47 U.S.C. § 151 — Purposes of chapter; Federal Communica-

Page 12 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 151 Sec. 561. Scrambling of sexually explicit adult video service programming. 562. Requirements relating to charges for covered services. PART V—VIDEO PROGRAMMING SERVICES PROVIDED BY TELEPHONE COMPANIES 571. Regulatory treatment of video programming services. 572. Prohibition on buy outs. 573. Establishment of open video systems. SUBCHAPTER VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 601. Interstate Commerce Commission and Post- master General; duties, powers, and func- tions transferred to Commission. 602, 603. Repealed. 604. Effect of transfer. 605. Unauthorized publication or use of commu- nications. 606. War powers of President. 607. Effective date of chapter. 608. Separability. 609. Short title. 610. Telephone service for disabled. 611. Closed-captioning of public service announce- ments. 612. Syndicated exclusivity. 613. Video programming accessibility. 614. Telecommunications Development Fund. 615. Support for universal emergency telephone number. 615a. Service provider parity of protection. 615a–1. Duty to provide 9–1–1 and enhanced 9–1–1 serv- ice. 615b. Definitions. 615c. Emergency Access Advisory Committee. 616. Internet protocol-based relay services. 617. Access to advanced communications services and equipment. 618. Enforcement and recordkeeping obligations. 619. Internet browsers built into telephones used with public mobile services. 620. Relay services for deaf-blind individuals. 621. Rulemaking on loud commercials required. 622. Optional electronic labeling of communica- tions equipment. 623. Configuration of multi-line telephone sys- tems for direct dialing of 9–1–1. 624. Disclosure requirements for United States- based foreign media outlets. SUBCHAPTER VII—BROADBAND DATA 641. Definitions. 642. Broadband maps. 643. Enforcement. 644. Improving data accuracy. 645. Cost. 646. Other provisions. SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL PROVISIONS § 151. Purposes of chapter; Federal Communica- tions Commission created For the purpose of regulating interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire and radio so as to make available, so far as pos- sible, to all the people of the United States, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex, a rapid, efficient, Nation-wide, and world-wide wire and radio communication service with adequate fa- cilities at reasonable charges, for the purpose of the national defense, for the purpose of pro- moting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communications, and for the purpose of securing a more effective execu- tion of this policy by centralizing authority heretofore granted by law to several agencies and by granting additional authority with re- spect to interstate and foreign commerce in wire and radio communication, there is created a commission to be known as the ‘‘Federal Com- munications Commission’’, which shall be con- stituted as hereinafter provided, and which shall execute and enforce the provisions of this chap- ter. (June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title I, § 1, 48 Stat. 1064; May 20, 1937, ch. 229, § 1, 50 Stat. 189; Pub. L. 104–104, title I, § 104, Feb. 8, 1996, 110 Stat. 86.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in text, was in the original ‘‘this Act’’, meaning act June 19, 1934, ch. 652, 48 Stat. 1064, known as the Communications Act of 1934, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 609 of this title and Tables. AMENDMENTS 1996—Pub. L. 104–104 inserted ‘‘, without discrimina- tion on the basis of race, color, religion, national ori- gin, or sex,’’ after ‘‘to all the people of the United States’’. 1937—Act May 20, 1937, inserted ‘‘for the purpose of promoting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communication’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EXTENSION OF INTERNET TAX FREEDOM ACT Pub. L. 114–113, div. E, title VI, § 633, Dec. 18, 2015, 129 Stat. 2471, provided that: ‘‘Sections 1101(a) and 1104(a)(2)(A) of the Internet Tax Freedom Act (title XI of division C of Public Law 105–277; 47 U.S.C. 151 note) shall be applied by substituting ‘October 1, 2016’ for ‘Oc- tober 1, 2015’.’’ MORATORIUM ON INTERNET TAXES Pub. L. 105–277, div. C, title XI, Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681–719, as amended by Pub. L. 107–75, § 2, Nov. 28, 2001, 115 Stat. 703; Pub. L. 108–435, §§ 2–6A, Dec. 3, 2004, 118 Stat. 2615–2618; Pub. L. 110–108, §§ 2–6, Oct. 31, 2007, 121 Stat. 1024–1026; Pub. L. 113–235, div. E, title VI, § 624, Dec. 16, 2014, 128 Stat. 2377; Pub. L. 114–125, title IX, § 922, Feb. 24, 2016, 130 Stat. 281, provided that: ‘‘SEC. 1100. SHORT TITLE. ‘‘This title may be cited as the ‘Internet Tax Free- dom Act’. ‘‘SEC. 1101. MORATORIUM. ‘‘(a) MORATORIUM.—No State or political subdivision thereof may impose any of the following taxes: ‘‘(1) Taxes on Internet access. ‘‘(2) Multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. ‘‘(b) PRESERVATION OF STATE AND LOCAL TAXING AU- THORITY.—Except as provided in this section, nothing in this title shall be construed to modify, impair, or su- persede, or authorize the modification, impairment, or superseding of, any State or local law pertaining to taxation that is otherwise permissible by or under the Constitution of the United States or other Federal law and in effect on the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998]. ‘‘(c) LIABILITIES AND PENDING CASES.