The Internet offers tremendous potential for everyone to gain access to information from all over the world. The number of Internet users and the number of web pages are doubling every 100 days. I use the Internet in my office and stay in contact with thousands of constituents through e-mail. Regarding the Internet, there should be one simple principle: information should not be taxed and access should not be restricted.

     Many messages I have received refer to a pending vote in Congress on legislation that would allow telephone companies or the post office to charge long-distance access fees for e-mail. I can assure you that no such bill exists, including any bill entitled "602P", and neither the phone companies nor the Postal Service have any intentions of implementing such a plan.

      To further clarify how this myth was spread, you may be interested in reading a fact sheet on the Federal Communications Commission web site, the federal agency with jurisdiction over the Internet. This document can be located at

 http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Factsheets/nominute.html. 

In simple terms, if a customer of one phone company contacts a customer of another phone company, the first company must compensate the second for completing the call. Currently, phone companies are fighting to see if Internet Service Providers, or the means by which customers are connected to the Internet, are subject to the same compensation. The myth of an Internet tax resulted from this dispute.

      You may have also heard that H.R. 1291, the 'Internet Access Charge Prohibition Act,' would permit some form of Internet taxes. Again, this is a rumor. In reality, this bill would do just the opposite -- it would prevent the FCC from instituting an access charge on Internet access. As a co-sponsor of this legislation, I am pleased that it passed the House May 16 and is awaiting Senate action. Make no mistake, this bill was a step in the right direction for an Internet free of burdensome taxes and regulations.

      I think the message is loud and clear: the Internet is an extraordinary phenomenon with unlimited potential to improve our standard of life, and the government must allow this to happen by keeping their hands off!

      With this in mind, I'm proud to tell you that the House has also passed the Internet Tax Freedom Act, legislation which has turned these principles into public law. Some of the important provisions of this law include a three-year moratorium on special taxation of the Internet (this includes state and local taxation on the monthly fee you pay to an Internet Service Provider such as American Online), a three year moratorium on electronic commerce or 'sales' taxes; the establishment of a commission to study question of remote sales, and the declaration that the Internet should be a tariff-free zone.

      This law did not pass without controversy, and there still remains considerable opposition -- mainly from local and state governments who fear the loss of tax revenue to Internet sales. It is clear to see that our country's future tax base will depend increasingly on job creation and productivity gains from technology. Even in the absence of that, there is little proof that sales-tax free Internet commerce actually does cause a dramatic loss in local tax revenue. Despite the explosion in commerce on the Internet over the past year, most states have still seen a considerable rise in sales tax revenues. In addition, the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce, created by this law, has not concluded that a Internet sales-tax would be beneficial; instead, they determined that this law has been successful in preventing any new taxes which would have otherwise interfered with the growth of the Internet.

       In light of these developments, I am proud to tell you that on May 10, the House passed, with my support, the 'Internet Nondiscrimination Act.' This bill would extend the Internet sales-tax moratorium for another five years. I believe this is vital to ensure that the Internet continues its spectacular growth which has been so important to so many New Jersey families. I am hopeful that the Senate will soon take up this legislation, so that the President may sign it into law and ensure that New Jersey consumers retain their ability to purchase items over the Internet tax-free.

      In addition, you may be interested to learn of another recent legislative victory in this area. The United Nations (UN), in a report this past summer, urged nations to impose a "bit tax," which would single out electronically delivered information for a discriminatory new tax. The amount of the "bit tax" would increase with the size of the file being transferred. Partly in response to this proposal, the House and Senate have passed H.Con.Res.190, the Global Internet Tax Freedom Act. This initiative takes the principle of the Internet Tax Freedom Act—that information should not be taxed—and extends it to the international arena. Passage of this bill was particularly important in light of the upcoming November 30 meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This bill calls on the WTO to enact a permanent moratorium on e-commerce tariffs, and calls on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which is considering the issue, to subscribe to the principle of "no multiple, discriminatory, or special taxes" on the Internet or on e-commerce. Equally important, the legislation condemns the United Nations’ "bit tax" proposal and calls for a permanent ban on such taxes. The Senate approved the Global Internet Tax Freedom Act one month later, putting Congress strongly on record as opposing such a tax..

       The UN "bit tax" proposal proves how new challenges can present themselves at any time. For this reason, we must continue be clear on our fundamental principles and monitor all relevant activity to ensure an unrestrained Internet. As always, I welcome your suggestions and input on these matters and look forward to hearing from you in the future.

      Again, let me convey to you in the strongest way possible, there is no bill currently before Congress calling for a tax on Internet access or e-mail. I look forward to hearing from you in the future on this and other issues that concern to you and your family.

                                             Sincerely,