No, I don't think it should be a requirement by the dealer. HOWEVER, I DO UNDERSTAND that the media (LSM) and AG has tried to vilify dealers who will sell anything to MA residents and thus feel the need to CYA by going above and beyond any legal requirements. As a business person myself I have pissed off some potential customers because I have refused to do certain types of work (arrests on small claims cases) or refused when the "client" gave me bad vibes about dealing with them or what they wanted me to do . . . it's my right as a business owner to do so.
MA has some very strange laws and just like Bloomturd, our AG has gone aggressively against non-MA dealers who do business with MA residents (most AGs keep their nose out of other states' business so MA is "unique" this way). She (and her predecessors) have used the media to vilify them, tried to sue them, etc. All this costs those businesses in goodwill, legal fees, etc. Self-defense is a natural reaction (except in MA) and their rules are that reaction.
According to the MA AG and DOR, we aren't supposed to be able to buy ANYTHING outside of MA!!! If you drive to RI and get sick, go to CVS and buy cough syrup, bring it back to MA, you are supposed to log that receipt and pay MA Sales Tax (difference between RI and MA Sales Tax) with your tax return. One day I accidentally found a MGL that ABSOLUTELY PROHIBITS bringing ANY liquor into MA that was purchased outside of MA. It was so incredulous that I contacted JD (one of our absent Mods) who I knew owned a package store or two . . . he confirmed this for me! So when we used to vacation in the Caribbean and bring back booze, US Customs was SUPPOSED TO confiscate it (never happened) as it was not legal for us to return home with it. Just an example of how far-reaching MA is into our lives.
I did have a lengthy discussion with Jim McLoud two months ago when I stopped at Shooters Outpost for the first time and we discussed this issue. I understand AND respect his position on this matter. And if you think that the media-released fact that the Boston Bombers practiced at MFL "helped" his business, think again!
