On November 1 of this year the tax moratorium on the Internet is set to expire. If not renewed, Internet users could expect to see Internet rates rise as additional taxes could be applied.

There is currently legislation in both the House and Senate to expand the moratorium for several more years, although some lawmakers would like to see a permanent ban on taxing the Internet. Here is the legislation currently in Congress:

H.R. 743 - The Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act of 2007, sponsored by Representative Anna G. Eshoo (R-Calif.) would make the Internet tax ban permanent. H.R. 743 carries 238 cosponsors, making its passage in the House very likely if and when it comes up for a floor vote.

H.R. 3678 - Introduced by Representative John Conyers (D-Mich.), this bill would amend the Internet Tax Freedom Act to expand the tax moratorium on the Internet and other electronic commerce until November 1, 2007. Floor consideration and debate on H.R. 3678 is scheduled for Tuesday, October 16.

S. 1453 - Like H.R. 3678, this bill, sponsored by Senator Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.), would amend the Internet Tax Freedom Act to extend the tax moratorium on the Internet and other forms of electronic commerce until November 1, 2011.

S. 2128 - This bill, sponsored by Senator John Sununu (R-NH), would make the moratorium on Internet access taxes and "multiple and discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce" permanent. The Senate may vote on this bill in the coming days.

A ban on Internet taxes was first enacted in 1994. Congress has since enacted that moratorium twice, once in 2001 and then again in 2004. If this moratorium is allowed to expire, new taxes on the Internet and other forms of e-commerce would raise the cost of what has traditionally been an inexpensive source of information to a potentially much higher amount. Some lawmakers argue the cost for the Internet would rise by about 20 percent if the moratorium is not extended or made permanent.

Representative Jim Walsh (R-NY) has recently called on Congress to make the tax moratorium permanent. In support of H.R. 743, Rep. Walsh said:

The Internet is growing in importance as a resource for businesses and consumers today…In the last twenty years, it has revolutionized the way we communicate, the way our children learn, and the way we conduct business. Taxing Internet access will have a detrimental impact upon our economy and our quality of life, and Congressional leadership should quickly put forward a bill that permanently bans this detrimental tax.