Federal Bill 602p
Guess the warnings were true. Federal Bill 602P 5-cents per E-mail sent.
It figures! No more free E-mail! We knew this was coming!! Bill 602P
will permit the Federal Government to charge a 5-cent charge on every
delivered
E-mail. Please read the following carefully if you intend to stay online
and continue using E-mail. The last few months have revealed an alarming
trend
in the Government of the United States attempting to quietly push through
legislation that will affect our use of the Internet.
Under proposed legislation, the US Postal Service will be attempting to
bill E-mail users out of "alternative postage fees."
Bill 602P will permit the Federal Government to charge a 5-cent surcharge
on every e-mail delivered, by billing Internet Service Providers at source.
The consumer would then be billed in turn by the ISP.
Washington DC lawyer Richard Stepp is working without pay to prevent this
legislation from becoming law. The US Postal Service is claiming lost
revenue, due to the proliferation of E-mail, is costing nearly $230,000,000
in revenue per year. You may have noticed their recent ad campaign: "There
is nothing like a letter."
Since the average person received about 10 pieces of E-mail per day in
1998, the cost of the typical individual would be an additional 50 cents a
day --
or over $180 per year -- above and beyond their regular Internet costs.
Note that this would be money paid directly to the US Postal Service for a
service they do not even provide.
The whole point of the Internet is democracy and noninterference. You are
already paying an exorbitant price for snail mail because of bureaucratic
inefficiency. It currently takes up to 6 days for a letter to be delivered
from coast to coast. If the US Postal Service is allowed to tinker with
E-mail, it will mark the end of the "free" Internet in the United States.
Congressional representative, Tony Schnell (R) has even suggested a "$20-$40
per month surcharge on all Internet service" above and beyond the
governments proposed E-mail charges. Note that most of the major newspapers
have ignored the story the only exception being the Washingtonian which
called the idea of E-mail surcharge "a useful concept who's time has come"
(March 6th, 1999 Editorial). Do not sit by and watch your freedom erode
away!
Send this E-mail to EVERYONE on your list, and tell all your friends and
relatives to write their congressional representative and say "NO" to Bill
602P.
It will only take a few moments of your time and could very well be
instrumental in killing a bill we do not want.
PLEASE FORWARD!
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