CCIA Opposes California Journalism Preservation Act
A California bill that would tax internet links based on search inquiries would create more problems than it would solve, said CCIA President Matt Schruers in a release Tuesday. Schruers testified on AB-866 -- called the California Journalism Preservation Act…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
-- at a California Assembly Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday. “Requiring a fee to send internet traffic from one site to another is not a sustainable business model for digital companies or news outlets,” said Schruers. “It is concerning to give whatever political party is in power the ability to decide which group should pay another as users roam online.” Last month, CCIA, NetChoice, the R Street Institute, Tech Freedom, the California Chamber of Commerce and others submitted a letter critical of the proposal. “The bill would start the Internet down a slippery slope,” said the letter. “Once California starts taxing links, there would be no end to California (and other states) taxing all kinds of links to other industries favored by legislatures.” The proposals in AB 866 would “entrench incumbent publishers and lead to greater media concentration, and could financially reward the spread of misinformation,” Schruers said Tuesday.