VoIP tax? those revenue-hungry states are at it again

AdvancedIPpipeline reportsthat New York State's Public Service Commission and Ohio's Public Utilities Commission have separately indicated discomfort with the FCC's Vonage ruling. The November, 2004 ruling confers primary VoIP regulatory authority on the FCC, not on the states.

New York and Ohio join Minnesota and California in objecting to the determination.

The two newest protests are being routed through separate channels.

According to advancedIPpipeline, The Ohio Public Utilities Commission's federal court petition for "an order and judgment that the Commission's (Vonage) Order is in excess of the Commission's statutory jurisdiction, authority, or limitations, or short of statutory right."

New York PSC chair William Flynn has written the FCC to seek a review of its Vonage ruling "not to assert a traditional regulatory role, but rather because the Order leaves unanswered several very important questions critical to the competitive policies this state has advocated."

In his letter, Flynn added concerns that "traditional phone carriers may switch their traffic to IP networks in order to avoid state regulations and taxes."

That's what it is all about. Taxes.

There's a political reality in play here. Read what I have to say about it.