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Release Public to Federal e-Commerce Commission: No Net Taxes! Released by Chad Cowan on 11/10/99 of e-Freedom Coalition |
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RELEASE: Nov. 10, 1999 CONTACT: Chad Cowan (202) 785-0266 Public comments to federal Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce run 27-to-1 against Net taxes WASHINGTON - Citing official statistics provided by the federal Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce, the e-Freedom Coalition today reported that public comments to the Commission are running overwhelmingly against new schemes to tax the Internet. According to a Nov. 3 memo from Commission Executive Director Heather Rosenker to members of the Commission, 770 of the 832 public comments received as of Nov. 3 indicated opposition to imposing new tax collection schemes in cyberspace. Only 28 comments have supported Internet taxation, 4 of which came from state and local politicians. One Internet user from Skidmore, Texas told the Commission, "I oppose any tax on Internet access. That is how I communicate with other school nurses and educators and keep abreast of the changes I need to know about in school health." "Americans are taking the opportunity to make their voices heard," said Grover Norquist, a member of the Commission and President of Americans for Tax Reform. "Their message is clear: taxing the Internet and online commerce is a bad idea." The e-Freedom coalition, a group formed to fight new tax collection schemes online, proposes tearing down many of the barriers that inflate the price of going online. The group supports eliminating the 101-year old federal 3% excise tax on telephone service, and permanently banning special taxes on Internet access. The group also is proposing making permanent the current, temporary federal ban on special taxes specifically applied to online purchases, and prohibiting governments from erecting "Internet tolls" by charging tens of thousands of dollars in fees to telecommunications companies that install cable along state highways, discouraging investment in the Internet backbone. For more information, or to arrange an interview with an expert from one of the coalition groups, contact Chad Cowan at 202-785-0266, or go to www.e-freedom.org to see the Coalition's proposal. ### | |
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