Today in Statism: How To Tax Cloud Computing?
17th July 2022
Taxing cloud computing is not my idea. It’s billionaire Mark Cuban’s idea. I first learned about it during his interview on the Pomp Podcast, then again in another interview with POLITICO. It’s a potentially profound idea that’s worth a deeper exploration and thoughtful discussion.
There aren’t a whole lot of details around it. Cuban’s proposal is a “2% cloud tax”. The motivation, I believe, is to use the tax revenue to fund long-term economic recovery from COVID-19, as well as evening the playing field between the hyper-scale cloud computing platforms and other less technically sophisticated businesses, especially in AI. These cloud platforms are often called “digital landlords” and for good reasons. The tech giants who built these hyper-clouds have massive advantages in building AI products and services that will continue to displace workers, who rely on low or predictable skills in both blue and white-collar industries.
So how do we tax the cloud in a way that does even the playing field but does not discourage innovation? Assuming 2% is the right tax rate, how should the 2% be applied?
The world is full of people who think they ought to have the right to spend your money whether you like it or not. The tax system is their primary vehicle (organized crime is Number Two).