CTIA - The Wireless Association® Blog - Federal Legislation

CTIA Statement on Today's Universal Service Fund Hearing

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:11:00 -0500

Today, I issued the following statement after the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet's hearing on the "Universal Service Reform Act of 2009." The bill is sponsored by Chairman Rick Boucher (D-VA) and Representative Lee Terry (R-NE):

"CTIA welcomes the effort by Chairman Boucher and Congressman Terry to reform the way that universal service funds are collected and distributed. As this bill moves forward, we urge Congress to work toward competitively neutral reforms that target support to where it is truly needed."

Testimony Highlights from House Energy & Commerce Joint Subcommittee Hearing on Distracted Driving

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:29:00 -0500

Today I testified before the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittees on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection and on Communications, Technology and the Internet in a joint hearing called “Driven To Distraction: Technological Devices and Vehicle Safety.”

While you can read my testimony and the statement, here are some of the key points. We believe there are three components to making safer drivers and safer roads. They are:

Legislation: The wireless industry joins Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in supporting a state and local ban on manual texting and emailing while driving. In fact, we are working with the National Conference of State Legislatures, the American Legislative Exchange Council, and other state organizations to craft model legislation that could be adopted across the country that would prohibit this activity. In addition, the industry supports restrictions on provisional or novice drivers from using their wireless devices while driving.
Technology: We support technological advancements, but caution that they cannot be based on inflexible mandates that could stifle innovation. They must also be affordable and consumer-friendly.
Education: Last, but most importantly, CTIA and the wireless industry have a longstanding commitment and support to educating all drivers about the dangers of distracted driving. For almost 10 years, the association and many of our members have independently developed educational campaigns. We’ve launched several TV and radio public service announcement (PSA) campaign on safe driving. Most recently, CTIA and the National Safety Council launched our teen-focused “On the Road, Off the Phone” campaign.

Please tell everyone you know that no one should be texting and emailing while driving. It will lead to safer drivers and safer roads for all of us.

CTIA Statement on Testifying Before House Hearing On "Addressing the Problem of Distracted Driving"

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:09:00 -0500

Today, CTIA’s Executive Vice President Bobby Franklin issued the following statement after his testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit hearing on "Addressing the Problem of Distracted Driving":

"CTIA and the wireless industry appreciated the opportunity to participate at the House hearing on this very important issue. With so many Americans relying on mobile devices as a great safety tool, it's important to remind consumers that there is an appropriate time and inappropriate time to use them.

"Legislation, technology and education are three vital components that we believe are needed to develop safer drivers and safer roads. CTIA believes that manual texting and emailing while driving are incompatible with safe driving and join Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in supporting a state and local ban on this activity. In fact, we are working with the National Conference of State Legislatures, the American Legislative Exchange Council, and other state organizations to craft model legislation that could be adopted across the country that would prohibit manual texting and emailing while driving.

"We also support technological advancements, but caution that they cannot be based on inflexible mandates that could stifle innovation. They must also be affordable and consumer-friendly.

"Finally, we are proud of our long-standing educational activities, including our recent partnership with the National Safety Council to launch a teen-focused campaign, ‘On the Road, Off the Phone.' As part of the campaign, we developed a Web site and a television public service announcement which has been viewed thousands of times since we launched last month.

"CTIA and our members look forward to continuing to work with policymakers and stakeholders at all levels to combat distracted driving."

For more information about the CTIA and NSC "On the Road, Off the Phone" campaign, please visit: www.onroadoffphone.org.

CTIA Statement on Sen. Commerce Committee Chairman Rockefeller's "Distracted Driving Act of 2009"

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:52:00 -0500

Today, I issued the following statement in response to Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller's (D-WV) introduction of “Distracted Driving Prevention Act of 2009” (S. 1938):

"CTIA welcomes introduction of Chairman Rockefeller’s legislation, and we look forward to working with the Chairman and his colleagues to enact a solution to the problem of distracted driving.

“We are particularly pleased that the legislation includes a significant educational component since, as Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Ray LaHood has noted, legislative prohibitions alone are unlikely to solve this problem. We have partnered with the National Safety Council to co-brand a public service announcement (PSA) and Web site (onroadoffphone.org) focused on educating consumers about the dangers and consequences of distracted driving. Having the DOT echo this message can only help as we continue to seek to inform and educate the driving public.”

