Md. House Panel Weighs Exempting News From Digital Ad Tax

The Maryland House Ways and Means Committee should support exempting news media from Maryland’s digital ad tax law, said local press and broadcaster associations at a virtual hearing Friday. The Maryland General Assembly overrode the governor’s veto of the tax law Feb. 12 (see 2102120050), drawing a lawsuit from business groups (see 2102180053). HB-1200 would remedy Maryland DC Delaware Broadcasters Association concerns, said counsel Tim Nelson. Broadcasting ad revenue is declining partly due to the big tech companies targeted by the tax, he noted. The bill “acknowledges the vital importance of Maryland's local news outlets,” said Rebecca Snyder, executive director of the Maryland, Delaware and District of Columbia Press Association. The exemption is narrowly tailored to newsgathering organizations, she said. It wouldn’t cover news aggregators but would cover small newspapers owned by larger entities like Gannett, she said. Del. Jason Buckel (R) doubted the effectiveness of the bill prohibiting tech companies from passing costs from the tax to small businesses. They might not be able to create an explicit fee, but Maryland can’t stop them from changing their pricing, he said. HB-1200 sponsor Del. Eric Luedtke (D) disagreed that tech companies would pass along the cost, even under the original bill, saying that's “fearmongering.”