—Nothing in this title affects liability for taxes accrued and enforced be- fore the date of enactment of this Act, nor does this title affect ongoing litigation relating to such taxes. ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION TO MORATORIUM.— Page 13 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 151 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall also not apply in the case of any person or entity who know- ingly and with knowledge of the character of the ma- terial, in interstate or foreign commerce by means of the World Wide Web, makes any communication for commercial purposes that is available to any minor and that includes any material that is harmful to mi- nors unless such person or entity has restricted ac- cess by minors to material that is harmful to mi- nors— ‘‘(A) by requiring use of a credit card, debit ac- count, adult access code, or adult personal identi- fication number; ‘‘(B) by accepting a digital certificate that verifies age; or ‘‘(C) by any other reasonable measures that are feasible under available technology. ‘‘(2) SCOPE OF EXCEPTION.—For purposes of para- graph (1), a person shall not be considered to [be] making a communication for commercial purposes of material to the extent that the person is— ‘‘(A) a telecommunications carrier engaged in the provision of a telecommunications service; ‘‘(B) a person engaged in the business of providing an Internet access service; ‘‘(C) a person engaged in the business of providing an Internet information location tool; or ‘‘(D) similarly engaged in the transmission, stor- age, retrieval, hosting, formatting, or translation (or any combination thereof) of a communication made by another person, without selection or alter- ation of the communication. ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: ‘‘(A) BY MEANS OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB.—The term ‘by means of the World Wide Web’ means by placement of material in a computer server-based file archive so that it is publicly accessible, over the Internet, using hypertext transfer protocol, file transfer protocol, or other similar protocols. ‘‘(B) COMMERCIAL PURPOSES; ENGAGED IN THE BUSI- NESS.— ‘‘(i) COMMERCIAL PURPOSES.—A person shall be considered to make a communication for com- mercial purposes only if such person is engaged in the business of making such communications. ‘‘(ii) ENGAGED IN THE BUSINESS.—The term ‘en- gaged in the business’ means that the person who makes a communication, or offers to make a communication, by means of the World Wide Web, that includes any material that is harmful to mi- nors, devotes time, attention, or labor to such ac- tivities, as a regular course of such person’s trade or business, with the objective of earning a profit as a result of such activities (although it is not necessary that the person make a profit or that the making or offering to make such communica- tions be the person’s sole or principal business or source of income). A person may be considered to be engaged in the business of making, by means of the World Wide Web, communications for com- mercial purposes that include material that is harmful to minors, only if the person knowingly causes the material that is harmful to minors to be posted on the World Wide Web or knowingly solicits such material to be posted on the World Wide Web. ‘‘(C) INTERNET.—The term ‘Internet’ means col- lectively the myriad of computer and telecommuni- cations facilities, including equipment and oper- ating software, which comprise the interconnected world-wide network of networks that employ the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or any predecessor or successor protocols to such protocol, to communicate information of all kinds by wire or radio. ‘‘(D) INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE.—The term ‘Inter- net access service’ means a service that enables users to access content, information, electronic mail, or other services offered over the Internet and may also include access to proprietary content, in- formation, and other services as part of a package of services offered to consumers. The term ‘Internet access service’ does not include telecommuni- cations services, except to the extent such services are purchased, used, or sold by a provider of Inter- net access to provide Internet access. ‘‘(E) INTERNET INFORMATION LOCATION TOOL.—The term ‘Internet information location tool’ means a service that refers or links users to an online loca- tion on the World Wide Web. Such term includes di- rectories, indices, references, pointers, and hyper- text links. ‘‘(F) MATERIAL THAT IS HARMFUL TO MINORS.—The term ‘material that is harmful to minors’ means any communication, picture, image, graphic image file, article, recording, writing, or other matter of any kind that is obscene or that— ‘‘(i) the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find, taking the ma- terial as a whole and with respect to minors, is designed to appeal to, or is designed to pander to, the prurient interest; ‘‘(ii) depicts, describes, or represents, in a man- ner patently offensive with respect to minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, an actual or simulated normal or perverted sex- ual act, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals or post-pubescent female breast; and ‘‘(iii) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors. ‘‘(G) MINOR.