Rumor:  Bill 602p

Contrary to recent reports, there are no plans in Congress or within United States Postal Service or Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to impose consumer access charges to internet service providers or to make any changes in the way consumers obtain and pay for access to the Internet. In May of 2000, the House passed the Internet Tax Moratorium bill (H.R. 3709) by a vote of 352-75. Congresswoman DeLauro supported this bill which would have extended the moratorium on Internet taxes for five years. Unfortunately, no further action was taken on this legislation after it was referred to the Senate.

You may have heard about a rumor being circulated over e-mail that a "Congressman Schnell" has introduced "Bill 602P" to allow the federal government to impose a 5 cent surcharge on all e-mail messages sent over the Internet. The revenues would be turned over to the Postal Service. Let me assure you that this rumor is absolutely false. There is no Congressman Schnell, and bills in the House of Representative and the Senate are not named in this fashion. The Postal Service reports that they would never contemplate such legislation, nor would they support it even if it were introduced.

Other rumors about additional charges, such as long-distance charges on Internet use, are also false. While the FCC is reviewing certain payment systems between phone carriers, no long distance access charges will be added to Internet service. The FCC has already made a special exemption for Internet providers from long-distance access charges. For additional information, please visit the FCC web site