Death of the Internet: 12-1-2003 Congress Mulls Over Taxing Everything Internet Related

[Miramonti]

I'm in favor of sales tax on the internet. The state budgets need it and we are all used to paying sales tax on everything else anyways. Enjoy taxfree purchases while they lasts tho because once sales tax begins, it will never be eliminated again.

But taxing via the isp industry is absurd and will be very stifling.

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: jjsole
I'm in favor of sales tax on the internet. The state budgets need it and we are all used to paying sales tax on everything else anyways. Enjoy taxfree purchases while they lasts tho because once sales tax begins, it will never be eliminated again.

But taxing via the isp industry is absurd and will be very stifling.

I heard there is another bill in the Senate that will keep the use of the Internet Tax Free. As for taxing purchases on the Internet(sales tax), I could live with it. Being from California I was already paying sales taxes on items I purchased on line from vendors located in CA anyway.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: jjsole
I'm in favor of sales tax on the internet. The state budgets need it and we are all used to paying sales tax on everything else anyways. Enjoy taxfree purchases while they lasts tho because once sales tax begins, it will never be eliminated again.

But taxing via the isp industry is absurd and will be very stifling.

there is already sales tax levied by every state that has sales tax. the problem is the business that does the shipping doesn't have to do the collecting unless the business has a location in that state. consumers don't even know that even on interstate purchases they are supposed to be remitting sales tax to the local jurisdiction. if you don't believe me you can call up dell home's legal department, they'll tell you the exact same thing. when i was working at dell i could have been fired for saying that there wasn't any sales tax on interstate purchases.

 

[glugglug]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: dmcowen674
then there would be taxes on anything purchased anywhere and you would be charged Taxes at both the originated Stae, the destination State and all sorts of points in between.

i seriously doubt the sales tax laws would be any different from current interstate catalog sales tax laws. did you know that you are required to turn in the sales tax for things that you buy interstate that didn't already have tax collected? yup, all that crap from newegg that people buy has sales tax levied on it by their state, but newegg doesn't collect it. that is the customer's responsibility.

I collect it all.... and keep it in my wallet.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: jjsole
I'm in favor of sales tax on the internet. The state budgets need it and we are all used to paying sales tax on everything else anyways. Enjoy taxfree purchases while they lasts tho because once sales tax begins, it will never be eliminated again.

But taxing via the isp industry is absurd and will be very stifling.

Speak for yourself.

<--Lives in NH...no sales or income tax.

 

[AEB]

well some companies would tax, but im sure others would refrain to get more clients. Keep in mind as long as teh government doesnt tax the companies capitolisim will prevail

 

[dmcowen674]

The Moratorium has expired. The news this morning had local Politicians commenting how this will be a way to fill the void of slumping Sales Tax revenues since much of the Country has gone from Brick & Mortar shopping to online shopping.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/business/article/0,1406,KNS_376_2390408,00.html

Congresswoman goes on offensive over fear of e-mail tax

By RICHARD POWELSON, powelsonr@shns.com
October 31, 2003

WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., warned Thursday that
governments might start taxing every e-mail transmission if Congress does
not quickly renew a federal ban on Internet-access taxes expiring Saturday.

[...]

Blackburn's warning came in a written statement sent to newspapers for
publication as an op-ed piece, and she reiterated it in a subsequent
interview.

Blackburn said she was concerned that if Congress does not renew the ban on
Internet access taxes, local areas could tax an e-mail each time it passed
from one computer server to another. She urged the Senate to quickly pass
the House-passed ban on Internet access taxes.

"We can chuckle about (an e-mail tax) now, but we won't be laughing if
America's thousands of taxing jurisdictions actually start taxing e-mail,"
Blackburn said. "And that is exactly what could happen if we do not extend
this moratorium by Friday night."

[...]
_______________________________________________
Politech mailing list
Archived at http://www.politechbot.com/
Moderated by Declan McCullagh (http://www.mccullagh.org/)

 

[dmcowen674]

http://news.com.com/2100-1028-5101346.html

Are taxes on the way for Net access?
November 3, 2003, 11:05 AM PST
By Declan McCullagh

A federal moratorium on Internet access taxes expired over the weekend,
leaving state governments free to levy new taxes on Americans' dial-up,
wireless and broadband connections to the Net.

The U.S. Senate last week considered a proposal to broaden the ban and make
it permanent. But state officials objected, arguing the proposed
alterations to the moratorium could let voice over IP (VoIP) and telephone
services, digital cable TV, and other converging technologies go untaxed
and so cost state and local governments billions of dollars in lost revenue.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said last week that the debate on the
bill, which has 11 cosponsors, would resume no earlier than Thursday. A
representative for Frist said Monday that a date for the debate has not
been set. The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Sept. 17 for a
slightly different bill that also would make the moratorium permanent.

One highly contested phrase in the bill is stalling its progress in the
Senate. The phrase says that states may no longer tax telecommunications
services (such as those for telephones, cell phones and pagers) to the
extent that "such services are used to provide Internet access."

[...]
_______________________________________________
Politech mailing list
Archived at http://www.politechbot.com/
Moderated by Declan McCullagh (http://www.mccullagh.org/)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yesterday Georgia Legislators getting ready for the 2004 session announced they will be looking to install Internet Taxes and expect at least $800 million in Revenue in the first year alone.

 

[dmcowen674]

11-6-2003 Internet Tax Bill Debated on the Hill Today

New York Times

The Senate will debate today the highly contentious Internet Tax Non-discrimination Act of 2003 (S. 150). The debate is over whether to turn the temporary moratorium on taxes for Internet access into a permanent ban. The moratorium currently bans taxes on Internet access; "discriminatory" taxes that include multiple states taxing single-item sales; and taxes that treat Internet purchases differently than point-of-sale purchases at a store. The bill's proponents and opponents seem to agree on only one thing, the bill has nothing to do with banning sales tax on online purchases. The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA) joined sponsors and supporters of the Internet Tax Non-discrimination Act of 2003 (S. 150) in calling for its swift passage, making permanent the Internet access tax moratorium. "Since the tax moratorium has already expired, it's imperative that the Senate move forward on this legislation as soon as possible," said Steve Largent, CTIA president and CEO. The Act confirms a technology neutral definition of "Internet access," which ensures that any means consumers use to access the Internet - such as wireless, DSL, cable or wireline - shall remain tax-free, according to CTIA.

 

[dmcowen674]

12-1-2003 Net Taxes: Here Comes a Battle Royal

More than 30 states have been quietly working to simplify and streamline their sales tax laws. That's a crucial step in their plan to require e-tailers to collect sales tax on all goods they sell. For decades, mail-order and online sellers have avoided that responsibility, thanks to a series of Supreme Court rulings that barred states from forcing out-of-state retailers to collect sales taxes. The High Court blocked the practice, saying most sales-tax laws were too confusing for out-of-state sellers. But the court also said Congress could permit such collections if state sales taxes were simplified.

That will set the stage for yet another battle over e-taxes next year. And that struggle could, for the first time, take the issue beyond the narrow question of taxing monthly Internet service provider [ISP] fees. It could open the door to the much bigger controversy over taxing all e-commerce.

 

[Vadatajs]

I can see orin hatch's boner from here (michigan)