—The term ‘minor’ means any person under 17 years of age. ‘‘(H) TELECOMMUNICATIONS CARRIER; TELECOMMUNI- CATIONS SERVICE.—The terms ‘telecommunications carrier’ and ‘telecommunications service’ have the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Com- munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153). ‘‘(e) ADDITIONAL EXCEPTION TO MORATORIUM.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall also not apply with respect to an Internet access provider, un- less, at the time of entering into an agreement with a customer for the provision of Internet access serv- ices, such provider offers such customer (either for a fee or at no charge) screening software that is de- signed to permit the customer to limit access to ma- terial on the Internet that is harmful to minors. ‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: ‘‘(A) INTERNET ACCESS PROVIDER.—The term ‘Internet access provider’ means a person engaged in the business of providing a computer and com- munications facility through which a customer may obtain access to the Internet, but does not in- clude a common carrier to the extent that it pro- vides only telecommunications services. ‘‘(B) INTERNET ACCESS SERVICES.—The term ‘Inter- net access services’ means the provision of com- puter and communications services through which a customer using a computer and a modem or other communications device may obtain access to the Internet, but does not include telecommunications services provided by a common carrier. ‘‘(C) SCREENING SOFTWARE.—The term ‘screening software’ means software that is designed to permit a person to limit access to material on the Internet that is harmful to minors. ‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY.—Paragraph (1) shall apply to agreements for the provision of Internet access serv- ices entered into on or after the date that is 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998]. ‘‘SEC. 1102. ADVISORY COMMISSION ON ELEC- TRONIC COMMERCE. ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.—There is estab- lished a commission to be known as the Advisory Com- mission on Electronic Commerce (in this title referred to as the ‘Commission’). The Commission shall— ‘‘(1) be composed of 19 members appointed in ac- cordance with subsection (b), including the chair- person who shall be selected by the members of the Commission from among themselves; and Page 14 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 151 ‘‘(2) conduct its business in accordance with the provisions of this title. ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioners shall serve for the life of the Commission. The membership of the Commission shall be as follows: ‘‘(A) 3 representatives from the Federal Govern- ment, comprised of the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the United States Trade Representative (or their respective dele- gates). ‘‘(B) 8 representatives from State and local gov- ernments (one such representative shall be from a State or local government that does not impose a sales tax and one representative shall be from a State that does not impose an income tax). ‘‘(C) 8 representatives of the electronic commerce industry (including small business), telecommuni- cations carriers, local retail businesses, and con- sumer groups, comprised of— ‘‘(i) 5 individuals appointed by the Majority Leader of the Senate; ‘‘(ii) 3 individuals appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate; ‘‘(iii) 5 individuals appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and ‘‘(iv) 3 individuals appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENTS.—Appointments to the Commis- sion shall be made not later than 45 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998]. The chairperson shall be selected not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. ‘‘(3) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Commission shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. ‘‘(c) ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS AND GRANTS.—The Com- mission may accept, use, and dispose of gifts or grants of services or property, both real and personal, for pur- poses of aiding or facilitating the work of the Commis- sion. Gifts or grants not used at the expiration of the Commission shall be returned to the donor or grantor. ‘‘(d) OTHER RESOURCES.—The Commission shall have reasonable access to materials, resources, data, and other information from the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative. The Commission shall also have reasonable access to use the facilities of any such Department or Office for purposes of con- ducting meetings. ‘‘(e) SUNSET.—The Commission shall terminate 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998]. ‘‘(f) RULES OF THE COMMISSION.— ‘‘(1) QUORUM.—Nine members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum for conducting the business of the Commission. ‘‘(2) MEETINGS.—Any meetings held by the Commis- sion shall be duly noticed at least 14 days in advance and shall be open to the public. ‘‘(3) OPPORTUNITIES TO TESTIFY.