In a move that pleased the Conference and the National Association of Counties, Senate Majority Leader Trent (MS) Lott announced on April 27, the appointment of Washington County (OR) Commissioner Delna Jones to the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce. Jones replaces James Barksdale, former chief executive officer of Netscape, who agreed to step down to facilitate a balance on the commission between private sector and state and local representatives.

In a press release, Senator Lott said "her appointment as a county official not only ensures a public-private sector balance, but also means that each layer of government is now represented." He also pointed out that she is from a non-sales tax state, which means that all state approaches to income and sales tax revenue are now represented on the commission.

Both the Conference and NACo welcomed Lott's decision to add a second local official to the panel and decided to drop a pending lawsuit which was filed on March 8 to prevent the commission from meeting or taking any action until the imbalance was corrected. Reacting to the news, Dallas Mayor Ronald Kirk said "I am delighted another local elected official will be joining me on the commission. He also said "I look forward to working with Commissioner Jones and all of the members of the commission as we search for ways to improve electronic commerce."

Commissioner Jones has extensive experience in both the private and public sectors. Before being elected to the Washington County Board of Commissioners, she was elected to the state legislature six times and held a number of leadership positions including chair of the House Revenue and School Finance Committee. She also spent almost 30 years with U.S. West Communications, where she held various management positions, including director of economic development. NACo president and Wake County (N.C.) Commissioner Betty Lou Ward called the appointment "a solid victory for counties and local government."

The Conference and NACo filed the lawsuit last March after congressional leaders failed to comply with the Internet Tax Freedom Act in appointing members to the commission. Under the law, congressional leaders were supposed to appoint three federal and an equal number (8) of representatives from the private sector and state and local governments. Instead, they appointed 10 business and only 6 state and local officials. After the Conference and other state and local groups complained, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (S.D.) removed one of his business appointees and replaced him with a state official earlier this year. This still left the panel with a 9-7 imbalance. When no further action was taken, the Conference and NACo decided at their winter meetings to file legal action to block the commission from meeting or taking any action until its members are appointed in compliance with the law.

After the lawsuit was filed, Virginia Governor James Gilmore, who has been designated chair of the commission, sent a letter inviting members to the panel's first meeting on June 21. In an April 13 letter to the Majority Leader, the Conference and NACo expressed concern that the commission was planning to meet before it was legally constituted with the appropriate members. Lott was urged to correct the imbalance by appointing at least one local official to the panel. The groups also notified Lott of their intention to go back into federal court to file legal action to block the commission from holding its first meeting unless the imbalance was corrected.

Not wishing to delay the work of the commission any longer, Lott said "6the issues surrounding the Internet are too important to let the commission's business be delayed any longer6" Lott's action clears the way for the commission to begin meeting to examine state and local sales taxes and whether or not they should be applied to electronic commerce.

Commenting on the importance of the Internet and the commission's work, He said "in a single day, as many as 37 million Americans access the Internet. Public policy must evolve to deal with the new marketplace, and this commission's findings will be a key factor." He also commented that "Governor Jim Gilmore's leadership and aggressive technology agenda make him an impressive chairman for the commission. I know he will deliver a fair, balanced, timely report."

The commission is expected to hold a number of public hearings and has until April of 2000 to complete its work. Knoxville Mayor and former Conference president Victor Ashe who urged the Conference to file the lawsuit, said "I am pleased about the decision and I look forward to the opportunity to share my views with the commission on this critical topic."