The Small Business Take on Cell Tax Fairness: Give Consumers a 5-Year Break from New Wireless Taxes

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:50:00 -0500

Yesterday I posted an interview I had done with Bill Rys, Counsel for Tax Policy at the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) on listed property. Today, we’re talking about the unfair taxes and fees wireless consumers pay.

Our groups have a lot in common when it comes to fighting excessive wireless taxes and fees. State and local governments levy regressive taxes and unnecessary fee hikes which add up and for business, they can really affect productivity and impact the bottom line. It's hard to understate the importance of affordable and accessible wireless service in the current economy for consumers and small business owners.

An American wireless consumer now pays on average more than 15% on their monthly bill in wireless taxes, fees and surcharges. That's more than twice the average tax rate imposed on the sale of other goods and services, which is about 6%. And for a small business owner, that effect is multiplied even further.

Fortunately, both sides of Congress are currently working to pass strong bi-partisan legislation called the “Cell (or Mobile Wireless) Tax Fairness Act of 2009” (S. 1192 and H.R. 1521), that would put a five-year freeze on all new, discriminatory state and local wireless taxes and fees.

Listen to what Bill had to say about the “Cell Tax Fairness Act” and how it’d impact the nation's small business community.

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We certainly appreciate Bill's time for coming by to discuss these important issues, and also we want to thank the NFIB for their willingness to engage on these pro-business, pro-consumer, anti-tax legislative measures currently being considered before the 111th Congress. We look forward to continuing to work with them this year and beyond, to see this legislation pass through Congress and ultimately become law.

To learn more about wireless tax issues, please click here.

To take action by contacting your elected officials, please click here.

The Small Business Viewpoint on Listed Property: IRS Taxation of Employer-Provided Devices

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:42:00 -0500

A couple of weeks ago, I spoke with Bill Rys, Counsel for Tax Policy at the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), about a couple of tax issues that are important to both their membership and the wireless industry. The NFIB is a small business advocacy association, based in Washington, D.C., with more than 300,000 members around the country and representation in all 50 states.

The first issue we are working on together is known as listed property. There is currently strong support to update the archaic and outdated IRS tax treatment of employer-provided wireless devices. Right now, the law says that if you use that cell phone for personal reasons (such as calls, emails, texts), it’s a fringe benefit and is subject to income tax. As an employee, you’re supposed to keep a detailed ledger of every personal call you make, and as an employer, you're supposed to report that usage for tax purposes. Sounds like a real hassle for all NFIB members, and certainly adds a lot of government red tape.

The good news is that bi-partisan legislation called the “M.O.B.I.L.E Act” from both sides of Congress (S. 144 and H.R. 690) has been introduced to remove wireless devices from the IRS listed property rules. In addition to strong Congressional support, IRS Commissioner Shulman and Treasury Secretary Geithner have voiced their support for repealing this measure.

I asked Bill how his membership feels about the listed property tax law and what NFIB is doing to help repeal this IRS rule.

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CTIA Continues to Call for Repeal of Outdated IRS Rule on Listed Property

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 08:51:00 -0500

September 4th was the deadline to file comments at the IRS on the listed property rule for employer-provided cell phones. Prior to the filing deadline, CTIA submitted comments and issued a statement urging Congress to pass the MOBILE Act (S. 144/H.R. 690) that would remove mobile devices from the listed property rule and accomplish Treasury Secretary Geithner’s and IRS Commissioner Shulman’s goal of repealing this outdated and poorly understood tax rule.

Listed property was first implemented two decades ago when cell phones were considered luxury items. Despite the fact that more than 270 million Americans use wireless devices today, employees are still required to maintain logs detailing cell phone calls placed for business versus personal use. This is a classic example of how the law has failed to keep up with the rapidly changing wireless marketplace.

The good news is that the MOBILE Act has broad, bi-partisan support, and with the support of both Secretary Geithner and Commissioner Shulman, we’re hopeful that Congress will act on it this year.

