October 16, 2007 – Congressman Trent Franks (AZ-02) today voted to pass H.R. 3678, the Internet Tax Freedom Act Amendments Act of 2007, which extends the current internet tax moratorium for four additional years. The current Internet tax moratorium is scheduled to expire on November 1, 2007.

Congressman Franks stated, “The Internet is one of the last untouched vestiges of a free economic society that is left today.  In almost every other field, government has firmly established the bureaucratic theory, “if it moves, tax it, and if it stops moving, subsidize it.”  Over the last two decades, few things have ‘moved’ and grown as much as the Internet, and one of the things that has made it so revolutionary is that is everyone has equal access regardless of their economic situation.   Allowing the Internet to be taxed would only laden taxpayers with regulatory obstacles that discourage innovation and would make the Internet less-accessible to lower income families and individuals, as well as businesses and entrepreneurs. 

“Essentially this would be similar to taxing someone for simply walking through a shopping mall; and inevitably, so much of the economic growth, prosperity, and entrepreneurship that has emerged as a result of the government’s decision in the ’90’s to ensure that the Internet remained tax-free.  While I was disappointed with the Democrats’ actions in Committee when they repeatedly voted against amendments to further extend or make the internet tax moratorium permanent, the American people were served justly today by the vote to extend the moratorium by four years and preserve the unparalleled vibrancy of our free market.

“I hope my Democratic colleagues will build on this success and their free market rhetoric by ensuring that the Internet remains a non-taxable resource, long after we are all gone.”

On October 12, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee voted against three different amendments to further support a tax-free Internet, including a permanent Internet tax ban, an extension of the ban for another eight years, and an extension of an additional four years.  Currently, a strong bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives supports a permanent ban, including more than 240 Members who have co-sponsored bills that would make the Internet tax moratorium permanent.