Tax and Regulatory Policy Working Group Minnesota Government Information Access Council Draft Report - September 28, 1995 The Tax and Regulatory Policy Working Group has developed the following proposed statements of general policy and specific recommendations, based upon the two charges given to the Working Group: 1. to explore regulatory reform that will be necessary to ensure competitive, statewide, reasonable cost telecommunication services, and 2. to explore regulatory reform that will be necessary to help the state's public telecommunications network ensure the basic access to government information in electronic form on a statewide basis. The Report is the culmination of the work of the Working Group over the past eight months. This Report represents the consensus of the members of the Working Group and includes the input of all Working Group members. "Bill of Rights" Points A. The State should take the actions needed to ensure that all citizens of the State have B. The State should establish and maintain policies that ensure that government information is accessible in electronic form to all citizens and communities in Minnesota. C. The State should adopt regulatory and tax policies that encourage the development of competitive markets for telecommunications, applications, and information services which provide methods of access to government information. D. The State should adopt economic policies that assist individuals, businesses, and public and private institutions in obtaining access to the tools - equipment, applications, infrastructure, and training - they need to use in electronic form the government information that will let them be fully participating citizens in an electronic age. Strategies 1. The statutory goal for "Universal Service" should be, "Access to those electronic communications services, without regard for economic or geographic barriers, necessary for individuals, businesses, and communities to survive and thrive, particularly with respect to access to education, health care, businesses, culture and community, and government information." 2. The Legislature and Administration should periodically define those specific services which constitute Universal Service. 3. The State should establish a Universal Service Fund, designed to ensure Universal Service and funded on an equitable basis by all providers of telecommunications services. 4. The State should mandate that State agencies provide information in electronic form and provide services through electronic media. 5. State policies should encourage symmetry in the access and dissemination of information, where content is both consumed by and created by users. 6. The State should identify and review existing tax and regulatory policies which impede the development of content, tools, and applications, and should adopt policies which promote content, tools, and application development. 7. The State should continue to adapt its methods and jurisdiction for regulating providers of telecommunications services towards the point where effective competition in telecommunications services ensures reasonable cost telecommunications services throughout the State, and ensures development of telecommunications infrastructure throughout the State. 8. Until such time as there is effective competition in telecommunications services throughout the State, the State should have the legal power and the practical ability to intercede in the market, so as to avoid or prevent pricing disparities among groups of customers and/or regions of the State, and to ensure development of the telecommunications infrastructure throughout the State. 9. The State should create a formal mechanism to coordinate policy formation and oversight with respect to appropriations, regulatory, and tax policy to ensure continuity and consistency among federal, state, and local policies which affect telecommunications services. 10. At such time as there is effective competition in telecommunications services throughout the State, the State's oversight of the telecommunications services market should be limited to the extent necessary to ensure Universal Service, interoperability of telecommunications systems, and consumer protection as is provided in other competitive markets. 11. The State should not compete with private parties by creating a separate electronic infrastructure for the dissemination of government information, but should encourage and rely upon the emerging competitive market for telecommunications services to provide it with cost-effective means for distributing government information and receiving information from citizens. 12. State and local government procurement development of the market for diverse telecommunications services for all users in local communities. 13. Until such time as there are competing private systems for the dissemination of government information throughout the State, the State should provide financial assistance to public and private institutions to experiment with methods of making government information available to citizens in their area. 14. To stimulate demand for electronic access to government information and services, the State should provide individuals and businesses with tax incentives or other financial assistance to acquire and utilize the tools (including equipment, applications, content infrastructure, and training) which permit them to do so. 15. The State should provide public and private educational institutions with ongoing financial assistance for the purchase of tools and recurring costs of electronic access to government information. 16. Local units of government should comport their tax and regulatory policies with those established by the State. 17. The Working Group's definition of "telecommunications services" is, "Services for the two-way, interactive transfer of information by electronic means, including such technologies as traditional telephony, wireless, cable, and computers." 18. The Working Groups's definition of "effective competition in telecommunications services" is , "A condition where there are generally available in all populated locations throughout the State many providers of telecommunications services, and where there is organized and open transfer of information about the providers to the buyers." ---------------------------------------------------- Electronically Released 10/27/95. The above document has been forwarded to a GIAC final report composition team which includes two individuals from each working group. The composition team will send drafts back to the working groups and to the Executive Committee to ensure that the spirit of each groups work is covered in the final report. The final report will be presented to the legislature once the session begins in mid-January, 1996. Public comments are encouraged. All comments submitted about the working group drafts will be forwarded to the members of the composition team. Comments on the draft working group reports should be submitted as soon as possible. A draft version of the final report will also be made available for comment and will have a specific comment deadline. Please visit the GIAC WWW for more details at: http://www.state.mn.us/ebranch/admin/ipo/giac Public comments may be submitted via e-mail to: GIAC@state.mn.us - Or via the address, FAX, or telephone information below: Government Information Access Council Information Policy Office 320 Centennial Office Building 658 Cedar Street St. Paul, MN 55155 Telephone: 612-296-6451 TTY/TDD: 612-282-5599 or Greater Minnesota Relay 800-625-3539 and ask for 282-5599 Fax: 612-296-5800 E-mail: GIAC@state.mn.us