This article originally appeared on the eBay Inc. blog on June 26, 2015

By John Donahoe

Today, President Obama signed the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill after weeks of sometimes contentious debate. TPA is a very important next step towards the much needed modernization of trade agreements. Today, over 95% of U.S. commercial sellers on eBay export internationally and updated trade agreements offer the best chance to reduce or eliminate many of the obstacles eBay businesses face when attempting to export.

Yesterday, U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) spoke on the Senate floor against efforts to pair the Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA) or the Remote Transactions Parity Act (RTPA) with a permanent extension of the Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA). In her speech, Senator Ayotte strongly criticizes the MFA/RTPA “scheme” which would force online retailers in New Hampshire to collect and remit sales tax on remote sales all over the country.

eBay would like to thank the following Members of Congress that recently demonstrated their continued support for small Internet-enabled businesses by voting in favor of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation. TPA is a critical first step toward securing strong trade agreements that modernize trade rules to ensure that small American businesses can use the Internet to access the global marketplace. 

During a speech this week from the Senate floor, ecommerce champion Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) spoke out against the Remote Transactions Parity Act (RTPA). Introduced on Tuesday by Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-UT/3), this legislation is just as onerous as the ironically named