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Opposition to Language Originally Introduced as AB 187


In case you haven't heard, the state of California is considering legislation which could end affilate programs.

We need to do everything you can to prevent this. Amazon just cut off the program in North Carolina as of June 27th, 2009 because of similar legislation.

 

26 June 2009, Thursday, 11AM PST

Thank you!

As I write this, a group of affiliate marketers are delivering the personal profiles sent yesterday from the form below to the legislative leadership and the governor today.

We have no idea what next steps are, the legislature doesn't know what the outcome of the votes will be, so we are just standing by to see what happens next.

To those of you who've been on vacation ad missed this, AB178 popped back up and may become part of the California budget, which would most likely eliminate affiliate programs in the state of California. Whoops!

 

25 June 2009, Thursday, 3:30PM PST

California's budget bill is devolving quickly. Language originally forgotten in AB178 back in April has reappeared and might make it into the budget bill.

If enacted, it will probably eliminate most affiliate programs as we participate in them in California.

If the bill passes as written, it will require the sites who send you support to collect and remit California sales tax if those sites to which you link continue to keep you as an affiliate. If they dump you, they don't have to collect any sales taxes.

Yesterday, both houses of the legislature were unable to agree on the budget bill.

Rumor has it that there is a big push to reintroduce the budget bill as soon as Saturday.

Lobbyists have done a great job with email campaigns and visits to Sacramento. We all did such a great job on the emails that further emails have been blocked!

It is now time to tell our individual stories as webmasters and websites.

If we all fill out one-page descriptions of how we'll be hurt by this, the lobbyists to which we'll send these are going to have them printed and hand-delivered in Sacramento tomorrow, Friday, 26 June 2009.

By 10am Friday, 26 June 2009:

· Create a one-pager about your business. It should be brief, describe your business and how you earn money from affiliate marketing, earnings if you are willing to share, # of employees, and screen shots/links on your pages. Think shiny and colorful.

· Email them to [email protected]


Here’s a template (and here's the same thing in Word):

The Honorable Arnold Schwarzenegger
Governor, State of California
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Darrell Steinberg
California State Senate
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Dennis Hollingsworth
California State Senate
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Karen Bass
California State Assembly
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Sam Blakeslee
California State Assembly
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814


Subject: I Oppose the Sales/Use Tax Nexus bill (AB 178/Skinner)

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger, Senate President pro Tempore Steinberg, Speaker Bass, Minority Leader Hollingsworth, and Minority Leader Blakeslee:

My business will be devastated by the sales/use tax nexus bill. I am being discriminated against because I make my living by selling advertising on my website.

[Insert description of your business and how you earn a living from affiliate marketing. Include earnings state income taxes you paid last year, if you so choose, number of employees if applicable. And include links and screen shots. Keep it short!!! ]

This law would be futile: my partners will sever their advertising relationships with me; my income will be devastated and California will not collect sales tax anyway. I respectfully ask you to remove the sales/use tax nexus clause from the budget bill.

This bill is misguided for a simple reason: this bill only targets one small advertising segment, known as affiliate marketing, which my company relies upon.

Those out-of-state companies that will attain tax nexus as written in this bill will make the simple (and prudent) decision to stop their affiliate marketing programs with companies like mine — and the 25,000 other California online small businesses that rely on affiliate marketing revenue — because this channel of business is not meaningful enough in size to justify their paying of tax on all business they do in the state.

We are not opposed to tax collection, or a fair playing field, but this bill targets a segment of small businesses who will be irreparably harmed immediately, and the revenue collection will be dramatically lower as out-of-state companies simply choose to opt-out of affiliate marketing through California based businesses. This should be seen clearly as a poor choice.

Sincerely,


[Include name, business name and address]



Thanks everyone!!!

This comes from Rebecca Madigan, Founder of Performance Marketing Alliance, Inc. www.performancemarketingalliance.com whom we al have to thank for representing us.

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