Washington – Massachusetts is considering a data tax that raises constitutional issues at hearing Tuesday. The Computer & Communications Industry Association submitted written comments and will testify against S. 1896, citing constitutional, feasibility, and economic concerns.
The bill would lay the groundwork for collecting taxes from services that gather online data and is unclear whether companies should count those visiting the state or track Massachusetts residents from wherever they are logging in.
CCIA has opposed legislative proposals that would impose taxes on digital services without a local presence and has a pending federal legal challenge to Maryland’s digital tax.
The following can be attributed to CCIA State Policy Director Khara Boender:
“Massachusetts should be all too familiar with the problem of taxation without representation. Courts have previously found that these types of taxes are problematic because they impose a great tax liability on digital services that participate in interstate commerce and maintain an out-of-state presence.”