For the purpose of regulating interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire and radio so as to make available, so far as possible, 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 facilities at reasonable charges, for the purpose of the national defense, for the purpose of promoting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communications, and for the purpose of securing a more effective execution of this policy by centralizing authority heretofore granted by law to several agencies and by granting additional authority with respect to interstate and foreign commerce in wire and radio communication, there is created a commission to be known as the "Federal Communications Commission", which shall be constituted as hereinafter provided, and which shall execute and enforce the provisions of this chapter.
(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.)
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.
1996—Pub. L. 104–104 inserted ", without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, 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".
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 'October 1, 2015'."
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, provided that:
"This title may be cited as the 'Internet Tax Freedom Act'.
"(a)
"(1) Taxes on Internet access.
"(2) Multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.
"(b)
"(c)
"(d)
"(1)
"(A) by requiring use of a credit card, debit account, adult access code, or adult personal identification number;
"(B) by accepting a digital certificate that verifies age; or
"(C) by any other reasonable measures that are feasible under available technology.
"(2)
"(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, storage, retrieval, hosting, formatting, or translation (or any combination thereof) of a communication made by another person, without selection or alteration of the communication.
"(3)
"(A)
"(B)
"(i)
"(ii)
"(C)
"(D)
"(E)
"(F)
"(i) the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find, taking the material 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 manner patently offensive with respect to minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, an actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual 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)
"(H)
"(e)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A)
"(B)
"(C)
"(3)
"(a)
"(1) be composed of 19 members appointed in accordance with subsection (b), including the chairperson who shall be selected by the members of the Commission from among themselves; and
"(2) conduct its business in accordance with the provisions of this title.
"(b)
"(1)
"(A) 3 representatives from the Federal Government, comprised of the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the United States Trade Representative (or their respective delegates).
"(B) 8 representatives from State and local governments (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), telecommunications carriers, local retail businesses, and consumer 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)
"(3)
"(c)
"(d)
"(e)
"(f)
"(1)
"(2)
"(3)
"(4)
"(g)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) an examination of—
"(i) barriers imposed in foreign markets on United States providers of property, goods, services, or information engaged in electronic commerce and on United States providers of telecommunications services; and
"(ii) how the imposition of such barriers will affect United States consumers, the competitiveness of United States citizens providing property, goods, services, or information in foreign markets, and the growth and maturing of the Internet;
"(B) an examination of the collection and administration of consumption taxes on electronic commerce in other countries and the United States, and the impact of such collection on the global economy, 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 transmission) 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 categories 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 transactions using the Internet, Internet access service, 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, including 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 governments 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)
"(A) obligations under the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.); or
"(B) the implementation of the Telecommunications 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)
"Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998], the Commission shall transmit to Congress for its consideration a report reflecting the results, including such legislative recommendations as required to address the findings of the Commission's study under this title. Any recommendation 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.
"(a)
"(1)
"(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 appropriate 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 Internet access.
"(2)
"(A)
"(B)
"(i)
"(ii)
"(I) enacted by State law on or after October 1, 1991, and imposing a tax on telecommunications service; and
"(II) applied to Internet access through administrative code or regulation issued on or after December 1, 2002.
"(3)
"(b)
"(1)
"(A) a provider of Internet access services had a reasonable opportunity to know by virtue of a public 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 generally collected such tax on charges for Internet access.
"(2)
"(c)
"(1)
"(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 October 21, 1998, and amended by section 2(c) of the Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act (Public Law 108–435).
"(2)
"(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 political 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 paragraph (1); or
"(B) the subject of litigation instituted in a judicial 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)
"For the purposes of this title:
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) any tax imposed by a State or political subdivision thereof on electronic commerce that—
"(i) is not generally imposed and legally collectible by such State or such political subdivision on transactions involving similar property, goods, services, or information accomplished through other means;
"(ii) is not generally imposed and legally collectible 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 access 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 information services delivered through other means; or
"(B) any tax imposed by a State or political subdivision thereof, if—
"(i) the sole ability to access a site on a remote seller's out-of-State computer server is considered a factor in determining a remote seller's tax collection obligation; or
"(ii) a provider of Internet access service or online services is deemed to be the agent of a remote seller for determining tax collection obligations solely as a result of—
"(I) the display of a remote seller's information 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 Internet access service or online services.
"(3)
"(4)
"(5)
"(A) means a service that enables users to connect to the Internet to access content, information, or other services offered over the Internet;
"(B) includes the purchase, use or sale of telecommunications by a provider of a service described in subparagraph (A) to the extent such telecommunications are purchased, used or sold—
"(i) to provide such service; or
"(ii) to otherwise enable users to access content, 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 electronic mail and instant messaging), video clips, and personal electronic storage capacity;
"(D) does not include voice, audio or video programming, 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 aggregated with the charge for services described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (E); and
"(E) includes a homepage, electronic mail and instant 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 Internet access.
"(6)
"(A)
"(B)
"(C)
"(7)
"(8)
"(A)
"(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 conferred; 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 governmental entity.
"(B)
"(9)
"(10)
"(A)
"(B)
"(C)
"(i)
"(I) was enacted after June 20, 2005, and before November 1, 2007 (or, in the case of a State business and occupation tax, was enacted after January 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 measured 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, Internet access, or telecommunications.
"(ii)
"(iii)
"(a)
"(b)
"(1)
"(2)
"(a)
"(1) authorized by section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254); or
"(2) in effect on February 8, 1996.
"(b) 911
"(c)
"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 determined 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, provided 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 November 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, provided 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."]
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 designation 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)."
Pub. L. 97–259, title II, §202, Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1099, provided that:
"(a) The National Telecommunications and Information Administration shall conduct a comprehensive study of the long-range international telecommunications and information goals of the United States, the specific international telecommunications and information policies necessary to promote those goals and the strategies that will ensure that the United States achieves them. The Administration shall further conduct a review of the structures, procedures, and mechanisms which are utilized by the United States to develop international telecommunications and information policy.
"(b) In any study or review conducted pursuant to this section, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration shall not make public information regarding usage or traffic patterns which would damage United States commercial interests. Any such study or review shall be limited to international telecommunications policies or to domestic telecommunications issues which directly affect such policies."
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 information programs with respect to the prompt development of techniques, methods, and programs for greatly expanded and far more effective operations in this vital area of foreign policy through the use of foreign telecommunications. 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 Congress.
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 communication common carriers from rendering free communication services to official participants in the world telecommunications conferences which were held in the United States in 1947.
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 telecommunication 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.