—The Commission shall provide opportunities for representatives of the general public, taxpayer groups, consumer groups, and State and local government officials to testify. ‘‘(4) ADDITIONAL RULES.—The Commission may adopt other rules as needed. ‘‘(g) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall conduct a thorough study of Federal, State and local, and inter- national taxation and tariff treatment of trans- actions using the Internet and Internet access and other comparable intrastate, interstate or inter- national sales activities. ‘‘(2) ISSUES TO BE STUDIED.—The Commission may include in the study under subsection (a)— ‘‘(A) an examination of— ‘‘(i) barriers imposed in foreign markets on United States providers of property, goods, serv- ices, or information engaged in electronic com- merce and on United States providers of tele- communications services; and ‘‘(ii) how the imposition of such barriers will af- fect United States consumers, the competitive- ness of United States citizens providing property, goods, services, or information in foreign mar- kets, and the growth and maturing of the Inter- net; ‘‘(B) an examination of the collection and admin- istration of consumption taxes on electronic com- merce in other countries and the United States, and the impact of such collection on the global econ- omy, including an examination of the relationship between the collection and administration of such taxes when the transaction uses the Internet and when it does not; ‘‘(C) an examination of the impact of the Internet and Internet access (particularly voice trans- mission) on the revenue base for taxes imposed under section 4251 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [26 U.S.C. 4251]; ‘‘(D) an examination of model State legislation that— ‘‘(i) would provide uniform definitions of cat- egories of property, goods, service, or information subject to or exempt from sales and use taxes; and ‘‘(ii) would ensure that Internet access services, online services, and communications and trans- actions using the Internet, Internet access serv- ice, or online services would be treated in a tax and technologically neutral manner relative to other forms of remote sales; ‘‘(E) an examination of the effects of taxation, in- cluding the absence of taxation, on all interstate sales transactions, including transactions using the Internet, on retail businesses and on State and local governments, which examination may include a review of the efforts of State and local govern- ments to collect sales and use taxes owed on in- State purchases from out-of-State sellers; and ‘‘(F) the examination of ways to simplify Federal and State and local taxes imposed on the provision of telecommunications services. ‘‘(3) EFFECT ON THE COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934.— Nothing in this section shall include an examination of any fees or charges imposed by the Federal Com- munications Commission or States related to— ‘‘(A) obligations under the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.); or ‘‘(B) the implementation of the Telecommuni- cations Act of 1996 [Pub. L. 104–104, see Short Title of 1996 Amendment note set out under section 609 of this title] (or of amendments made by that Act). ‘‘(h) NATIONAL TAX ASSOCIATION COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE TAX PROJECT.—The Commission shall, to the extent possible, ensure that its work does not undermine the efforts of the National Tax Associa- tion Communications and Electronic Commerce Tax Project. ‘‘SEC. 1103. REPORT. ‘‘Not later than 18 months after the date of the enact- ment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998], the Commission shall transmit to Congress for its consideration a report re- flecting the results, including such legislative rec- ommendations as required to address the findings of the Commission’s study under this title. Any rec- ommendation agreed to by the Commission shall be tax and technologically neutral and apply to all forms of remote commerce. No finding or recommendation shall be included in the report unless agreed to by at least two-thirds of the members of the Commission serving at the time the finding or recommendation is made. ‘‘SEC. 1104. GRANDFATHERING OF STATES THAT TAX INTERNET ACCESS. ‘‘(a) PRE-OCTOBER 1998 TAXES.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1101(a) does not apply to a tax on Internet access that was generally imposed and actually enforced prior to October 1, 1998, if, be- fore that date— Page 15 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 151 ‘‘(A) the tax was authorized by statute; and ‘‘(B) either— ‘‘(i) a provider of Internet access services had a reasonable opportunity to know, by virtue of a rule or other public proclamation made by the ap- propriate administrative agency of the State or political subdivision thereof, that such agency has interpreted and applied such tax to Internet access services; or ‘‘(ii) a State or political subdivision thereof generally collected such tax on charges for Inter- net access. ‘‘(2) TERMINATION.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subpara- graph (B), this subsection shall not apply after June 30, 2020. ‘‘(B) STATE TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE TAX.