Today, Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and the House Judiciary Committee will markup H.R. 3086, the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act (PITFA). The legislation would permanently extend the Internet Tax Freedom Act, which protects consumers from the increased costs in accessing and using the Internet and prevent multiple and discriminatory taxation of Internet sales. The current Internet Tax Freedom Act expires on November 1, 2014.
Earlier this week, Linda Campanella, a resident of Yatesville, Texas, expressed her opinion about the so-called Marketplace Fairness Act pending in Congress in an editorial published in The Dallas Post. In her editorial, Campanella explained that the concept of creating “fairness” between online and traditional brick-and-mortar retailers is really just a façade. Campanella highlighted that many traditional brick-and-mortar stores actually have several advantages over purely online retailers, including ease of returns and the ability to test the product before pu
Last week, Tod Cohen, Vice President & Deputy General Counsel of Government Relations at eBay Inc was interviewed on eBay radio. During the interview, he discussed the work the team is doing on Cross Border Trade. “We're working to ensure that markets all around the world are open and accessible, allowing people to more easily participate in the global marketplace.” Tod also highlighted how the Govt. Relations team is constantly ensuring users are protected from negative government activity around the world, which might inhibit their ability to sell cross border.
This week, Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), met with David Lahme, owner of President of TradePort USA, to discuss their concerns with the Internet sales tax legislation currently pending in Congress. TradePort USA is based in Somersworth, New Hampshire, employs 16 workers and sells used and refurbished brand-name consumer electronics at discount prices. Like many New Hampshire tech-enabled small businesses, Lahme is concerned with how his business would be impacted if Congress were to pass an Internet sales tax bill and TradePort USA becomes a tax collector for every sales tax juris
Yesterday, the Washington, D.C. based policy studies organization, The Aspen Institute, hosted a debate on the issue of Network Neutrality and preserving the open Internet. The event, “Getting Serious on the Net Neutrality Debate” featured industry and academic experts arguing both sides of the issue.