Calif. AB 178 on Hold for Now

Small businesses and affiliates in California can breathe a little easier – at least for a few months.

California Assembly Bill 178, which was slated for a hearing on Monday, was canceled just hours before it was to be heard by the Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation. Although this is not a victory in the fight against taxes that unfairly target the affiliate marketing industry in California, it is a very positive development.

This means that AB 178 is now considered a two year bill and it won’t be voted on until January 2010 at the earliest. However, a lobbyist for Amazon advised keeping an eye on this issue as the contents of one stalled bill are often placed into another bill or the yearly budget and pushed through – most times without public notice. That could still happen with AB 178 unless those opposed remain vigilant.

Several people (including Commission Junction GM Kerri Pollard and 77 Blue CEO David Lewis) had made the trip up to Sacramento to testify at the hearing and were ready to talk about the negative impact of 178. Others, like myself, Karen Garcia of GTO Management and Trisha Lyn Fawver, were there to show solidarity for those testifying. It was somewhat anticlimactic to have the hearing of the bill to be canceled and not get to witness our peers’ testimony, but the current progress is well worth trip to the Capitol.

I’ve spent a lot to time focused on California 178, not only because California is my home state, but because I truly believe that the state’s huge economy makes it an influential policy making state. I’m hoping that other states with similar taxation proposals will follow California’s lead and table them for now or scrap them all together.

Thank you to everyone who worked hard on this issue in California and all the other states as well. I’m amazed at how everyone came together to fight these tax bills. Keep up the great work.