Panel of judges says a First Amendment challenge to Maryland’s digital ad tax should be considered

By BRIAN WITTE
Associated Press

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A federal appeals court has directed a lower federal court to consider the merits of a challenge to Maryland’s first-in-the-nation digital advertising tax on First Amendment grounds. But in the decision released Wednesday the panel of judges agreed with the lower court’s decision to dismiss three other challenges. It’s a law that attorneys for Big Tech have contended unfairly targets companies like Facebook, Google and Amazon. The legal case is being closely watched by other states that have also weighed a similar tax for online ads. The law taxes revenue that the affected companies make on digital advertisements shown in Maryland.