The state of Florida has begun legal proceedings against the online travel companies operating in the region charging these companies with tax evasion. This latest string of lawsuits from Florida is yet another addition to the long chain of nationwide lawsuits against such travel related firms. Expedia and Orbitz, two of the most prominent names in the online travel industry have been sued by the Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, as the companies did not pay the taxes due on the hotel room reservations via their respective websites.

According to Bill McCollum,

“The customer is paying the tax already. Orbitz and Expedia are not remitting to the state all the taxes they have collected.”

The lawsuits are based on the service fee that is charged by the online travel companies from the hotels for every room that is hired using the services of their websites. The states believe that, this practice is unethical and the online travel firms are siphoning off millions of dollars in tax money.

However, according to Andrew Weinstein (Travel Services Association),

“The decision to file a lawsuit will hurt the interest of millions of travelers and tourism workers in Florida. It will make it more expensive for visitors to come to the state. The fees from traditional travel agents, tour operators and other middlemen have never been taxed. The online travel companies only connect consumers with good deals on rooms in the same way that offline travel agents or tour operators do.”

The lawsuit brought on by the state of Florida has been filed in a state Circuit Court in Tallahassee and more or less similar kinds of legal proceedings have been initiated by various states such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Atlanta. According to Alex Sink (Chief Financial Officer, Florida),

“In these tough budget times, I hope we can ensure that these companies pay what may be owed to Florida, instead of pocketing the tax our citizens have already shelled out.”

Via Associated Press.