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Walmart Applauds Governor Pat Quinn

Illinois Main Street Fairness Will Level the Field for All Retailers

SPRINGFIELD, Ill., March 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Walmart praises Illinois Governor Pat Quinn today for signing into law H.B. 3659 known as the Main Street Fairness Act. The Main Street Fairness Act will help create a level playing field between online-only retailers and brick and mortar retailers.

"Gov. Quinn has once again demonstrated he is willing to do what is right for Illinois and its businesses," said Julie Murphy , Senior Vice President of Operations for Walmart. "During these economic times, it is vital for the state of Illinois to collect the millions of dollars of unpaid sales tax while allowing it to level the playing field for brick and mortar businesses who support our local Illinois communities."

Earlier this week, Walmart issued an open invitation to any potentially displaced Illinois online business to explore the opportunity to join Walmart.com's Affiliate Network.

Walmart is committed to supporting the affiliate programs which help to drive Walmart.com's online business. It currently partners with more than 45 Illinois based affiliates representing millions of dollars in revenue. Walmart will continue to collect and remit all sales taxes due on all Walmart.com sales to alleviate all regulatory burdens from its customers. Any affiliate interested in working with Walmart.com should visit www.affiliates.walmart.com.

About Walmart

Walmart (NYSE: WMT) serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at more than 8,400 retail units under 55 different banners in 15 countries. With fiscal year 2010 sales of $405 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. A leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity, Walmart ranked first among retailers in Fortune magazine's 2010 Most Admired Companies survey. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting www.walmartstores.com. Online merchandise sales are available at www.walmart.com and www.samsclub.com.

SOURCE Walmart