Coalition Letter in Favor of a Permanent Internet Tax Moratorium

Dear Senators,

On behalf of the undersigned, we encourage you to pass a clean permanent extension of the Internet Tax Moratorium, and commend the House of Representatives on passage of H.R. 3086, the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act (PITFA).

Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) have introduced S. 1432, the Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act (ITFFA), which mirrors the House language. Both ITFFA and PITFA reauthorize and make permanent legislation that has been U.S. national policy since 1998. The clean Internet access tax moratorium overwhelmingly passed the House, and similarly a clean ITFFA will easily pass the Senate, and again protect unfettered access to Internet connections.

Americans would be overjoyed to see Congress agree, and pass, legislation that protects consumers from increased costs when accessing and using the Internet, and protects them from discriminatory or duplicative taxation of Internet commerce.

Taxes on communications services are already punitive and discriminatory. The average sales tax rate on voice services is 17 percent, and 12 percent on video services, while the average general sales tax rate is 7 percent. A clean ITFFA would at the very least prevent this targeted tax on Internet access.

Excessive taxes will hinder continued growth in the digital space. The FCC’s National Broadband Plan states that the largest barrier to consumer adoption and expanded use of Internet based services is cost. Allowing the Internet access tax moratorium to lapse would certainly lead to higher tax rates on consumers and thus reduce the rate of adoption and innovation. The Internet is our greatest gateway to innovation and education, higher taxes on Internet access undermines American economic competiveness and growth.

We encourage the Senate to act now to permanently extend the Moratorium on Internet Access Taxes.

Sincerely,

Grover Norquist Americans for Tax Reform

Katie McAuliffe Digital Liberty

Morgan Reed
 Executive Director
ACT | The App Association

Phil Kerpen 
President
 American Commitment

Mac Zimmerman Director of Policy Americans for Prosperity

Steve Pociask 
President
 American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research

Lisa B. Nelson
 CEO
 American Legislative Exchange Council

Diana Waterman
 Chair
 Annapolis, MD Center-Right Coalition

Chuck Muth President
 Citizen Outreach Mt. Reagan, Nevada

Eunie Smith
 President
 Eagle Forum of Alabama

Norman Singleton VP of Policy Campaign for Liberty

Brian Garst
 Director of Government Affairs Center for Freedom and Prosperity

Timothy Lee
 Senior Vice President of Legal and Public Affairs Center for Individual Freedoms

Clyde Wayne Crews Vice President for Policy Competitive Enterprise

Ryan Radia
 Associate Director of Technology Studies Competitive Enterprise

Thomas A. Schatz 
President
 Council for Citizens Against Government Waste

Wayne Brough
 Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Freedom Works

George Landrith President 
Frontiers of Freedom

William Estrada
 Director of Federal Relations
Home School Legal Defense Association

Andrew Langer President
Institute for Liberty

Seton Motley President
Less Government

Bartlett Cleland Managing Director MaderyBridge

Mike Wendy Director MediaFreedom

Brandon Arnold Executive Vice President National Taxpayers Union

Steve DelBianco Executive Director NetChoice

Scott Cleland
 Chairman Net Competition President of Precursor LLC

Christopher P. Finney, Esq. Finney Law Firm, LLC Cincinnati, Ohio

Richard Watson
 Co-Chair
 Florida Center-Right Coalition

Stephen P. Gordon President
 Forward Focus Media, LLC Atlanta, Georgia

Louie Hunter
 Director
 Georgia Center Right Coalition

William Keli’i Akina, Ph.D. President/CEO
 Grassroot Institute of Hawi’i

Darcie L. Johnston President
 Johnston Consulting, Inc. Montpelier, Vermont

Marty Connors
 M.J. Connors Consulting Government Relations Birmingham, Alabama

Jack Boyle
 Co-Founder & President Put Growth First
Ohio

Charlie Gerow
C EO 
Quantum Communications Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Mike Stenhouse
 CEO
 Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity

John Colyandro
 Executive Direction
Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute

Paul Gessing Presidenet 
Rio Grande Foundation

Lorenzo Montanari Executive Director Property Rights Alliance

Andrew Moylan
 Executive Director and Senior Fellow R Street Institute

David Williams
 President
Taxpayers Protection Alliance Campaign for Liberty

Jason Pye Editor
 United Liberty