the controversy over whether online sales violate those laws.

For instance, a patchwork of state regulations is making the delivery of alcohol and tobacco products bought online more onerous for carriers. Citing safety concerns, a few states are now requiring delivery companies to verify the ages of cigarette recipients to ensure that those purchasers are not minors. The state of Maine went a little further and enacted a law that fines online retailers for using a delivery service that fails to verify the buyer's age. "If they are under the age of 27, they must show a valid government-issued photo ID," explains UPS spokesperson Susan Rosenberg. "That puts an operational requirement on us to do age verification."

Besides cigarettes, states have also tried to restrict online alcohol purchases. Rosenberg notes that only 11 states permit interstate wine shipments while another 16 allow intrastate shipping of such products.

Finally, there's the thorny issue of taxes. Revenue-hungry states are eyeing Internet sales as a potential windfall. The Massachusetts Department of Revenue (DOR), for example, recently dunned more than 2,000 residents who bought cigarettes online to avoid the state's high tobacco tax. Although DOR obtained most of the buyers' names from the Web merchants, it also issued summonses to carriers asking for the consignees' names. DOR spokesman Tim Connelly said that by law, he may not disclose the recipients of an administrative summons, but he did confirm that the DOR had sent them to transportation companies.

The Boston Globe, meanwhile, reported that UPS had supplied some of the names, but Rosenberg would not confirm that. "We have a priority on safeguarding customer information, but we will comply with the law," she said.

Massachusetts' aggressive efforts to nab folks who avoid excise taxes represents a troubling development. Other states could follow the Bay State's lead and crack down on unpaid taxes, not only for the online sale of cigarettes, but also for other goods such as books and CDs. Only four years ago, for example, then-South Dakota Gov. William Janklow made headlines when he threatened to use state cops to pull over delivery trucks in an effort to track down tax evaders who bought goods online.

As cash-strapped states look for ways to boost revenue, this situation will only become more nettlesome. Many state officials are pressing Congress to set up a nationwide compact to collect online sales taxes—a move that may violate the constitutional prohibition against states interfering in interstate commerce.

If we want to preserve e-commerce and ensure smooth supply chains, then Congress needs to take the opposite approach: a ban on collecting state taxes on goods bought over the Internet. Otherwise, e-commerce will surely suffer and carriers and distribution managers will be pressed into service as tax collectors.

James Aaron Cooke, Executive Editor