George Voinovich: “I am pleased that the House passed S. 150 with the Senate changes, thereby clearing the legislation for President Bush's…”

“I am pleased that the House passed S. 150 with the Senate changes, thereby clearing the legislation for President Bush's signature. It is long overdue. This action ensures that Internet access will remain free from taxation, a policy that has existed since 1998, when, as Governor of Ohio and president of the National Governors Association, I helped negotiate the first moratorium. I rise to commend my colleagues in the House and the Senate for resolving this issue in a bipartisan manner. Just over a year ago, the Senate became engaged in a spirited debate over the future of the Internet tax moratorium. The sponsors of S. 150 argued that an expanded and permanent Internet tax moratorium was necessary to facilitate the growth of broadband Internet technologies. On the surface, this sounded like a very reasonable position. In fact, after studying this issue, I realized that not all Internet technologies were being treated equally.”