It is the law that the internet has to be a tax free zone. Since it has become the new public gathering place for people to spend their free time, they feel like they need to have the right to free access to it. But that right has a lot of limitations, some of which are even explicitly stated to be illegal. This law was passed in 2010, but it is still in effect.
As we all know, the internet is one of the most powerful platforms of information and communication that is being used by governments, governments, and other entities to influence and control the world. It is a truly valuable tool for any entity to use for their own purposes. The internet tax freedom act is just one of a number of steps that a government has to take to ensure it does not impede or abuse the right of the internet to be able to be used as a free and open internet service.
This bill just gets better and better. A few weeks ago, I wrote a very brief and very brief post explaining the internet tax freedom act. It’s a pretty simple bill. It requires that ISPs stop treating the internet as a tax for internet providers, and that the ISP’s don’t charge for use of the internet they provide. The act also requires that ISPs provide an option called “net neutrality,” a term that means different things to multiple people.
We’re actually not sure what net neutrality means. We’re going to be making some changes to the internet tax freedom act that will hopefully make that clearer. Basically, the legislation will require ISPs to offer an “unlimited” service that is just as fast as their current unlimited service. That unlimted service should not include data caps, throttling, or any other type of throttling.
The bill has been approved by the House and is currently awaiting action by the Senate. It will likely go into effect on January 1, 2015. It still has to be passed by both chambers and then signed by the President.
It’s a great idea, but there are a few things that aren’t so great about it. One of those problems is that it will probably only apply to ISPs in the US. The rest of the world, including Canada and Australia, will probably face a tax on internet use on a similar basis to the French tax on cigarettes. ISPs, however, probably won’t see much of the fine, especially since it only applies to them.
What I am talking about is a tax on international internet use. If you look at the bill, it is only applicable to the USA. So, for example, Canada could still be using the internet tax free as long as they have a valid business account.
There is a much larger problem with taxing ISPs than just the internet tax bill. ISPs have no incentive to keep the internet tax law on the books. If they don’t have to pay a tax, they don’t have to do something that benefits them, and they probably won’t do anything they are legally forced to do.
Yes, even if the internet tax is enforced, the tax is still a violation of the Constitution. This is because the internet is a public utility. And internet users are legally entitled to a reasonable amount of protection against unreasonable government interference with their use of the internet. That is, if the government feels that there is a reasonable chance that they can cause a problem with the internet, the government must not be allowed to interfere with internet use.
