Bill 602P lives? Politician warns states may tax email messages

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

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."

[...]
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