What's at stake for business is the new burdens they are going to confront once they have instant access to a national market. Gilmore, who serves as commission chairman, also uses e-commerce's impact on the economy to bolster his argument against Internet taxation. Without a two-thirds consensus, the commission cannot pass along a unified recommendation to Congress. If it lacks a majority come April 2000, the group is likely to lay all of the issues before Congress, which is expected to be fairly active on the Internet tax issue next year. A final meeting of the commission is scheduled for March in Dallas.
States are now on notice that the tax systems are too complex.
What's best for business is fairness. Jennifer Jones is a senior editor covering telecommunications and Internet issues.