[AffiliateHound]

Along with four other members of a political group of which I am a founding member, I met with my congressperson, Representative Judy Chu, in her office this afternoon.

She was gracious enough to give us almost a full hour to discuss our concerns on various issues (along with our offer to help her bring the message upon which we agree wholeheartedly, to others in our community).

Each of us picked an issue to discuss with Cong. Chu, and as she is a member of the House Judiciary subcommittee on Competition and the Internet, this was the perfect opportunity for me to discuss internet and affiliate marketing issues, in particular, the issues of Net Neutrality and Internet Sales Taxes.

She is well aware of the Net Neutrality issue, and is appalled at the bill rammed through the House this session, repealing FCC rules protecting Net Neutrality and further stripping the FCC of the right to regulate the internet. She was not fully conversant with the Internet Freedom, Broadband Promotion and Consumer Protection Act of 2011 now pending in the Senate, and I provided some information to her about this bill, which she seem pleased to receive.

Of even more importance, I was able to spend several minutes discussing the internet sales tax issue with her. She was aware of the issue, but I was able to give her considerably more information about the impact of the various state measures, and she seemed genuinely concerned about the impact on affiliate marketers, and she seemed receptive to the idea of a national internet sales tax, evening the playing field among all 50 states, for all merchants and affiliates. I gave her copies of blog posts I had written on the subject, siting many more details and references on the issue.

As eluded to here and there over the past couple of years, while it is primarily Democrats pushing for state "Amazon" sales tax laws, and Republicans opposing them, on a national basis, if we are ever to bring finality to this issue with a national internet sales tax, it will only be done by Democrats such as Congresswoman Chu, and not by Republicans who almost without exception, oppose any national sales tax legislation.