From: Jim Choate <ravage@EINSTEIN.ssz.com>
Date: Thu, 1 Aug 1996 04:41:42 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: ****Tacoma, Washington Starts Taxing Internet Access 07/30/96 (fwd)
Message-ID: <199607311655.LAA05835@einstein>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text



Hi all,

Forwarded message:

> Date: Wed, 31 Jul 1996 11:26:59 -0400
> From: "Joseph M. Reagle Jr." <reagle@rpcp.mit.edu>
> Subject: ****Tacoma, Washington Starts Taxing Internet Access 07/30/96
>   	  				 
> >WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1996 JUL 30 (NB) -- By Bill Pietrucha.  
> >Tacoma, Washington, has just gained the distinction of being the 
> >only municipality in the United States to tax Internet Access 
> >providers (IAPs) like telephone service providers. 
> >

Somebody needs to do their homework. Austin, TX has been taxing ISP's
for at least a year now. A recent Internet Provider meeting on this
issue resulted in a return to ISP's of a goodly amound of their taxes
because of various issues (read that I didn't go to meeting, I don't run an
ISP but a SOHO consultancy w/ Internet services).

> >The city of Tacoma has extended its six percent gross receipts tax on  
> >telecommunications services to include Internet services, Information 
> >Technology Association of America (ITAA) spokesperson Bob Cohen 
> >told Newsbytes. 

I have to pay the state 8.25% interest on any funds my customers deliver
to me.

> >If other cities attempted to follow Tacoma's lead in taxing IAPs,  
> >Miler said, it could cause the "Balkanization of the Internet, a 
> >hodgepodge of confusing, conflicting, and difficult to administer 
> >Internet tax rules and regulations. 

Agreed.

                                                       Jim Choate