The House of Representatives voted unanimously today to ratify the law passed (also unanimously) by the Senate last week - effectively banning the introduction of taxes on Internet access to at least 2014.

The vote came just in time. The current law banning state and local governments from levying the taxes was scheduled to expire Thursday.

President Bush and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are aligned in supporting a ban on Internet taxation.

House Republican Whip Roy Blunt  summed up the only disagreement the two parties have on the issue, whic is how permanent the ban should be.

As quoted in C|Net, Blunt said: “When it comes to taxing the Internet, Republicans have not wavered in our belief that it ought not happen today, tomorrow, four years from now, or any time after that,” he said in a statement. “Democrats in Congress have taken a far more ‘nuanced’ position on the matter, having decided that imposing new taxes on our digital economy right now is unpalatable, but that resurrecting the plan sometime in the future may hold greater promise.”

Taxes already in place may continue. And  the ban only covers Internet connectivity for computers.  Voice, audio, or video programming” that charges consumers a fee, like Vonage, and basically any other “products and services” delivered over the Internet and not specifically exempted by the bill.

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