Here are a few of the stories that have been published on listed property recently:

9/6 - The Hill - IRS asked to repeal cell phone tax
9/2 - PC World - Group Asks IRS to Repeal Tax of Personal Mobile-Phone Use
9/2 - Wireless Week - CTIA Urges Action on Old IRS Rule
9/1 - The Wall Street Journal - Wireless Group Wants Repeal of Cell Phone Tax Law
9/1 – FierceWireless - CTIA Pushes for Repeal of Tax on Work-Issued Cell Phones
9/1 – eWeek - CTIA Pushes for Repeal of Enterprise Cell Phone Tax

Labor Day and Listed Property: Help Hard Working Americans By Repealing Outdated IRS Rule

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 10:37:00 -0500

This past holiday weekend marked an important time to highlight a critical wireless issue for businesses and consumers that we’ve been discussing for about a year now. It’s an issue that has a negative effect on jobs and businesses right now, and could definitely impact workers, consumers and families in an even more serious way down the road if not handled properly.

The issue is “listed property” and how the IRS officially views cell phones issued by companies to their employees. The deadline to file comments on the IRS listed property issue was September 4th, and with yesterday being Labor Day, I think it’s a perfect time to look at what Congress can do when it comes back to D.C. to help hard working American workers.

As we were celebrating Labor Day, Americans rested up and finished the summer strong, while honoring the real backbone of our nation’s society – the American workers. And in today’s economic climate, it’s particularly important to think of ways to make for a better workplace experience for both employers and employees. I’m talking about enhancing productivity, and having an even more positive impact on the bottom line. These days a wireless device truly has become a daily necessity and a must-have tool for many employees to maintain efficiency and increasing productivity, and we should be doing all we can to encourage its use.

Here’s the problem though – If your employer provides you with a wireless device (e.g. smart phone or cell phone), you have to keep a detailed log of all your activity on the work-provided wireless device. Then your employer must compile that data for the IRS to tax you for any personal calls, e-mails or texts made with that device. That use is known as “listed property.” It sounds outrageous, but that requirement is already part of our tax code.

Disturbing? Of course it is.

Thankfully, back at the beginning of summer IRS Commissioner Shulman and Treasury Secretary Geithner issued a statement backed by the White House that it must be ‘clear that there will be no tax consequence to employers or employees for personal use of work-related devices such as cell phones provided by employers.’

With the Administration clearly now on board, it’s important to note that the U.S. Congress has the power to repeal a ridiculous provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, which today only increases bureaucracy, stifles businesses and employees and creates more unnecessary government red tape.

The good news is that the companion legislation from both sides of Congress has been introduced this year to prevent the IRS from imposing this ridiculous law. Senators Kerry (D-MA) and Ensign (R-NV) have introduced bipartisan legislation, S. 144, with 62 co-sponsors in the Senate, and Representatives Pomeroy (D-ND) and Johnson (R-TX) have introduced a bipartisan bill, H.R. 690, with 105 co-sponsors in the House.

Passing the “M.O.B.I.L.E. Cell Phone Act of 2009” would repeal that poorly understood tax law. It will update an outdated archaic piece of the U.S. tax code, that if enforced only hinders wireless consumers' and businesses' efficiency and productivity. Our federal representatives can protect small businesses, workers and consumers. And what better time is there than to recognize the American worker than right after Labor Day to have Congress step up and pass the MOBILE Act?

Later this week we’ll link to a discussion on listed property with Bill Rys, Counsel for Tax Policy at the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), who dropped by to talk about the issue and their membership.

To learn more about this issue, please click here.

To take action by contacting your elected officials, please click here.

Insider Interview: CTIA President & CEO, Steve Largent

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:26:00 -0500

The FCC is interested in learning more about the wireless industry's competitiveness, innovation, and billing practices. CTIA President & CEO Steve Largent discusses the association's eagerness to share the great wireless story with the Commission, and emphasizes the need for additional spectrum to satisfy the growing consumer demand for wireless data services. To learn more watch this segment from our September installment of our Wonder of Wireless webcast, and take a few moments to see what else we have to offer in our September WOW.

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CTIA Files Comments to IRS on Listed Property

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:44:00 -0500

Today, I issued the following statement after CTIA filed comments at the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on the listed property rule for employer-provided cell phones. When cell phones were added to the listed property rule in 1989, mobile phone use was uncommon and cell phones were considered luxury items. Despite the near ubiquity of mobile devices today, employees are still required to maintain logs detailing their business use on a mobile device. Specifically, individuals are expected to record: (1) the amount of such expense or other item, (2) the time and place of the use of the property, (3) the business purpose of the expense, and (4) the business relationship to the taxpayer of the persons using the property. Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and John Ensign (R-NV) and Representatives Sam Johnson (R-TX) and Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) have sponsored the MOBILE Act (S. 144/H.R. 690) to address this matter.

