States Respond to the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce By Deidra Darsa The Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce was created by The Internet Tax Freedom Act of October 1998 to consider issues associated with the taxation of retail sales on the Internet. After a contentious meeting in March 2000, the Commission, despite falling short of the two-thirds majority required for a formal recommendation, issued a report that favored extending the moratorium on new Internet access taxes for five years and exempting sales taxes on digital products such as books and music, and repealing the telephone excise tax, among others. The States Respond: "...no matter what form legislation ultimately takes, it must have as a central goal the creation and preservation of a level playing field. It would simply be unfair to establish a system where one state or one region or one industry has a special advantage." Gov. Frank Keating, OK "I … urge support for a fair and equitable system to ensure... a level playing field and to ensure that all Americans can join us in supporting the Internet as a part of our new economy, and to urge you to reject the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce (ACEC) report." Gov. Gary E. Johnson, NM "I do not know of a single Republican governor who wants to raise taxes. At the same time, I agree with Governor Leavitt (UT) and others who oppose any of the commission's finding that would allow Congress to infringe on a state's sovereignty or mandate tax exemptions for certain goods." Gov. Edward T. Schafer, ND "...I believe the [ACEC] proposal represents an attempt by the federal government to take control of fiscal policy away from the states, and I strongly urge you to reject the report." Gov. Don Siegelman, AL "My concerns with the report include their preemption of the state role, albeit for allegedly a period of five years, during which time the Caucus recommends that Congress pass laws preempting stage sovereignty." Gov. Tom Ridge, PA