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The full-time engineer says that in his spare hours he buys up discounted items such as downhill skis “that people don’t really need” in the Midwest - “where it is pretty flat” - and sells them online to people in places “where there are more hills”.

What makes Ben stand out is that – unlike many eBay users – he will in April voluntarily declare this income to the Internal Revenue Service and pay US business tax rates.

Kristine McKinley, his accountant, says this is the first year that clients have come forward to her main street practice because they “are making enough from eBay that they are concerned about whether or not they need to pay tax”.

People’s caution in coming forward has prompted the Bush administration to propose compelling eBay and auction businesses such as Sotheby’s to report to the IRS any customer that carries out more than 100 transactions a year worth at least $5,000 (€3,850, £2,565).

The Treasury expects to collect $2bn in extra taxes from the new regime, due to come into force on January 1 2008.

But eBay is fiercely resisting the proposal and has mobilised its extensive lobbying operation on Capitol Hill to question the legality of the proposed changes.

Representative Rick Boucher, who has received campaign donations from eBay, said he had been contacted by the company and shares its view that the Treasury and IRS would be stretching the limits of their authority by extending rules that cover “brokers” to the website.

The online auction group argues it is not a “broker”, or a “middle man” or an “auctioneer” or an “auction house”. So what is it then? It offers an “auction-style” service but is more “like a shopping mall,” a spokesperson says.

In turn, the company argues that the Treasury’s plan would be unfair because it regulates in such a way that exempts competitors like Craigslist that have different business models based on plain classified ads without the auction or payment tools of eBay.

EBay says forcing it - and not Craigslist - to snitch on customers would be the equivalent of requiring indoor shopping malls to report tenants’ behaviour but not open-air strip malls.

“Business owners would relocate to the strip mall,” says a spokesperson.

But it is precisely eBay’s solid business structures and overarching customer service that has helped attract the unwelcome attentions of the overworked and cash-strapped taxman.

Ebay already tracks the volume and value of its customers’ transactions, notifying them when they reach key milestones and soliciting them with customised services.

The Treasury proposal would open the way for the financially stretched IRS to piggyback on the company’s systems by requiring eBay to report to authorities when customers hit milestones.

The company says it will cooperate with the IRS in investigating named individuals and entities, but does not want to act as a “go between” for customers “en masse”.

It wants tax collectors to rely on their own wiles and defends the hands off approach to tax that is apparent from interviews with eBay users.

Elena Neitlich, who runs a highly successful online store from home called Moms on Edge, says eBay appointed a special adviser to coach her almost daily on every nuance of her auctions from catering to different timezones to the optimal names for potty training toys.

But the award-winning eBay seller says she cannot recall ever being reminded of her tax liabilities.

“I don’t remember anyone saying to me that now we needed to go through the tax issues. No, that didn’t happen,” she says.

The eBay spokesperson says: “We believe that it is the seller’s responsibility.”

Ben – who asked that his last name be withheld because he runs a blog that details a lot of personal finance information.

“What I do is just like any other small business, so I should pay tax,” he says.