Majority of House Members Back Repeal of Maryland's Computer Services Tax

The efforts to repeal the controversial computer services tax on Maryland IT companies won critical bipartisan support yesterday. Seventy-two of the 141 members of the Maryland House of Delegates have co-sponsored House Bill 196 (HB 196) legislation to repeal the computer services sales tax enacted during the Legislature's November 2007 special session. Business organizations around the state, such as the Maryland Chamber of Commerce, the Tech Council of Maryland, and the Maryland Computer Services Association (MCSA), are working closely together to secure repeal of this tax.

"While still very early on in the legislative process, we are encouraged by the bipartisan support for our efforts to repeal Maryland's damaging computer services tax," said Tom Loveland, MCSA's co-founder and CEO of Mind Over Machines Inc. "Maryland's IT sector and business reputation will be dealt a serious blow if this sales tax stands as law. Computer services companies in Maryland now employ 68,000 people, and have an annual payroll of $5.2 billion. We cannot let these highly skilled workers and companies move to surrounding states, and we are already seeing this happen."