— ‘‘(i) DATE FOR TERMINATION.—This subsection shall not apply after November 1, 2006, with re- spect to a State telecommunications service tax described in clause (ii). ‘‘(ii) DESCRIPTION OF TAX.—A State tele- communications service tax referred to in sub- clause (i) is a State tax— ‘‘(I) enacted by State law on or after October 1, 1991, and imposing a tax on telecommuni- cations service; and ‘‘(II) applied to Internet access through ad- ministrative code or regulation issued on or after December 1, 2002. ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not apply to any State that has, more than 24 months prior to the date of enactment of this paragraph [Oct. 31, 2007], enacted legislation to repeal the State’s taxes on Internet access or issued a rule or other proclamation made by the appropriate agency of the State that such State agency has decided to no longer apply such tax to Internet access. ‘‘(b) PRE-NOVEMBER 2003 TAXES.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1101(a) does not apply to a tax on Internet access that was generally imposed and actually enforced as of November 1, 2003, if, as of that date, the tax was authorized by statute and— ‘‘(A) a provider of Internet access services had a reasonable opportunity to know by virtue of a pub- lic rule or other public proclamation made by the appropriate administrative agency of the State or political subdivision thereof, that such agency has interpreted and applied such tax to Internet access services; and ‘‘(B) a State or political subdivision thereof gen- erally collected such tax on charges for Internet ac- cess. ‘‘(2) TERMINATION.—This subsection shall not apply after November 1, 2005. ‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF DEFINITION.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Effective as of November 1, 2003— ‘‘(A) for purposes of subsection (a), the term ‘Internet access’ shall have the meaning given such term by section 1104(5) of this Act, as enacted on October 21, 1998; and ‘‘(B) for purposes of subsection (b), the term ‘Internet access’ shall have the meaning given such term by section 1104(5) of this Act as enacted on Oc- tober 21, 1998, and amended by section 2(c) of the Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act (Public Law 108–435). ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply until June 30, 2008, to a tax on Internet access that is— ‘‘(A) generally imposed and actually enforced on telecommunications service purchased, used, or sold by a provider of Internet access, but only if the appropriate administrative agency of a State or po- litical subdivision thereof issued a public ruling prior to July 1, 2007, that applied such tax to such service in a manner that is inconsistent with para- graph (1); or ‘‘(B) the subject of litigation instituted in a judi- cial court of competent jurisdiction prior to July 1, 2007, in which a State or political subdivision is seeking to enforce, in a manner that is inconsistent with paragraph (1), such tax on telecommunications service purchased, used, or sold by a provider of Internet access. ‘‘(3) NO INFERENCE.—No inference of legislative con- struction shall be drawn from this subsection or the amendments to section 1105(5) made by the Internet Tax Freedom Act Amendments Act of 2007 [Pub. L. 110–108] for any period prior to June 30, 2008, with re- spect to any tax subject to the exceptions described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2). ‘‘SEC. 1105. DEFINITIONS. ‘‘For the purposes of this title: ‘‘(1) BIT TAX.—The term ‘bit tax’ means any tax on electronic commerce expressly imposed on or meas- ured by the volume of digital information trans- mitted electronically, or the volume of digital infor- mation per unit of time transmitted electronically, but does not include taxes imposed on the provision of telecommunications. ‘‘(2) DISCRIMINATORY TAX.—The term ‘discrimina- tory tax’ means— ‘‘(A) any tax imposed by a State or political sub- division thereof on electronic commerce that— ‘‘(i) is not generally imposed and legally col- lectible by such State or such political subdivi- sion on transactions involving similar property, goods, services, or information accomplished through other means; ‘‘(ii) is not generally imposed and legally col- lectible at the same rate by such State or such political subdivision on transactions involving similar property, goods, services, or information accomplished through other means, unless the rate is lower as part of a phase-out of the tax over not more than a 5-year period; ‘‘(iii) imposes an obligation to collect or pay the tax on a different person or entity than in the case of transactions involving similar property, goods, services, or information accomplished through other means; ‘‘(iv) establishes a classification of Internet ac- cess service providers or online service providers for purposes of establishing a higher tax rate to be imposed on such providers than the tax rate generally applied to providers of similar informa- tion services delivered through other means; or ‘‘(B) any tax imposed by a State or political sub- division thereof, if— ‘‘(i) the sole ability to access a site on a remote seller’s out-of-State computer server is consid- ered a factor in determining a remote seller’s tax collection obligation; or ‘‘(ii) a provider of Internet access service or on- line services is deemed to be the agent of a re- mote seller for determining tax collection obliga- tions solely as a result of— ‘‘(I) the display of a remote seller’s informa- tion or content on the out-of-State computer server of a provider of Internet access service or online services; or ‘‘(II) the processing of orders through the out- of-State computer server of a provider of Inter- net access service or online services. ‘‘(3) ELECTRONIC COMMERCE.