“We agree with Secretary Geithner’s and Commissioner Shulman’s June 16 statement that said it must be ‘clear that there will be no tax consequence to employers or employees for personal use of work-related devices such as cell phones provided by employers.’

“Unfortunately, the alternatives proposed by the IRS are either incomplete or inadequate solutions that would continue to subject employees and employers to onerous call log requirements.

“Instead, CTIA and the wireless industry support the MOBILE Act, which would remove mobile devices from the listed property rule and accomplish Secretary Geithner’s and Commissioner Shulman’s goal of repealing a burdensome and poorly understood tax rule. There is broad, bi-partisan support for this legislation and we urge the Congress to act on it this year.”

To see CTIA's filing to the IRS, please click here.

CTIA Statement on Senate Commerce Committee's Passage of S.251

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:55:00 -0500

This afternoon, legislation to enable the jamming of illegal cell phone use by prison inmates, the Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009 (S.251), was approved by the Senate Commerce Committee. The bill, authored by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, would permit the FCC to authorize correctional facilities to operate cell phone jamming systems. The legislation includes safeguards to ensure that signal jamming does not impair the ability of public safety officials or legitimate commercial mobile radio service customers outside a correctional institution to access wireless services. I issued the following statement in response to the Committee’s action:

"While CTIA believes policy should favor non-interfering technologies, we appreciate Senator Hutchison’s willingness to redraft her bill to protect commercial and emergency wireless communications from interference caused by the use of jamming systems. We are in complete alignment with the Senator on the need to prohibit wireless access by those who aren’t supposed to have it, and we commend her for the attention she has brought to this important public safety issue."

To learn more about contraband cell phones in prisons, click here.

CTIA Applauds Senate Commerce Committee's Passage of Radio Spectrum Inventory Act

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:20:00 -0500

This afternoon, the Senate Commerce Committee approved the Radio Spectrum Inventory Act (S. 649), a bill sponsored by Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME). I issued the following statement in response to the Committee's action:

"I applaud Senators Kerry and Snowe for securing Committee approval of the Radio Spectrum Inventory Act. As the wireless industry continues to invest to meet consumers' increasing demand for broadband services, we appreciate Senator Kerry and Snowe's commitment to work with stakeholders to fashion a bill that identifies where the next allocation of spectrum for commercial use will come from. We look forward to working with Senators Kerry and Snowe, Chairman Rockefeller and their colleagues in the House to enact inventory legislation this year."

Congress Considers Wireless Consumer Relief

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:45:00 -0500

Two proposed bills in Congress are receiving bipartisan support, and are aimed at providing rational and fair tax relief for American wireless consumers. CTIA Vice-President, Government Affairs, Jot Carpenter discusses the legislation on cell tax fairness and an archaic IRS policy related to listed property. To learn more watch this segment from our July installment of our Wonder of Wireless webcast, and take a few moments to see what else we have to offer in our July WOW.

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CTIA Response to Introduction of Spectrum Relocation Improvement Act of 2009

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:14:00 -0500

Last night, Representatives Jay Inslee (WA-01), Fred Upton (MI-06) and Rick Boucher (VA-09) introduced Spectrum Relocation Improvement Act of 2009 (H.R. 3019), which would update the spectrum relocation process. This morning, I issued the following statement in response to the introduction of the House bill:

          "We look forward to working with Congressmen Inslee, Upton and Boucher on this matter.
          With the lessons learned from the AWS-1 auction, we believe this is a good time to review the
          process to see where improvements can be made."

CTIA Recipient of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Outstanding Achievement

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 14:11:00 -0500

Earlier this month, CTIA-The Wireless Association® received the "Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Outstanding Achievement" for working with our members to ensure Service men and women are able to either suspend or terminate their wireless service contracts when deployed without penalties or fees.

On behalf of the wireless industry, we are extremely grateful to the men and women who serve our country. Originally a bill (H.R. 3298) introduced by Representative Patrick Murphy (D-PA), the wireless industry concurred that this was a small token to show our appreciation.

We are proud to be a part of the solution for Service members so they can communicate with their friends and family around the world, regardless of their location.

Click here to read the PDF version of the letter.