Defining Government's Role in Internet Electronic Commerce p reface By Executive Order, Governor Pete Wilson created the Electronic Commerce Advisory Council. He asked us, representatives of the private sector, to serve on the Council and provide our opinions. We are not as concerned about unintended consequences which may be inescapable for both government and business as we are about government's innate inability to quickly repeal the laws and regulations that produce them. While businesses wait, market opportunities disappear, along with jobs, current and potential.
Government does have a critical role to play in the e-commerce marketplace a limited role.
Limited not by opposition of the private sector, but by a sober assessment of what government is capable of doing effectively. Foremost, that assessment must take into account that e-commerce includes business being done across borders the very borders at which a government's powers stop. Frankly, we don't want a government so agile that it can change its approach overnight, but we do want consumer markets that can and so do consumers. The key is for everyone to keep in mind government's plodding nature when officials are crafting laws and regulations. We are not as concerned about unintended consequences which may be inescapable for both government and business as we are about government's innate inability to quickly repeal the laws and regulations that produce them.