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State Legislatures To Focus On Internet Regulation

Tax-news.com

10 January 2000

US state legislators will consider a flurry of internet bills as they examine their role in the regulation of the internet in the upcoming new legislative sessions. The Internet Alliance, a Washington based trade group, predicts that there will be more than 2,000 Internet-related bills considered this year as states try to make their mark on a range of internet policy debates ahead of the slower moving US congress.

The main issues that the states are likely to legislate on are internet privacy, internet content, sales and access taxes, spam (unsolicited commercial email) and electronic contracts and signatures. With the exception of spam and electronic signature laws, most industry groups are pushing for self regulation rather than the hasty introduction of poorly conceived laws.

While lawmakers' understanding of the internet and the new challenges brings has improved, Jeff Richards, executive director of the Internet Alliance, says he still expects to see a number of bad laws made at state level this year.

With regard to internet taxes, most states will focus their efforts on protecting their sales tax revenue base and look at ways to apply existing cross border sales tax laws to internet purchases, as Michigan recently did by including a question in the state's tax return form asking residents to estimate the value of their out of state online purchases.

Unless the US congress acts soon to extend the current moratorium on new internet access and sales taxes, many states may also try to cover gaps in their existing laws (which were primarily designed for mail order purchases) by passing legislation that will take effect when the current ban expires next year.

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