Retailers will have to pay online sales tax. For Georgia cities that means big bucks.

Starting next year shoppers will have to pay sales tax for all online purchases.

And for the state of Georgia and local governments, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Thursday means hundreds of millions of dollars in extra revenue pouring in annually. The court's decision says states can force companies to collect sales tax for online sales.

An estimated $300 million in new revenue each year could be split among local governments throughout the state, a Georgia Municipal Association news release said.

"As a regional destination for working, eating, entertainment, and shopping, sales tax revenue is a major part of how we operate our government and improve our community," said Chris Floore, assistant to the county manager for public affairs for Macon-Bibb County. "While we don’t know how much this will specifically mean for our sales tax revenue, we are certain it will have a positive impact on our sales tax revenue."

Forsyth Mayor Eric Wilson says the ruling is a win-win for local governments. Not only will more money from online sales come in, but also it may also lead to more people shopping at local businesses, he said.

"If sales tax was the only barrier keeping them from shopping local and then throw in you might to have pay shipping fee if you shop online, I think it's encouraging for local businesses," Wilson said. "I think it's overall a positive."

Some companies like online retail giant Amazon already pay those taxes to the state, but many others do not, said State Rep. Terry England, R-Auburn.

Georgia state officials have been pushing for more internet retailers to pay taxes in recent years.

A new law that goes into effect in January says companies that do at least $250,000 in online business or have at least 200 separate sales purchases must pay sales tax to the state.

However, before Thursday's Supreme Court decision state leaders were bracing for companies to challenge that law in court.

The state government also is expected to receive hundreds of millions of dollars through online sales tax, according to estimates from Georgia State University's Fiscal Research Center.

"It was an issue of fairness since brick-and-mortar businesses must pay property and sales taxes while online retailers were exempt," said England, who serves as chairman of the House's appropriations committee. "It automatically made the playing field unlevel for those entities that are here in the state doing business and participating in our community."

This story was originally published June 22, 2018 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Retailers will have to pay online sales tax. For Georgia cities that means big bucks.."