—The term ‘electronic commerce’ means any transaction conducted over the Internet or through Internet access, comprising the sale, lease, license, offer, or delivery of property, goods, services, or information, whether or not for consideration, and includes the provision of Internet access. ‘‘(4) INTERNET.—The term ‘Internet’ means collec- tively the myriad of computer and telecommuni- cations facilities, including equipment and operating software, which comprise the interconnected world- wide network of networks that employ the Trans- mission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or any predecessor or successor protocols to such protocol, Page 16 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 151 to communicate information of all kinds by wire or radio. ‘‘(5) INTERNET ACCESS.—The term ‘Internet access’— ‘‘(A) means a service that enables users to con- nect to the Internet to access content, information, or other services offered over the Internet; ‘‘(B) includes the purchase, use or sale of tele- communications by a provider of a service de- scribed in subparagraph (A) to the extent such tele- communications are purchased, used or sold— ‘‘(i) to provide such service; or ‘‘(ii) to otherwise enable users to access con- tent, information or other services offered over the Internet; ‘‘(C) includes services that are incidental to the provision of the service described in subparagraph (A) when furnished to users as part of such service, such as a home page, electronic mail and instant messaging (including voice- and video-capable elec- tronic mail and instant messaging), video clips, and personal electronic storage capacity; ‘‘(D) does not include voice, audio or video pro- gramming, or other products and services (except services described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (E)) that utilize Internet protocol or any successor protocol and for which there is a charge, regardless of whether such charge is separately stated or ag- gregated with the charge for services described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (E); and ‘‘(E) includes a homepage, electronic mail and in- stant messaging (including voice- and video-capable electronic mail and instant messaging), video clips, and personal electronic storage capacity, that are provided independently or not packaged with Inter- net access. ‘‘(6) MULTIPLE TAX.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘multiple tax’ means any tax that is imposed by one State or political subdivision thereof on the same or essentially the same electronic commerce that is also subject to another tax imposed by another State or political subdivision thereof (whether or not at the same rate or on the same basis), without a credit (for ex- ample, a resale exemption certificate) for taxes paid in other jurisdictions. ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term shall not include a sales or use tax imposed by a State and 1 or more political subdivisions thereof on the same elec- tronic commerce or a tax on persons engaged in electronic commerce which also may have been subject to a sales or use tax thereon. ‘‘(C) SALES OR USE TAX.—For purposes of subpara- graph (B), the term ‘sales or use tax’ means a tax that is imposed on or incident to the sale, purchase, storage, consumption, distribution, or other use of tangible personal property or services as may be de- fined by laws imposing such tax and which is meas- ured by the amount of the sales price or other charge for such property or service. ‘‘(7) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means any of the sev- eral States, the District of Columbia, or any com- monwealth, territory, or possession of the United States. ‘‘(8) TAX.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘tax’ means— ‘‘(i) any charge imposed by any governmental entity for the purpose of generating revenues for governmental purposes, and is not a fee imposed for a specific privilege, service, or benefit con- ferred; or ‘‘(ii) the imposition on a seller of an obligation to collect and to remit to a governmental entity any sales or use tax imposed on a buyer by a gov- ernmental entity. ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term does not include any franchise fee or similar fee imposed by a State or local franchising authority, pursuant to section 622 or 653 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 542, 573), or any other fee related to obligations or telecommunications carriers under the Commu- nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.). ‘‘(9) TELECOMMUNICATIONS.