SICPA Awarded 10-year Contract to Provide Tax Solution for Alcohol Products in Oregon

SICPA announced that it has been awarded a new, 10-year contract to implement its SICPA Excise Tax System (SETS) to provide a secure, online platform for the payment, collection, and tracking of Oregon’s alcohol privilege taxes, also known as excise taxes.

In 2017, Oregon’s alcoholic beverage industry worked with Oregon legislators to passed legislation directing the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) to “allow manufacturers or importing distributors of wine, cider or malt beverages to file required statements and pay privilege taxes by electronic means.” 

By partnering with SICPA, the OLCC gains access to a system that was specifically designed to deliver efficiencies for both industry and the OLCC though integrated, online, role-based software to support the unique needs of excise tax administration.

Through SETS, beer, wine and cider taxpayers in Oregon will be able to leverage multiple mechanisms to provide OLCC with tax information and submit payments via online web-based entry, XML web services and EDI file uploads. 

In addition, industry licensees will be alerted in real-time to errors in tax filings or any outstanding issues that require resolution. 

For tax administrators, SETS will provide increased transparency and accuracy in the collection of tax information and payments, offer streamlined integration with other state legacy systems (including Oregon State Treasury payment and financial systems), and meet extensive state security requirements. 

OLCC will begin phasing customers into the new Privilege Tax system as early as summer 2020. 

“The OLCC is committed to delivering value to its industry partners through modern technology solutions while safeguarding revenue growth that supports public services like health, police, and education,” OLCC Executive Director Steve Marks said. “We are pleased to have SICPA as our partner in this effort to modernize and streamline privilege tax collection for our industry customers.”

“’State budgets are stretched now more than ever, and SICPA is pleased to enter into this strategic partnership with the OLCC to optimize their alcohol privilege tax collections,” added Jane Lute, CEO of SICPA North America. “Through SETS, Oregon’s beer, wine and cider taxpayers will have an intuitive and secure online platform to submit tax information and payments, and the OLCC will benefit from significant efficiency gains and risk reduction to increase the timeliness and accuracy of tax collections for the state.” 

Along with the SETS solution infrastructure, SICPA brings extensive experience to its partnership with the OLCC. SICPA currently supports the accurate, timely, and efficient administration and collection of excise taxes for more than 20 national governments, 45 U.S. states, and well over 160 local jurisdictions. 

Along with the OLCC, the Oregon Department of Revenue (DOR) contracts with SICPA to support the collection of cigarette excise taxes through the provision of tax stamps and an online secure stamp ordering and payment platform used by Oregon wholesaler-distributors.