—The term ‘tele- communications’ means ‘telecommunications’ as such term is defined in section 3(43) of the Commu- nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153(43) [now 153(50)]) and ‘telecommunications service’ as such term is de- fined in section 3(46) of such Act (47 U.S.C. 153(46) [now 153(53)]), and includes communications services (as defined in section 4251 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 4251)). ‘‘(10) TAX ON INTERNET ACCESS.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘tax on Internet ac- cess’ means a tax on Internet access, regardless of whether such tax is imposed on a provider of Inter- net access or a buyer of Internet access and regard- less of the terminology used to describe the tax. ‘‘(B) GENERAL EXCEPTION.—The term ‘tax on Internet access’ does not include a tax levied upon or measured by net income, capital stock, net worth, or property value. ‘‘(C) SPECIFIC EXCEPTION.— ‘‘(i) SPECIFIED TAXES.—Effective November 1, 2007, the term ‘tax on Internet access’ also does not include a State tax expressly levied on com- mercial activity, modified gross receipts, taxable margin, or gross income of the business, by a State law specifically using one of the foregoing terms, that— ‘‘(I) was enacted after June 20, 2005, and before November 1, 2007 (or, in the case of a State busi- ness and occupation tax, was enacted after Jan- uary 1, 1932, and before January 1, 1936); ‘‘(II) replaced, in whole or in part, a modified value-added tax or a tax levied upon or meas- ured by net income, capital stock, or net worth (or, is a State business and occupation tax that was enacted after January 1, 1932 and before January 1, 1936); ‘‘(III) is imposed on a broad range of business activity; and ‘‘(IV) is not discriminatory in its application to providers of communication services, Inter- net access, or telecommunications. ‘‘(ii) MODIFICATIONS.—Nothing in this subpara- graph shall be construed as a limitation on a State’s ability to make modifications to a tax covered by clause (i) of this subparagraph after November 1, 2007, as long as the modifications do not substantially narrow the range of business ac- tivities on which the tax is imposed or otherwise disqualify the tax under clause (i). ‘‘(iii) NO INFERENCE.—No inference of legislative construction shall be drawn from this subpara- graph regarding the application of subparagraph (A) or (B) to any tax described in clause (i) for pe- riods prior to November 1, 2007. ‘‘SEC. 1106. ACCOUNTING RULE. ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If charges for Internet access are aggregated with and not separately stated from charges for telecommunications or other charges that are sub- ject to taxation, then the charges for Internet access may be subject to taxation unless the Internet access provider can reasonably identify the charges for Inter- net access from its books and records kept in the reg- ular course of business. ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: ‘‘(1) CHARGES FOR INTERNET ACCESS.—The term ‘charges for Internet access’ means all charges for Internet access as defined in section 1105(5). ‘‘(2) CHARGES FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS.—The term ‘charges for telecommunications’ means all charges for telecommunications, except to the extent such telecommunications are purchased, used, or sold by a provider of Internet access to provide Internet access or to otherwise enable users to access content, infor- mation or other services offered over the Internet. ‘‘SEC. 1107. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. ‘‘(a) UNIVERSAL SERVICE.—Nothing in this Act [prob- ably means ‘‘this title’’] shall prevent the imposition or collection of any fees or charges used to preserve and Page 17 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 152 advance Federal universal service or similar State pro- grams— ‘‘(1) authorized by section 254 of the Communica- tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254); or ‘‘(2) in effect on February 8, 1996. ‘‘(b) 911 AND E–911 SERVICES.—Nothing in this Act [probably means ‘‘this title’’] shall prevent the imposi- tion or collection, on a service used for access to 911 or E–911 services, of any fee or charge specifically des- ignated or presented as dedicated by a State or polit- ical subdivision thereof for the support of 911 or E–911 services if no portion of the revenue derived from such fee or charge is obligated or expended for any purpose other than support of 911 or E–911 services. ‘‘(c) NON-TAX REGULATORY PROCEEDINGS.—Nothing in this Act [probably means ‘‘this title’’] shall be con- strued to affect any Federal or State regulatory pro- ceeding that is not related to taxation. ‘‘[SEC. 1108. Repealed. Pub. L. 110–108, § 5(b), Oct. 31, 2007, 121 Stat. 1026] ‘‘SEC. 1109. EXCEPTION FOR TEXAS MUNICIPAL AC- CESS LINE FEE. ‘‘Nothing in this Act [probably means ‘‘this title’’] shall prohibit Texas or a political subdivision thereof from imposing or collecting the Texas municipal access line fee pursuant to Texas Local Govt. Code Ann. ch. 283 (Vernon 2005) and the definition of access line as de- termined by the Public Utility Commission of Texas in its ‘Order Adopting Amendments to Section 26.465 As Approved At The February 13, 2003 Public Hearing’, issued March 5, 2003, in Project No. 26412.’’ [Pub. L. 110–108, § 7, Oct. 31, 2007, 121 Stat. 1027, pro- vided that: ‘‘This Act [enacting provisions set out as a note under section 609 of this title and amending title XI of div. C of Pub. L. 105–277, set out above], and the amendments made by this Act, shall take effect on No- vember 1, 2007, and shall apply with respect to taxes in effect as of such date or thereafter enacted, except as provided in section 1104 of the Internet Tax Freedom Act [title XI of div. C of Pub. L. 105–277] (47 U.S.C. 151 note).’’] [Pub. L. 108–435, § 8, Dec. 3, 2004, 118 Stat. 2619, pro- vided that: ‘‘The amendments made by this Act [amending title XI of div. C of Pub. L. 105–277, set out above] take effect on November 1, 2003.’’] STYLISTIC CONSISTENCY Pub. L. 104–104, title I, § 101(c), Feb. 8, 1996, 110 Stat. 79, provided that: ‘‘The Act [Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.)] is amended so that— ‘‘(1) the designation and heading of each title of the Act shall be in the form and typeface of the designa- tion and heading of this title of this Act [110 Stat. 61]; and ‘‘(2) the designation and heading of each part of each title of the Act shall be in the form and typeface of the designation and heading of part I of title II of the Act [110 Stat. 61], as amended by subsection (a).’’ STUDY OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION GOALS Pub. L. 97–259, title II, § 202, Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1099, required the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to conduct a comprehen- sive study of the long-range international tele- communications and information goals of the United States and the policies and the strategies needed to achieve these goals, with a review of these policies, and provided the Administration would not make public in- formation regarding usage or traffic patterns which would damage United States commercial interests. COMMISSION ON GOVERNMENTAL USE OF INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS Act July 29, 1954, ch. 647, 68 Stat. 587, established the Commission on Governmental Use of International Telecommunications to examine, study and report on the objectives, operations, and effectiveness of informa- tion programs with respect to the prompt development of techniques, methods, and programs for greatly ex- panded and far more effective operations in this vital area of foreign policy through the use of foreign tele- communications. The Commission was required to make a report of its findings and recommendations on or before Dec. 31, 1954, and the Commission ceased to exist 90 days after submission of its report to the Con- gress. COMMUNICATION PRIVILEGES TO PARTICIPANTS IN WORLD TELECOMMUNICATION CONFERENCES Act May 13, 1947, ch. 51, 61 Stat. 83, provided that nothing in this chapter, or in any other provision of law should be construed to prohibit United States com- munication common carriers from rendering free com- munication services to official participants in the world telecommunications conferences which were held in the United States in 1947. Executive Documents EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 10460 Ex. Ord. No. 10460, eff. June 18, 1953, 18 F.R. 3513, as amended by Ex. Ord. No. 10773, eff. July 1, 1958, 23 F.R. 5061; Ex. Ord. No. 10782, eff. Sept. 8, 1958, 23 F.R. 6971, which related to the performance of telecommuni- cation functions by Director of the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, was revoked by section 4 of Ex. Ord. No. 10995, eff. Feb. 16, 1962, 27 F.R. 1519. § 152. Application of chapter (a) The provisions of this chapter shall apply to all interstate and foreign communication by wire or radio and all interstate and foreign transmission of energy by radio, which origi- nates and/or is received within the United States, and to all persons engaged within the United States in such communication or such transmission of energy by radio, and to the li- censing and regulating of all radio stations as hereinafter provided; but it shall not apply to persons engaged in wire or radio communication or transmission in the Canal Zone, or to wire or radio communication or transmission wholly within the Canal Zone. The provisions of this chapter shall apply with respect to cable serv- ice, to all persons engaged within the United States in providing such service, and to the fa- cilities of cable operators which relate to such service, as provided in subchapter V–A. (b) Except as provided in sections 223 through 227 of this title, inclusive, section 276 of this title, and section 332 of this title, and subject to the provisions of section 301 of this title and subchapter V–A, nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply or to give the Commission jurisdiction with respect to (1) charges, classi- fications, practices, services, facilities, or regu- lations for or in connection with intrastate com- munication service by wire or radio of any car- rier, or (2) any carrier engaged in interstate or foreign communication solely through physical connection with the facilities of another carrier not directly or indirectly controlling or con- trolled by, or under direct or indirect common control with such carrier, or (3) any carrier en- gaged in interstate or foreign communication solely through connection by radio, or by wire and radio, with facilities, located in an adjoin- ing State or in Canada or Mexico (where they adjoin the State in which the carrier is doing business), of another carrier not directly or indi-